Master's Thesis and Research Report Requirements
All students should review the procedures related to the Master's Theses and Research Reports submitted in the Graduate School of Asia Pacific Studies. This information is summarized in the flow chart below.
Examination Flow for the GSAM Master's Thesis and Research Report (PDF)
Features common to both Master’s Thesis and Research Report:
- They follow the same format (refer to "AY2014 Curriculum GSAM Procedures for Master's Thesis and Research Report").
- They require a submission and approval of a research proposal, outlining the topic, before the start of research.
- They require presentation at the Joint Research Presentations prior to submission.
- They are approximately 15,000 words long.
- They are submitted and examined within the same deadline and according to the same procedures.
- They are examined by two faculty members – the supervisor and another professor.
Characteristics of the Master's Thesis:
- Specific analytical frameworks with extensive literature review, research questions, and hypotheses as well as explicit methodology that is common to a given academic field.
- The empirical findings contain originality and contribute something new to the existing academic field.
Characteristic of the Research Report:
- It is recommended that analytical frameworks be set up; however, this is not compulsory. Research background and research objectives are clearly indicated.
- Collecting sufficient data and evidence to attain research objectives and analysis of this data in a logical manner towards reaching certain conclusions is required. It is not mandatory to contribute anything new to the existing academic field.
Main differences between the Master’s Thesis and the Research Report
- Most fundamentally, a Research Report only provides a summary or report of research done by others, while a Master’s Thesis contributes to something to the body of literature independent of the research done by others.
- Students interested in pursuing further research in a doctoral program, or as a professional researcher are recommended to write a Master’s Thesis because the process will introduce you to skills and methodology for doing research. Students who pursue professional careers not oriented to doing new research might find the information gathering process of a Research Report more suitable.
- Students should read the characteristics of both types and decide which one suits best to their research interests in consultation with their supervisor.
Notification of Intent to Submit a Master's Thesis/Research Report
All students in their final semester should submit a Notification of Intent to Submit a Master's Thesis or Research Report accompanied by a summary of their Master's Thesis/Research Report.
| Spring Semester | Fall Semester | |
|---|---|---|
| Submission Deadline | May 15 | November 5 |
| Submission Location | Academic Office | |
Notification of Intent to Submit a Master's Thesis/Research Report
- Note:
- Failure to submit this form may result in inappropriate selection of examiners which may also affect the entire examination process and result.
Submission Requirements and Deadlines
APS & ICP students in their last semester must submit their Master's Thesis/Research Report according to the submission schedule below.
| Spring Semester | Fall Semester | |
|---|---|---|
| Submission | June 15 | December 5 |
| Notification of the Examination Results | July 5 | December 25 |
| Resubmission | July 25 | January 15 |
| Notification of the Final Results | August 5 | January 30 |
- Notes:
- 1. If the deadline falls on a weekend or a holiday, or a day when the office is closed, the deadline will move to the immediately preceding working day.
- 2. All Master's Theses and Research Reports must be submitted by 16:30. Any papers submitted after this time will not be accepted.
Master's Thesis / Research Report Submission
One (1) soft copy of the Master's Thesis / Research Report must be submitted to the Academic Office for examination. The soft copy must be submitted to "Moodle".
A designated title page must be attached to the Master's Thesis / Research Report upon submission. All required information on the title page must be typed. The form is available for download from the link below. Master's Theses / Research Reports without attached title page will not be accepted under any circumstances.
Master's Thesis / Research Report Title Page (for examination)
Important Notes:
- Submission of hard copies of the Master's Thesis / Research Report is not required as the entire examination is conducted using the soft copy submitted to "Moodle". Please make sure that the file includes all required sections.
- Announcement of examination / re-examination results are made via Moodle. Details are announced prior to the result notification.
- Only one file can be uploaded to "Moodle" at a time. You may resubmit as many times as you would like before the due date.
- Make sure that you allow yourself sufficient time to upload your file to Moodle so that you meet the above deadline. Moodle will automatically reject file uploads from 16:30.
- Please be aware that there are limits to the size of the files as well as the page numbers that can be uploaded to "Moodle".
Master's Thesis / Research Report Revision and Re-Examination
All students whose examination result was decided as "Minor Revision" or "Major Revision" must revise their Master's Thesis / Research Report according to the examiners' recommendations and resubmit the updated version for re-examination.
The revised Master's Thesis / Research Report must include responses to the examiners' comments and students are asked to attach this to their revised Master's Thesis / Research Report.
Master's Thesis / Research Report Re-Submission
One soft copy of the Master's Thesis / Research Report which was required to be revised must be resubmitted to the Academic Office for re-examination. The soft copy must be submitted to "Moodle" (https://lms.apu.ac.jp/).
The designated title page must be attached to the Master's Thesis / Research Report upon re-submission. All required information on the title page must be typed. Master's Theses / Research Reports without attached title page will not be accepted under any circumstance.
Procedures for Master's Theses and Research Reports
For information on the process of Master's Thesis/Research Report submission and evaluation, please refer to the "AY2014 Curriculum GSAM Procedures for Master's Theses and Research Reports" available at the following link.
Archiving of the Master's Thesis & Research Report
A final soft copy of all Master's Theses and Research Reports that have received a passing grade must be submitted to the Academic Office for storage by the University. Copies of Master's Theses and Research Reports will be archived in the APU Library. Upon permission by the student, the final version of the Master's Thesis / Research Report will be also uploaded onto the APU online repository R-Cube.
It is recommended that the sample attached below is used as a front page of the finalized copy of the Master's Thesis / Research Report submitted for archiving in the APU Library.