Master's thesis topic is agreed with a professor from the subject field of your major. There are three primary sources for finding a topic:

• topics offered by research groups as a part of ongoing research projects (announced on department websites, during courses, etc.)
• individual topics offered by professors (announced on professor's websites or agreed individually)
• topics offered by companies, the public sector, etc.

There is no general list of available topics, in all cases, you should contact the corresponding professor directly yourself. If you do not find a funded thesis position, you may always do your thesis in one of the university's research groups without funding. All supervisors are obliged to offer you a topic. You can also suggest a topic based on your own interest. Descriptions of possible thesis topic areas by professors in each programme:

Electronics and Nanotechnology
Automation and Electrical Engineering
Computer, Communication and Information Sciences

Get to know also the possibilities of project-based and multidisciplinary Aalto Thesis programme

The supervisor of the thesis must be a professor or a university lecturer working in Aalto University. You must also have one or two advisors for your thesis. A Master's thesis advisor must have completed at least a Master's degree.

The Supervisor’s responsibility is to provide guidance on the scientific validity and format of the thesis and the thesis as a whole.

Advisor's role is to take care of daily guidance and support the student in the planning and execution of the experimental part of the thesis as well as in the writing process. The supervisor of the thesis can also work as the advisor.

At the beginning of the thesis process, the supervisor and the student (and possibly advisor(s)) should organize an initial master's thesis meeting (template here).

Topic is applied electronically in eAge system (enter application form). With the application you must attach a confirmation about the topic from your supervisor (for example a screenshot of an e-mail discussion or a separate document).

You can apply for thesis topic approval when:

• you have completed your Bachelor's degree (graduation date passed)
• you have an approved personal study plan for the Master's degree

The thesis topic and the completed thesis cannot be approved in the same committee meeting. The Master’s thesis topic is valid for one year from the date of approval. However, the target time for completing the thesis is six months. Time used for completing the thesis affects the thesis evaluation. Note, that this time period is not calculated from the approval date of the topic but from the actual start date of the thesis as agreed and judged by the supervisor.

If you have problems completing your thesis within the target time, please contact your supervisor as soon as possible. The thesis supervisor can extend the target time if there is a good reason for it.

Re-approval of the topic is needed if:

• the topic expires before the thesis is ready (same topic can be re-approved)
• the topic changes significantly (minor changes to the title don't require re-approval)
• the supervisor and/or the advisor(s) change

Support courses for thesis writing:

• ELEC-E0210 Master's Thesis Process
• LC-1320 Thesis Writing for engineers (MSc) (w)
• LC-1315 Tools for Master's Thesis

Other support services:

• Writing clinic (language support for writing in English offered by the language center)
• Starting Point of Wellbeing’s Theses & Tomatoes
• Turnitin (online tool for practicing scientific writing and prevention of plagiarism

Write your thesis on a master's thesis template. Two templates are available:

• Thesis template for LaTeX (recommended). For LaTeX use Aalto provides free accounts for students on Overlief (a web-based Latex tool) or you can download a free Latex software on your own computer.
• Thesis template for Microsoft Word.

Please note that the Master’s thesis is a public document once it has been approved. The thesis can't have any confidential sections. If there are confidential sections, only the "visible" part of the thesis will be evaluated and the thesis must form a coherent whole also without the concealed parts. Read more about theses as public documents.

In order to have your Master's thesis approved:

• check the application deadlines (see topic approval section above)
• convert your thesis into pdf/A format (instructions)
• fill in the online application form in the eAge system for the approval of your thesis
• attach a pdf/A version of your thesis in the online application form
• if you also want to apply for graduation, see the instructions under Graduation.

Please make sure that the electronic version submitted in the application is the final and corrected version of your thesis. Your supervisor will write the evaluation statement on the basis of this electronic version. Also, this version is the one that will be evaluated by the degree programme committee. In addition, this will be the archive version which is used for example as the official copy of the thesis in thesis grade appeal cases.

The degree programme committee evaluates and grades the thesis based on the written statement and grade proposal provided by the thesis supervisor. The evaluation statement will be provided to the student after the Committee meeting and at the same time when the student receives information on the Committee's decision. The evaluation decision is subject to appeal, i.e., students dissatisfied with the evaluation may submit an appeal.