123822 SE DiplomandInnenseminar = MA-Seminar (Literature/Cultural Studies) (2011W)

This class will serve as a forum where students working on their M.A. and Ph.D. theses can present their findings, address issues of special interest and discuss problems arising from their research. It will thus provide opportunities for scholarly discussion among peers, link up students working in similar fields and offer methodological guidelines as well as practical advice and critical feedback. Very often, similar problems arise in the course of larger research projects so that exchange of opinions and comparison of strategies for solving such problems have generally proved helpful and inspiring for students. There will also be room for discussing literary theory. All students specialising in literature and cultural studies are welcome, but students supervised by Profs. Rubik and Huber are particularly encouraged to attend.

Contents: The seminar is addressed to students of English who are currently writing on an M.A.-, diploma- or Ph.D.-thesis in the field of English literature and/or cultural studies. The seminar will provide some guidelines and practical advice in structuring and writing a research paper and offer a feedback to students individually in response to the presentation of the study-project by each participant. The seminar is also intended to advance students' knowledge of conventional and computer-based research methodologies, to alert them to the pitfalls of plagiarism and to familiarize them with the requirements of the final oral exam (Diplomprüfung, defensio) by means of Reading Lists and topics from previous exams.