Master's student at the Department of Biosciences - useful information

You can find detailed information on how to fill out the master's agreement on the Mitt UiB page for your master's program.

You fill out the master's agreement after agreement with your main supervisor. The completed and signed agreement must be submitted to MittUiB.

The deadlines are as follows:
Master in Biology: Spring: 1 June/autumn: 10 December.
Master in Molecular Biology: Spring 1 June/autumn 1 December
Professional study in Fish Health - Aquamedicine: 1 June
Aquaculture (integrated master's program, civil engineering: Spring 1 June / autumn 1 December

Template for master's agreement: Master's agreement Norwegian/English   (external link)

Template for project description – can be found on the My UiB page for your master's program.

As a master's student, you will be part of a larger research project in academia, and you will get to take part in exciting research. Your supervisor may have certain requirements and expectations of you, and it can be difficult to know what is expected.

We have therefore compiled some points in this letter (link coming) to give students and supervisors a simple overview of what we expect from you as a master's student and what you can expect from your supervisor(s). Read the letter carefully and feel free to bring it with you to your first meeting with your supervisor to clarify expectations.

The allocation of financial support in connection with the collection of data for the master's thesis is intended to go towards direct expenses related to field and laboratory work. Only field work in Norway is supported.

All supervisors must guarantee that the master's project has its own operating funds that cover the expenses the master's student will incur. If this is not possible, a maximum of NOK 15,000 can be applied for as support for expenses.

There must be a financing plan in the project description with an overview of how any expenses will be covered. The master agreement and project description must be approved in order to apply for support.

The absolute deadline for applying for support is April 1.

You can find more information and an application form on the My UiB page for your study program.

The master's thesis provides 60 credits and is intended to be documentation of the master's project and thus the research part of the master's degree program. The master's thesis is usually the student's first opportunity for independent, scientific authorship. 

Information about how to write your master's thesis can be found on the My UiB page for your study program.

The submission deadline for the master's thesis is posted in Studentweb. There are fixed submission deadlines throughout the year ( Submission deadlines – external link)

You can find information about how to submit your master's thesis here: Master's thesis submission in Inspera (external link).

It is a good idea to start early by looking at how to submit the assignment. After you have submitted, check that you have submitted the correct version.

Supplementary rules to the Regulations on studies at the University of Bergen - Faculty of Natural Sciences and Technology, Chapter 6. Teaching, Supplementary rules to §6-7 (2)

The master's thesis has a clear time frame that corresponds to how many credits the thesis is worth. A 30-credit thesis corresponds to approximately 20 weeks of work, while a 60-credit thesis corresponds to around 40 weeks of work.

After you have submitted your supervision agreement (master's agreement), you can apply for a deferred submission if you have valid reasons. You must first clarify this with your supervisor, and the application should be submitted as early as possible – and no later than two months before the submission deadline.

You can apply for an extended submission deadline up to three times, but in total you cannot get more than six months of extra time.

You can find more information about what is considered valid reasons for deferred submission, as well as an application form, on the My UiB page for your study program. Please contact your study advisor early if you are considering applying for deferred submission.

Once you have submitted your master's thesis, you will take a final oral exam. This consists of a public presentation of the thesis and a subsequent interview with a committee of examiners. The entire exam can be taken digitally via Zoom if necessary.

The oral examination shall normally take place by the end of the fourth semester, and no later than two months after the thesis has been submitted. The supervisor is responsible for putting together the examination committee, which consists of one internal and one external examiner. The supervisor participates during the examination, but does not participate in assigning grades.

The exam begins with you presenting your thesis publicly at the department. The presentation lasts approximately 30 minutes, and the audience has the opportunity to ask questions afterwards. The time and place of the presentation will be announced in BIO's calendar (external link).

After the public part, the exam continues with a closed conversation between you and the examiners, where your supervisor may also be present. In this part, you will be asked questions about the assignment and have the opportunity to elaborate on your findings. The conversation usually lasts between 30 and 60 minutes.

The examiners have given a preliminary grade for the paper in advance, but both the presentation and the oral discussion can affect the final assessment. You can ask to be given a grade for the paper before the presentation, if you wish. When the discussion is over, you leave the room and supervise while the examiners discuss the grade. When they agree, you will be invited back and will be informed of the result immediately. If you want a justification for the grade, you must ask for it as soon as you receive it. You can read more about the guidelines for oral assessment here: Oral examination at UiB (external link) .

The supervisor provides information about working methods, effort and independence during the work on the thesis, but does not participate in the actual grading. The assessment of master's theses at the faculty is carried out in accordance with common grading guidelines that apply to all subject areas.

Link to the examiners file

Information about the diploma you can find here: Link to information page.

Contact – who do you contact about what?

Book study guidance

You can find contact information for subject committees and line associations here: Advice and committees at BIO (external link)

Safety in the lab, field and cruise: https://safetypass.w.uib.no/fieldwork-research-cruise-and-excursions/

Apply for a master's lecture hall place – link to MittUiB  (external link)

Sammen – mental health, training, courses, etc.

Fontenehuset  - Studying can be demanding, and sometimes you need more than just a reading room to stay focused.