Selected articles from the Regulation on Master study programmes Article 13 (admission) Admission requirements are set out in the accreditation of the Faculty of Social Sciences. Any student who has completed equivalent education abroad also meets admission requirements for the master study programmes. The equivalence of the education acquired abroad shall be determined in the process of recognition of foreign qualifications in accordance with the law governing the procedures and criteria for the recognition and evaluation of foreign education. Article 14 (number of places) Number of places for master study programmes is determined by the Senate of the University of Ljubljana, based on a proposal from the Senate of the Faculty of Social Sciences, at the annual announcement of master study programmes at least four months before the start of the study. Article 17 (elective courses) Electives should be chosen at the start of each academic year. Changing electives after enrolment is not possible. Each student can choose as many electives as is determined in the study programme. The student has the right to choose and apply for courses outside the study programme, provided there are still vacancies in elective courses. Article 32 (disciplinary responsibility of the students) In case of the student violating the rules of disciplinary liability as set forth in Regulations on Disciplinary Responsibility of students of University of Ljubljana, the supervisor of the master's programme is able to issue a proposal to the Vice Dean for a provisional decision on the prohibition of the provision of all or part of coursework, based on the proposal made by the lecturer together with the request for the establishment of liability for fraud examination, which according to the Regulations on Disciplinary Responsibility of students of University of Ljubljana is one of the more serious disciplinary offences. The authorized person proposes both measures at the same time. The Vice Dean may decide for a temporary ban on the exam in the course where exam misconduct has been found or, according to the weight of arguments, bans the student from all coursework. The prohibition applies for a period of 30 days or until the final decision of the Disciplinary Board. If the student is not served the summons to a hearing of the Disciplinary Board within the time limit, or if he or she appeals to the decision of the Disciplinary Board, the temporary decision shall be extended until the final decision on the disciplinary responsibility is reached or until the expiry of the limitation period for the establishment and maintenance of the disciplinary proceedings. The student receives the temporary decision in writing. Article 35 (exam misconduct and malpractice) Using notes or unauthorized aids, copying, talking to other students, exchanging examination paper or in any other way interfering with the implementation of the exam are considered violations of exam order. During the exam, students can only use those objects and aids that have been authorized by the lecturer or professor, and only for the purpose for which they are permitted. All other objects within range or used by the student shall be considered as unauthorized device. During the exam
all electronic devices (mobile phone, PDA, MP3 player, laptop, and other audio or video devices) must be switched off and stowed away out of reach of the student. The same applies for all larger items (bags, pencil cases, backpacks and other items of larger dimensions), and written material in any form. In all cases of violation of the examination order the student is not allowed to continue writing the exam and must leave the classroom, his/her written product is marked with the letter P (prepoved - banned). The student who violates examination rules may not take the exam in the next examination period. Repeated violation of examination rules is considered to be serious violation of the examination rules. In the case of serious violation, the student is proposed for disciplinary action, in addition to the measure stated above. Article 39 (exam registration) Each student must register online for an exam that he/she wishes to take at least three days before the exam date. If the student does not intend to take the exam on the date he/she registered for, he/she must withdraw online at least 3 days before the exam. Exceptionally, the student can withdraw from the exam on the day of the exam, if this is approved by the examiner. If the student does not withdraw from the exam and examination is performed, it is considered that the student did not take the exam. Late withdrawal from the exam does not exempt the student from paying for exam expenses set forth in the valid price list. VII. MASTER S THESIS Article 52 (definition of thesis) Master s thesis is written work set by the master s study programme. In their thesis, students must demonstrate knowledge of theoretical or practical questions or issues in the area of social sciences, apply appropriate methods of social science research, use both national and international sources, and demonstrate the ability of academic writing. Article 53 (authorship of thesis) Master's thesis must be the result of independent student work. Master's thesis may be the result of joint work of more students, in which case each student s input must be clearly evident and must meet the quantitative and qualitative requirements of the thesis. Declaration of authorship must be written on a separate form, signed by the author and attached to the thesis. Article 54 (length of thesis) The length of master s thesis is determined by the individual study programme. As a rule, it should not be less than 45 pages and not longer than 80 pages (15,000 to 20,000 words) without table of contents, index, list of sources and attachments.
