education

6 months, 80-120 pages

At many German universities, the following rule of thumb applies: achelor’s theses are 40 to 60 pages long, and Master’s theses are around 80 to 120 pages. Some universities also specify the expected scope in words, which is then between 15,000 and 20,000 words.

Still others only specify the processing time, but do not express any limitation in terms of the number of pages or words. Depending on whether you are writing your Master’s thesis in three or six months, you can use the following rules of thumb as a guide: 3 months processing time = 60-80 pages, 6 months processing time = 80-120 pages

German Master’s thesis

A master’s thesis is a scientific or artistic work that is written for the completion of a master’s degree. The master’s thesis generally serves as proof that the examinee is able to write a scientific or artistic work independently, but with supervision.

The academic master’s degree is usually awarded with a university examination. The state degree Master is usually awarded through a state final examination. In Germany, this final examination of a master’s course usually consists of a course-related part, the examination or final thesis and the oral final examination (at some universities).

For quality assurance, the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education stipulates that master’s degree courses must be completed with a final thesis (master’s thesis), “which demonstrates the ability to independently work on a problem from the respective subject using scientific methods within a specified period of time.”

In the absence of a clear regulation, the The author of the master’s thesis continues to be referred to as “Diplomand” in everyday life, even if the term “master’s student” is also found. The Master’s thesis is usually either the last examination or the penultimate examination before the final oral examination.

60 to 120 pages

The exact administrative, content and formal requirements for writing a master’s thesis vary from university to university and result from the respective examination regulations. The topic of the thesis is usually chosen by the candidate for the Master’s degree and worked on in four to six months.

Common formal requirements are: a volume of 60-120 pages, A4 format, bound form, pagination, bibliography, table of contents and an affidavit stating that you have created the work yourself and that the quotations and sources used have been identified (i.e. has not submitted any plagiarism).

After the work has been assessed by two professors or lecturers, usually a written exam and always an oral exam, the author of the work is awarded the academic degree Magister Artium (MA for short). In Germany it is traditionally referred to by the family name, in Austria the degree Magister is awarded (short Mag.) in front of the family name.

STEM vs. non-STEM

Many factors should generally be considered when answering the question of how long is a PhD dissertation. However, students should limit their writing between 80,000 and 100,000 words. On average, this document should have around 204 pages. But, the average length of a PhD thesis also depends on the university and the specific subject.

Essentially, a university can set the requirements of a dissertation, including the length. Nevertheless, most institutions opt for around 100,000 words. Research has shown that STEM dissertations have a medium length of 159 pages. Non-STEM dissertations, on the other hand, have a medium length of about 223 pages. Thus, there is a significant difference in length between STEM and non-STEM dissertations.

Columbia University 250-300 pages

A typical dissertation runs between 250 and 300 pages, divided into four or five chapters, often with a short conclusion following the final full-scale chapter.

There is no set minimum or maximum length, but anything below about 225 pages will likely look insubstantial in comparison to others, while anything over 350 pages may suggest a lack of proportion and control of the topic, and would probably take too long to write.

Technical University Munich

There is no mandatory length of a thesis. Most well-written master’s theses have between 50 and 80 pages, Bachelor’s theses typically have between 40 and 60 pages. However, depending on your topic and your writing style, more or fewer pages may be appropriate.

Be aware that your thesis will only be evaluated based on the written document and the defense. If you did some nice work (that you might have shown to your adviser at some point) and forget to add it to your written document, it cannot be evaluated.

Harvard Ph.D. 100-300 pages

Graduate School of Arts and Sciences: “Most dissertations are 100 to 300 pages in length. All dissertations should be divided into appropriate sections, and long dissertations may need chapters, main divisions, and subdivisions.”

40 – 80 pages

University of Houston – Jeremy Bailey Susan Scarrow writes:

A master’s thesis is generally 40-80 pages, not including the bibliography. However, the length will vary according to the topic and the method of analysis, so the appropriate length will be determined by you and your committee. Students who write a master’s thesis generally do so over two semesters.

A master’s thesis is a piece of original scholarship written under the direction of a faculty advisor. A master’s thesis is similar to a doctoral dissertation, but it is generally shorter and more narrowly focused.

As a rule of thumb, a master’s thesis should be publishable as a single article, though it might be longer than a typical article; a doctoral dissertation is generally equivalent to at least three articles.

Students who chose to write a master’s thesis rather than a bibliographic essay often do so because they are interested in pursuing further research, for instance in a doctoral program in political science or another discipline, or as a researcher in a public agency.

Long-term planning

The Technical University of Dortmund in Germany:

What will the city look like in the future? How do we deal with climate change? What will tomorrow’s transportation look like? How do we use the limited space we have? Spatial planning is an interdisciplinary engineering and social science field that deals with spatial developments in living, working and environmental conditions.

The different spatial levels range from the living environment and residential quarter to the urban district, the city as a whole, the region, the state and federal levels, and even the European and international levels. On all spatial levels, different technical orientations, such as urban development, housing, traffic, landscape, are considered in their interdependent relationships and effects.