You need 120 credit points to successfully complete the Master Communication Management. You receive these credit points by passing the module examinations and the Master's thesis. On this page you will find all the important information about examinations and the Master's thesis.
A module registration at the Institute for KMW is at the same time the examination registration. Detailed information on module enrolment can be found on the Faculty's website.
Enrolment takes place via the online enrolment system TOOL.
If you have problems with enrolment, you can use the contact form of the enrolment team.
Notes on the Formalities of Scientific Work
In the IfKMW degree programmes, no citation method is mandatory in examination papers.
However, we recommend citation according to APA (version 7, 2020), as is common internationally for most communication science journals and books: Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed). or, with many application notes, the APA-Style Introduction der Purdue University. There you will also find advice on the correct formatting of figures and tables.
Other citation styles are possible if they are consistently followed, complete and verifiable. Even in the case of indirect citations of books or longer texts, page numbers should be given and no blanket references should be made.
When writing in German, observe the rules of the Rat für deutsche Rechtschreibung as the authoritative authority (this is not the Duden) and pay particular attention to correct punctuation.
A compendium on gender-sensitive language in communication management/PR can be found at BdKom. We recommend neutral forms that are inclusive and accommodate the reading habits of different target groups. If you deviate from this and, for example, use the generic masculine or forms that deviate from German spelling (inverted commas, inverted colons, etc.), this should be noted and justified in an appropriate place.
In case of doubt, clarify formalities with the examiner.
Examination Management in the Degree Programme
During your studies, you will often come into contact with the examination management as part of the study office. The contact person for the Master Communication Management is Saskia Bille (office in the GWZ, Beethovenstraße 15).
The Examination Management Office will support you with questions regarding examination formalities and will ensure that your academic achievements appear in Alma Web.
Area of responsibility
Examination Management is responsible for a range of different tasks relating to examinations. These tasks include
- Exam registrations
- Examination dates / registration deadlines
- Recognition of prior examinations / examinations taken at other universities
- Admission to examinations / withdrawal from examinations
- Practical courses
- Announcement of examination results
- Receipt of objections
- Issuing certificates
Information
Please always state your matriculation number when making enquiries in order to ensure smooth processing. If you have questions regarding module registration/deregistration, please also state the module title and the corresponding module number. The application for the 2nd repeat examination must be submitted to the chairperson of the corresponding examination board.
It is the task of the examination boards to coordinate the examination procedures for the degree program in question and to monitor compliance with them. The examination boards are therefore responsible for all matters relating to examinations and the recognition of academic achievements in a degree program. The respective examination board takes care of complaints or objections from students against the examination procedure. It is also obliged to report regularly to the faculty on the development of study times and examination results.
There are three examination boards at the Institute of Communication and Media Studies to cover the various programs. Each of the committees has a chairperson and several members. The members are made up of representatives from the group of university lecturers, academic staff, and students.
The current composition of the examination board for the M.A. Communication Management programme can be found in the information on boards and commissions of the faculty.
Master's Thesis
You have 23 weeks (five months) from the time the topic is issued by the examination management to work on the Master's thesis. You will receive 25 LP for the Master's thesis.
Three copies must be submitted to the study office (examination management) in due time.
The Master's thesis should have a length of 80 to 100 pages (text), but in no case more than 120 pages. In addition, there is the appendix (bibliography, transcribed interviews, questionnaire, statistical tables, etc.). If necessary, parts of the appendix can only be submitted digitally; this should be clarified in advance with the first reviewer. Furthermore, please note:
- Font size 11-12 points, line spacing 1.25 to 1.5 points, right margin at least 2.5 cm.
- Print/copy and bind on one side only
- Include title page, table of contents, list of figures, statement of independence
- Abstract/summary of the thesis (1/2 page, German and English)
- Attach a USB stick with the complete thesis as a PDF (one document) to each copy.
- Confidential documents (e.g. interview transcripts) can be placed in the appendix or in a second volume, so that the main volume can be passed on to third parties if necessary.
- Content and interview partners anonymised in the text must be disclosed to the reviewers in any case, if necessary in a separate document.
Master's theses are scientific papers in which students prove that they can work on a problem from the discipline of communication management using scientific methods within a given period of time. In this respect, they are not conceptual papers or other applications of established practices. According to the examination regulations, an examination of the relevant state of research is expected; in the course of the Master's thesis, it must become clear what distinguishes one's own approach and why it was chosen.
The supervision of the Master's thesis is carried out by the university professors of the Institute as well as other academics (PostDocs) who are entitled to examine the thesis as the first examiner. In addition, the theses are graded by a second examiner.
Topics can be chosen freely, but must be agreed with the supervisors in good time. It is advisable to take up suggestions from the seminars and research projects in the degree programme or research projects at the institute, as this makes it easier to get started. It is also helpful to take a look at previous Master's theses in the PR archive in the Communication and Media Studies Archive of the IfKMW.
In order to present the topic ideas and assign the supervisors, a pitch of the Master's thesis topics planned for the following semester is held each semester in front of the professors of the department (approx. in February or May). More detailed information will be provided in good time.
The processing period for theses in the Master's degree programme Communication Management begins uniformly on 1 April or 1 October for all Master's theses written in the summer or winter semester and is 23 weeks.
The registration form must be signed in advance by both examiners and the examination committee and submitted to the Examination Management (Study Office). Sufficient time must be allowed for this after agreeing the topic with the supervisor on the basis of a synopsis.
The application form and information on how to contact the study management can be found here.