Article 56 (deadlines of thesis topic proposal) Students enrolled in master study programme must submit their thesis proposal in their first year, and no later than 15 May. Students who do not meet this deadline, cannot submit their thesis proposal later in the current academic year and cannot defend their thesis in the current academic year, but can only do so in the following academic year, after 1 October. Thesis proposal is valid three years from the date of the submission of the application. After this period, the application is no longer valid and the student has to submit his/her thesis proposal again. Article 57 (thesis topic) If not otherwise specified in the study programme, students must submit their thesis proposal to justify the selection of the topic. In their application they should specify: a) relevance, objectives and importance of the thesis (200 400 words), b) hypotheses or research questions, based on relevant literature review and other sources used (50 150 words), c) methodology or methods of research (50 150 words), d) structure of the thesis (50 150 words), e) selected basic literature and other sources (15 units). Thesis application must be signed by the thesis supervisor and co-supervisor(s). Thesis application must be approved and signed by the coordinator of the specific master's programme. The application is then officially confirmed by the Commission for Study Affairs. Article 63 (corrections and additions to thesis text) When the student submits the completed thesis, thesis supervisor and/or co-supervisor must review it and return to the student together with suggested revisions and required changes, usually within 15 days or maximum within one month of submission. Thesis supervisor and possible co-supervisor review the thesis up to three times, if necessary. If the student does not apply the required changes and revisions to his/her thesis, the supervisor and possible co-supervisor can cease further cooperation. c) Format requirements of Master's Thesis Article 64 (cover and first inside page) The title page of the master's thesis should state: - UNIVERZA V LJUBLJANI written in capital letters on top of the page, centre alignment, FAKULTETA ZA DRUŽBENE VEDE written underneath it - name and surname of the student and the title of the master's thesis at the centre of the page, the caption 'Master's Thesis' underneath it - below, in the middle of the page the place and year should be indicated (e.g. Ljubljana, 2009). The first inside page is identical to the cover, except that the name and surname of thesis supervisor and possible co-supervisor, together with full academic titles, should be written under the name of the student. The inner cover should be written in black letters on white paper, without any images, logos, photos, etc. Article 65 (format guidelines of the master's thesis)
Master's thesis must be printed two-sided on A4-size paper and soft bound. Spiral binding is not allowed. After the title page, the thesis should include: - Acknowledgements (not an obligatory part of the thesis) - Declaration of Authorship (the form is available on the Faculty's homepage) - Abstract (on a separate page, including the title and 3 5 key words, in Slovenian and in English; single line spacing,150-250 words. - Table of Contents - Introduction - Main text - Results - Bibliography - Appendices Header(s) and footer(s) should not be used in the thesis. Article 66 (contents of master's thesis) If the study programme does not state otherwise, the thesis should include: - definition of selected topic - a clearly defined objective of the work and the working hypothesis, thesis or research question - conceptual-theoretical frameworks; - research based on starting points or hypotheses; - conclusions of theoretical and/or empirical nature - list of literature used (bibliography). Sources used should be properly cited in accordance with the Instructions for Editing Scientific and Academic Texts of the Faculty of Social Sciences. Article 67 (language of the thesis) Master's thesis is written in the Slovenian language. Exceptionally, a candidate may write a master's thesis in English if there is a valid reason (e.g. a foreign supervisor or co-supervisor, a foreign student). The request for the production of master's thesis in English should be submitted to the Office of Post-graduate Studies. Vice Dean decides on the request. If the thesis is not written in the Slovenian language, it should additionally include a summary in the Slovenian language (its length adequate to 10% of the main thesis text). This should be placed before the bibliography. In such case, the title on the cover and the inner cover of the thesis should be written both in English and Slovenian. Article 68 (master's thesis submission procedure) Students must submit their master's thesis to the Office of Post-graduate Studies by the 15th of each month, in order to be defended by the end of the following month, or until 1st September for defence in September. Students should insert their master's thesis text into the Turnitin software programme before submission. The student fills out a master's thesis submission form and gives it to his/her thesis supervisor for approval and confirmation. The supervisor confirms that the thesis meets all requirements regarding the content and structure, that the thesis complies with the Instructions for Editing Scientific and Academic Texts of
