Master’s thesis Water Science and Management

Course goals

• translate a problem related to climate change adaptation and the role of water management therein into a research question, based upon relevant state of the art scientific and other literature;
• develop a research plan, choosing and justifying appropriate methodologies for data collection;
• conduct the empirical work needed and analyse the collected data;
• interpret the findings in the light of solving the given problem;
• write a scientifically sound report about the findings geared to the target audience;
• devise sound recommendations on how to contribute to the development of sustainable adaptation to climate change
• orally present the findings to an audience of both specialists and non-specialists;
• conduct a full research cycle showing adequate autonomy, creativity, time management and cooperation with supervisors.

Content

The Master’s thesis is a research project in which the student learns to conduct independent academic research, applying new or existing methods to a problem relevant for climate change adaptation and the role of water management therein.

The Master’s thesis research can take the form of an academic research project or be linked to on-site training during an internship. An academic research project can be conducted at Utrecht University or another university in the Netherlands or abroad. Linking the thesis research to an internship is encouraged and allows the student to obtain insight into the demands and constraints of doing research within the day-to-day practice of the professional water sector.

The Master's thesis is always supervised by an (internal) university supervisor. For internships and external academic projects, the student will work under the guidance of a supervisor at the place of internship or research, and will have regular meetings with the (internal) university supervisor to discuss updates of achieved progress in the form of written concept-versions of the Master’s thesis.

The student is expected to show ample initiative to realize the goals of the defined research. Student's tasks includes collecting and analyzing relevant scientific and other literature, approaching specialists or other relevant persons for additional information or assistance on research related methods and skills, making timely and regular appointments with the internship supervisor and university supervisor, etc. Learning-by-doing is part of the project. The student is encouraged to attend meetings or conferences etc. that are relevant to the research work.

Note
For the 2025 and later cohorts, the Master's thesis is 45 EC only (GEO4-6006).