Theses and maturity tests

On this page, you will find more information about theses: bachelor’s theses, master’s theses, and doctoral dissertations. Bachelor’s and master’s degrees and their theses are also closely linked to a maturity test, which must be completed before you can graduate.

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Bachelor’s thesis

What is a bachelor’s thesis?

Lower university degrees include a bachelor’s thesis and a maturity test.

Stages of a bachelor’s thesis

1. Register for and take the bachelor’s thesis seminar. In the seminar, instructions for writing the thesis are provided and your thesis will be discussed regularly throughout the seminar. The seminar lasts 1 to 2 terms.
2. Finish your bachelor’s thesis.
3. Submit your thesis for a Turnitin plagiarism check in Moodle according to the instructions provided during the seminar.
4. The teacher in charge of the seminar examines and assesses the thesis.
5. After finishing your bachelor’s thesis, take the maturity test.

Assessment criteria

You can find the assessment criteria for the bachelor’s theses in your own major subject from the study guide. If you are unhappy with your thesis assessment, you can ask for correction from the teacher who assessed the thesis.

Read more about the rectification procedure from the University of Lapland’s regulations on degrees

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Master’s thesis

What is a master’s thesis?

To graduate from a master’s degree programme, you will write a thesis – known as the master’s thesis – based on independent research on a topic approved by the professor of your major subject. You will also take a maturity test that is based on your master’s thesis. Master’s theses can also be written cooperatively by two or more students.

Stages of a master’s thesis

1. Register for and take the master’s thesis seminar. During the seminar, you will receive instructions on the thesis process and your work will be discussed regularly throughout the seminar. You will also become familiar with the master’s thesis style sheet, i.e. the formatting and layout instructions for preparing the thesis manuscript for publication. The seminar lasts typically about one academic year.
2. Finish your master’s thesis.
3. Write the following on the title page, one below the other:
   Author’s name
   THESIS TITLE
   Master’s thesis
   Subject and/or master’s degree programme
   Academic term and year (e.g. Autumn 2025)
4. Write an abstract for your thesis. Familiarise yourself with the instructions on thesis abstracts.
5. Submit your thesis for a Turnitin plagiarism check in Moodle according to the instructions provided during the seminar.
6. Once the Turnitin result has been approved, you will receive a publishing permit for the master’s thesis from your supervisor. Your supervisor will submit a PDF version of your master’s thesis and report the Turnitin result and another examiner to the faculty.
7. Agree on taking the maturity test with your supervisor. You can take it as an electronic exam or with alternative methods of examination.
8. The dean of your faculty will appoint two examiners who will give a statement on your thesis. You will receive the statement electronically before your thesis is submitted to the Faculty Council. Should you not be satisfied with the statement, you can submit a rejoinder to the statement to the Faculty Council or ask your thesis to be withdrawn from assessment to make corrections to it.
9. The Faculty Council will assess your thesis according to the statement provided by the examiners. Your graduation date in the transcript of records will be the date of the Faculty Council meeting in which your thesis is processed.
10. Once your thesis has been assessed and approved by the Faculty Council, upload the thesis to Lauda, the University of Lapland’s institutional repository (see instructions on uploading). When submitting your thesis to Lauda, you agree that your thesis will be made freely available for anyone to read, browse and print free of charge.
11. If you wish, you can print paper copies of your master’s thesis at your own expense in the University of Lapland Printing Centre.

Master’s thesis assessment

Familiarise yourself with the master’s thesis assessment criteria for your major subject in the study guide.

If you are unhappy with your thesis assessment, you can ask for rectification. Deliver the rectification request to your faculty’s Head of Study Affairs. The Faculty Council processes the rectification request.

Read more about the rectification procedure from the University of Lapland’s regulations on degrees

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Maturity test

What is a maturity test?

Maturity tests are part of bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes.

In a maturity test, your thesis supervisor presents a set of questions directly related to the topic of your thesis, and your task is to select one of these questions and write an essay-style response to it in English. The maturity test essay should be approximately 400 words long and you have four hours to write it.

Examination methods for maturity tests

Maturity tests for bachelor’s degrees are usually conducted as electronic exams in EXAM rooms. See more detailed instructions for taking a maturity test (PDF).

In master’s degrees, you can take the maturity test as an exam or alternatively by presenting a talk or writing a review, a blog post or a short article. Agree on the examination method of your maturity test with your supervisor.

Grading the maturity test

Maturity tests are graded on a Pass/Fail basis. The maturity test is assessed within four weeks.

In their assessment, the maturity test examiners focus on your familiarity with the thesis topic and your ability to produce an organised text that is both understandable and written in clear standard language.

Remember that the title and using proper paragraph division are part of writing skills. The maturity test is a pragmatic text, meaning that it should be written in clear and correct standard language.