Column: Searching for a masters thesis topic
Posted 10:47 PM by Internal Voices in Labels: 6th edition
Mads Helbo Laursen, intern at FAO Liaison Office with the European Union and Belgium
Here is a column on my search for a topic for my Master’s thesis! I study political science at the University of Aarhus in Denmark and currently am an intern at the FAO office in Brussels. When I finish my internship mid-July, I will still have another semester at university, and then afterwards, maybe in February 2010, I will start writing my Master’s thesis. So, luckily, I have some time left to find a topic. So far, the European Union has been my main academic interest and, obviously, it’s the reason I chose to come to Brussels.
Prior to this internship I thought that my Master’s thesis should involve the EU and have a Danish angle to it (like my Bachelor’s thesis, which was about the changing approach to the EU in a specific Danish political party). I didn’t know that much about the UN system before I started my internship and, perhaps unsurprisingly, my first two months at the FAO office in Brussels have already affected my thesis ideas. It’s been a really exciting experience so far. The director and my other colleagues at the office have been most helpful and willing to tell me more about FAO and the UN system in general. Moreover, I have learned a lot about the relationship between the EU and the UN. I’ve come to realize that basically the EU and the UN are based on the same ideological foundation. For me, it seems it is basically about prudent political leaders who have come together to try to ensure that the relations between their countries are based on international law as opposed to military power.
Nevertheless, I haven’t yet found a specific topic for my thesis, though I have realized that there’s a huge difference between working as an intern at a UN office and writing a thesis that needs to be theoretically based. And it’s all the more difficult to allot time to work on thesis ideas in a city with so many nice places to eat and so many types of beer! However, my first two months at the FAO office have definitely strengthened my ‘gut-feeling’ that my thesis should have an international instead of a Danish focus.
I know most of you interns are probably going to write a Master’s thesis soon, so I will just provide you with one piece of advice: a good starting point could be the great number of UN agencies present in Brussels or whichever city you are in. For instance, I know my director often meets students, who are writing their theses and want to know more about FAO. I’ve talked to him, and he said it would be okay to contact him (JoergenMaersk.Pedersen@fao.org), if you feel like writing a thesis about the FAO. Happy writing! ■
Here is a column on my search for a topic for my Master’s thesis! I study political science at the University of Aarhus in Denmark and currently am an intern at the FAO office in Brussels. When I finish my internship mid-July, I will still have another semester at university, and then afterwards, maybe in February 2010, I will start writing my Master’s thesis. So, luckily, I have some time left to find a topic. So far, the European Union has been my main academic interest and, obviously, it’s the reason I chose to come to Brussels.
Prior to this internship I thought that my Master’s thesis should involve the EU and have a Danish angle to it (like my Bachelor’s thesis, which was about the changing approach to the EU in a specific Danish political party). I didn’t know that much about the UN system before I started my internship and, perhaps unsurprisingly, my first two months at the FAO office in Brussels have already affected my thesis ideas. It’s been a really exciting experience so far. The director and my other colleagues at the office have been most helpful and willing to tell me more about FAO and the UN system in general. Moreover, I have learned a lot about the relationship between the EU and the UN. I’ve come to realize that basically the EU and the UN are based on the same ideological foundation. For me, it seems it is basically about prudent political leaders who have come together to try to ensure that the relations between their countries are based on international law as opposed to military power.
Nevertheless, I haven’t yet found a specific topic for my thesis, though I have realized that there’s a huge difference between working as an intern at a UN office and writing a thesis that needs to be theoretically based. And it’s all the more difficult to allot time to work on thesis ideas in a city with so many nice places to eat and so many types of beer! However, my first two months at the FAO office have definitely strengthened my ‘gut-feeling’ that my thesis should have an international instead of a Danish focus.
I know most of you interns are probably going to write a Master’s thesis soon, so I will just provide you with one piece of advice: a good starting point could be the great number of UN agencies present in Brussels or whichever city you are in. For instance, I know my director often meets students, who are writing their theses and want to know more about FAO. I’ve talked to him, and he said it would be okay to contact him (JoergenMaersk.Pedersen@fao.org), if you feel like writing a thesis about the FAO. Happy writing! ■
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