Praise for thesis supervisors

In the period from the summer semester 2014 to the winter semester 2014/15, students at the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences were surveyed for the first time on their satisfaction with the support they received from university lecturers in the last module of their degree course - the final module. The aim was to assess various aspects from finding a topic for the diploma, bachelor's or master's thesis to the consultations and the defense of the thesis.

The evaluation is based on the statements of 244 students - this corresponds to around a third of all graduates of the final module in the period under review. Around three out of four participants were able to contribute their own wishes/ideas to the topic of their thesis. This opportunity is appreciated by many students. Overall, the students were satisfied to very satisfied with the initial phase of the module - in addition to finding a topic, this also applies, for example, to the information on academic work and the agreements on the course of supervision. The survey results also show a high level of satisfaction with the supervision phase - for example the availability of the university supervisor and the efficiency of the consultations - and the final phase - for example the required assessment period and the transparency of the assessment. The average time between the submission of the thesis and the announcement of the assessment result was 3.3 weeks, at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering even only 1.5 weeks. The examination regulations of the degree programs specify a maximum of four weeks for this.

The survey is part of the university's internal determination, assessment and continuous improvement of the quality of teaching and studies. In 2015 and 2016, graduates of the final module were or will also be surveyed in order to identify developments and trends. The report with the individual results from 2014 is available via OPAL (access for university members only).