Instructions for writing student theses at the FIB

Download as PDF (in German) (last changed: 12.05.2025)

If you have any questions, please contact Ulrike Schirmer.

The registration of theses (Bachelor's or Master's theses) takes place in the following steps:

• The student sends an enquiry to the Examinations Office (Wagner/Nöthlich), which issues the application for admission to the thesis if the formal requirements are met.
• Contact is made with the supervising professor to discuss and finalise the topic of the thesis.
• The topic is entered in the application form, which is signed (student and first examiner) and handed in to the Examinations Office; the supervising professorship is responsible for handing it in.
• After receipt of the processing number and formulation of the final assignment (by the supervising professorship - if necessary in consultation with you, cooperation partners, companies, etc.), this is sent to the Examination Office by the professorship.
• The binding assignment and the title page signed by the chair of the examination board can be collected from the supervisor or the office of the supervising professorship after approx. 3 weeks.
• At the same time, the declaration on the further use of the research results (form) and the declaration of independence must be completed and signed by the student. The use of generating AI must be expressly authorised by the examiner (Freigabeerklärung).

Basic structure

• Title page
  • The title page contains the name of the student, matriculation number, date and topic as well as the name of the first examiner, the supervisor and the supervising professorship. For Bachelor's and Master's theses, the title page with the signature of the chair of the examination board must be collected from the secretariat of the supervising professorship (see registration for the thesis). The title page and the assignment are to be included in one copy as an original and in all further copies as a copy without changes.
• Signed terms of reference, together with explanations
• Table of contents
  • If a subchapter is created for a main chapter, there must be at least one second subchapter.
  • A visual separation of different organisational levels is recommended, e.g. by indenting the subchapters.
• List of formula symbols and abbreviations
• Introduction/problem definition
• Literature/Theory
  • The literature section should cover a maximum of ¼ of the work and represent a concentrate as well as highlight the open questions.
• Experimental part - Evaluation
  • Materials/chemicals used, preparation steps, experimental procedures, etc. must be precisely documented and standards used must be stated. Generally known facts contained in exercise instructions, textbooks, standards, etc. do not belong in a thesis. It is therefore unnecessary to describe XRD, spreading test, DTA, ESEM etc.
• Summary and conclusions, outlook
  • The summary should reflect the main results of the thesis on a maximum of 3 pages.
• Indexes Literature, if applicable tables, figures
• Annex, beginning with List of Appendices
• Declaration of independence

Formatting

The following format settings have proven to be favourable for good readability:

• DIN A4 with 3 cm wide margins on the right and 2 cm wide margins on the left and 2 cm wide margins at the top and bottom.
• Line spacing: 1,3
• Font size: e.g. Times New Roman 12, Arial 11, Computer Modern (LATEX) 10
• Tables: Caption above, Figures: Caption below; both with reference to the source, if applicable

Any other settings must be agreed with the supervisor.

Length of the work in pages

The thesis must be submitted twice in printed form and additionally in digital form as a non-copy-protected document (DOCX and PDF file), including all additional measurement tables, images and the signed declaration of independence in German (English only after consultation with the supervisor or professor).

Theses are defended orally with a presentation. Please refer to the examination regulations that apply to you. The online tutorial "Wissenschaftliches Arbeiten" of the Faculty of Civil Engineering at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar provides further information on writing student theses.

• Notes on good scientific practice at BU Weimar
• Citation and labelling of AI content (German)
• Guideline for ensuring good academic and artistic practice at the Bauhaus University Weimar
• Preparation of laboratory practicum reports (German)
• Template of the declaration of independence (German)