The objective of the skills training is to successfully start working on your master thesis and plan the road ahead so that we can assign a thesis supervisor to your thesis project. After having completed the skills training you should have a clear idea on:
* The research topic of your master thesis;
* The research question that you will investigate;
* The research approaches that you can use to collect/analyze data and/or to develop a decision making tool;
* The specific quantitative methods required to realize the research project.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT METHOD(S) USED IN THIS COURSE IS WITH RESERVATION. A RE-EMERGENCE OF THE CORONAVIRUS AND NEW COUNTERMEASURES BY THE DUTCH GOVERNMENT MIGHT FORCE COORDINATORS TO CHANGE THE TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT METHODS USED. THE MOST UP-TO-DATE INFORMATION ABOUT THE TEACHING/ASSESSMENT METHOD(S) WILL BE AVAILABLE IN THE COURSE SYLLABUS.

For this purpose, the skills training consists of two key elements:
1. Developing a research proposal. This can be done through literature and self-study or consultation with a potential thesis supervisor;
2. Lectures that provide you with more information about:
* Writing a master thesis in general, e.g., how can you find a topic, what is a typical structure of academic/industrial report, collecting data;
* Quality standards in academic/industrial report writing;
* Approaches in academic research, e.g., empirical studies and validation, modelling, simulations, proof techniques, policy/protocol development, algorithm design, complexity analysis, surveys;
* Ethics aspects and scientific integrity.