the Faculty of Social Sciences, that the supervisor is aware of the text similarity index from the Turnitin programme and that the thesis is in accordance with the study programmeme. With his/her signature, the supervisor also confirms the final title of the thesis and proposes examiners and members of the Committee for the defence. The student submits his/her master's thesis to the Office of Post-graduate Studies, in quadruplicate. In addition, the student should also submit a copy of the thesis in electronic format on CD or DVD,.doc or.rtf text format, in a single file. Along with the thesis, the student submits the master's thesis submission form, signed by the supervisor. The Office of Post-graduate Studies confirms that the student meets all requirements which are necessary for the defence. e) Defence and assessment of the thesis Article 69 (procedure before the defence) The Vice Dean confirms and appoints the Committee for defence within 10 working days, based on the supervisor's proposal. The office of Post-graduate Studies sets the date of the defence. Members of the Committee should state their disapproval of the suitability of the thesis for the defence. If they do not do so and if they confirm the proposed date of the defence, the thesis is considered appropriate for the defence. The whole process before the defence may last up to 45 days. The Committee for defence consists of three members. The supervisor and co-supervisor are both members by default. At least one member of the committee should be from another department, programme or faculty than the defending student. The Office of Post-graduate Studies provides each member of the Committee with a copy of the thesis. The supervisor must provide a formal evaluation of the work on a special form, until the day of the defence. Other members confirm the grade with their signatures. Article 70 (negative assessment of thesis) If any of the members of the Committee finds that he/she cannot perform the function of assessor, he/she may request a replacement. The Vice Dean decides on the request, the Commission for Study Affairs decides on possible appeals to the Vice Dean's decision. Any member of the Committee may propose a rejection of the work for content or linguistic reasons, or proposes corrections and/or additions to the work. In case of proposed corrections and/or additions, the Committee should inform the student in writing. The student must submit revised and corrected thesis within one month, after that his thesis is considered invalid and he/she must submit it and go through submission procedure again. If the Committee rejects the thesis by a majority of votes, the Vice Dean decides on the matter. The Commission for Study Affairs decides on possible appeals to the Vice Dean's decision. The student cannot defend the rejected thesis and must submit a new one. Article 71 (master's thesis defence) Prior to the beginning of the defence, the Committee for defence must review thesis submission documentation and documentation about the student.
Defence starts with the statement that the student has met all requirements and obligations. This is declared by the Committee president. Then the thesis supervisor presents report on the thesis. The student should present their work briefly in 10 minutes, using a variety of audio-visual aids of his/her choice. During the presentation, he/she may respond to Committee members' questions. Afterwards, the members of the Committee (other persons present only with the approval of the Committee president) have the opportunity to ask questions. Questions should be posed in such a manner that the student is able to answer them within the 30-minute time limit. Before answering the questions, the student is entitled to a 10-minute preparation. Article 72 (public announcement of defence grade) After the defence, the Committee for defence meets separately to consult on the success of the defence and to assess the thesis, with assessment suggestions proposed in the following order: supervisor, co-supervisor, committee president. The assessment must be agreed upon. If the agreement is not reached, a specific statement is written, including the separate opinion of the Committee member who did not agree with the assessment. The Committee member who disagrees with the assessment has the right to request cancellation of the grade. The Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences decides on the matter. If the thesis is exceptionally good, the Committee for defence may also consider whether the thesis should be nominated for the Preseren Award. Article 73 (thesis evaluation criteria) In the final evaluation and assessment of the thesis the Committee for defence refers to the following criteria: - clear definition of the research problem and the methodological approach - scientific excellence and practical value - breadth and depth of theoretical concepts and methodological correctness of the implementation - knowledge of domestic and foreign literature and consistency in its citing - research thoroughness - autonomy, profundity, originality, creativity and public acclaim (possible publication in scientific and academic literature) - linguistic competence. Article 74 (announcement of thesis grade) The committee shall assess the thesis and its defence together, with one of the following grades: excellent (10), very good (9), very good (8), good (7), sufficient (6) or insufficient (5). The decision on the grade of the thesis shall be recorded in the record of the thesis defence, signed by all members. This decision and the possible nomination for the award is read to the student and all those present at the defence by the committee president. During this, everyone is standing. The record of the defence also includes questions that were raised during the defence. Article 75 (negative assessment of thesis defence) If the defence is assessed as unsatisfactory by the Committee, a new defence deadline is determined; this should be within three months.
Article 76 (appeal against the assessment of thesis) The student has the right to appeal against the assessment of the thesis. A written complaint must be submitted within 24 hours after the defence (after thesis grade has been determined). The Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences decides on the appeal.