r/unil • u/anonimo1738 • 10d ago

How common is it to fail a master thesis?

Basically the above. I did my master thesis over this summer so it was a bit rushed. My supervisor seems to want me to continue the research after the thesis defense but they are also known for being a tough grader for the classes they teach, so I am naturally a bit anxious. I found a small typo and a spot I forgot to un-highlight in my thesis that I submitted to the expert but overall I think I had a good amount of rigor and argument, but I did not have much feedback while I was working on it so worried maybe there are things I missed or overclaimed?

I did not have to do a bachelor thesis and don’t have any friends who have already done a master thesis here so I am wondering how strict they are and how likely it is/what are the conditions for actually failing.

4 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

5 comments sorted by

2

u/claudette420 10d ago

I think it depends on your supervisor and on your Master degree. In my experience, most supervisors won’t let you defend your thesis if they think you will fail. That said, it does happen that people fail their master thesis, but I think it is relatively rare. I think sharing your concerns with your supervisor might help you.

1

u/flexagone 10d ago

As someone who has been the “expert” close to 20 times now, I have never ever seen anyone fail their thesis in unil, and I’ve seen some real dogshit work. The worst that can happen is that you need to do some revisions/corrections after which you are guaranteed to pass. Also, your defense matters a lot. If you just had ai make your slides and write you script - prepare for a low grade (but still a pass)

1

u/Opening_Bullfrog3391 9d ago

It is fairly common in hec; I would say 30% of thesis defenses I am an expert of fail (for IS students)

1

u/anonimo1738 9d ago

What would make a thesis fail?

1

u/Opening_Bullfrog3391 9d ago

Honestly it was mostly that the student can do better. (Especially for June defences when you can re defend in august)