Master’s Dissertation Guide

Master’s Degree in
Teaching English as a
Foreign Language
 Table of contents
Presentation 3
1.1. What is a MD 3
1.2. What you need to know before starting your MD
4

The tree stages of the MD 6

Stage 1: Preparation of the Master’s Dissertation

proposal 8
3.1. Request of the Master’s Dissertation topic 8
3.2. Types of Master’s Dissertation 10
3.3. Lines of work or topics 11

Stage 2. Realization of the Master’s Dissertation 12

4.1. The figure of the Director of the Master’s
Dissertation 13
4.2. Communication with the Director 15
4.3. The figure of the tutor 16
4.4. Activities and deliveries. 16
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Stage 3: Deposit, authorization and defense 19

5.1. Deposit and authorization of the Director 19
5.2. Preparation of the defense 20
5.3. Oral Viva 20
5.4. Grading 23
5.5. Deposit and defense in the extraordinary call 23
 Presentation

1.1. What is a MD

The MD is the last step to obtain the degree and involves the completion of an
unpublished and original work in which you will apply and develop the knowledge
and skills acquired in the lessons followed. It is carried out in the final part of the
study plan, with obligatory character, and a teaching load of 12 ECTS, under the
supervision of the assigned director. In the final grade of the degree, it is weighted
like any other subject, in proportion to its ECTS load. In addition, this work implies a
defense before an evaluation commission that must be passed.

It is essential that you read this guide in detail and that you consult all the information
you will find in the virtual classroom of the subject (in the sections Topics and Weekly
Programming).

And in particular:

 The UNIR MD´s Regulation. It contains general guidelines on the definition,

execution, defense, processing and evaluation of the work.
 The MD’s topic request. You have to complete it and send it within the
proposed deadline.
 The evaluation rubric that will be used by the evaluation committee to
evaluate your work and decide on your final grade.
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 The MD’s development template, which you must use at all times to write
and develop the result of this subject.
 The instructions for the production of the MD. They contain indications for
the elaboration of the document that will contain the result of your work.

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 The MD requires a personal work and a constant effort, since the load in credits and
the hours of autonomous work of the student are increased opposite to a normal
subject to be a work elaborated by you from beginning to end. It is essential that once
you have completed the MD’s proposal request and have been assigned a director,
you comply with the deadlines established in the weekly schedule. In this way you
will be able to improve and correct errors according to the indications and advice of
your director. The planning of the work from the first moment will be a key factor in
the successful completion of this task. Do not leave everything for the last moment!

Your MD must be an academic, genuine, and unpublished work carried out

individually under the guidance of a supervisor. You are invited to investigate on
any research topic, but it must be related to the content of your Master’s modules.

1.2. What you need to know before starting your

MD

It has already been mentioned the effort and dedication that the elaboration of a
work of these characteristics supposes. But this effort will be less if you spend some
time reviewing the tools and skills required in this type of task. If you don't feel sure
of your knowledge about any of them, don't worry. In the virtual classroom you will
find information and live training on these transversal skills that will help you to
better develop your final work.

TRANSVERSAL COMPETENCES
Manage information: differentiate between quoting, paraphrasing and copying.
Search and select bibliography.
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Quote and reference correctly.

Use office tools (Word, PowerPoint).
Write academic texts.
Know the main spelling, punctuation and grammar errors.

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 We recommend that you take advantage of this table to do an exercise of reflection
on your knowledge and that you use the means that we put at your disposal in the
virtual classroom to begin the work as well prepared as possible. Remember that, as
in the rest of the subjects, the live sessions on these competences can also be viewed
on a deferred basis. These sessions are given by different experts in each field, not by
the director of your work.

In addition, you have available a general doubts forum so that you can ask your
questions about all these more formal aspects of the subject.
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 The tree stages of the MD
For the realization of your MD, you will follow a workflow organized in three stages.
These stages are designed to group different activities related to each other, which
will help you understand the overall process and distribute your work and efforts: the
preparation of the work, its realization and, finally, the defense and evaluation of it.
In the following figure you can see what these phases are and what tasks are done in
each of them, as well as their responsible.

Figure 1. Planning in three stages and main activities of the MD’s process.

Stage 1. Preparation of the Master’s Dissertation proposal

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In this first stage you must prepare and submit the MD´s topic application. You are
free to choose the topic that most motivates you within the possibilities offered to
you and you must also adhere to the restrictions listed below regarding the expected

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 characteristics and orientation of the job. Once the proposal has been approved and
the director has been assigned, you will not be able to change the subject

Stage 2: Realization of the Master’s Dissertation

This is the longest stage of the process, in which you will develop your work. To do
this, you are under the direction of your director. The director of your work is
assigned by the academic direction of the degree, you cannot choose it yourself. In
this stage you must pay special attention to the deliveries that you must make
through the virtual classroom and within the period indicated. Your director will
guide you through this process and correct these submissions.

Stage 3: Deposit, authorization and defense

This last stage is the culmination of your work. Once the MD has been completed and
authorized by your director, you can deposit it through the virtual classroom and
proceed to the defense before an evaluation committee. This committee will be in
charge of giving you a final grade in view of the results obtained. You must bear in
mind that your director will not be in charge of grading the work, but a commission
will evaluate it and ask you a series of questions in an act of defense.

The virtual classroom of the subject is also organized in these three stages; you can find
them in the Themes section. In addition, you have a weekly program with the details of
the tasks we recommend you perform each week.
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 Stage 1: Preparation of the Master’s
Dissertation proposal
3.1. Request of the Master’s Dissertation topic

The first step is the elaboration of a proposal that each student must prepare
independently by filling out the Application Form found in the virtual classroom. This
application form is designed to help you reflect on your future work and its
fundamental elements. You will have to fill in all the fields indicated and deliver it on
time through the corresponding section of the virtual classroom.

In this stage you should take these recommendations into account:

 Don't feel pressured or overwhelmed and try to look for a work topic that
motivates you and that is not too complicated to develop.

 Read about a topic of interest that is specific enough for you to be able to go
deeper into it (too generic topics cannot be dealt with in this type of work). Look
for some aspect studied during the degree that you will find stimulating. Use
available resources to search for information (documentary search engines, virtual
library, class notes and bibliography...) Identify a problem you would be interested
in working on, justify its importance and explain how you would like to try to
resolve it.

 Please note that this proposal is only the starting point for the entire process. Its
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content will help the academic direction of the degree to assess in what the
measure is well oriented and what its subject matter is; in this way he/she will be
able to assign you an appropriate director. Then, with this director, you will be
able to finish resolving doubts and focusing on some aspects that were not entirely
clear.

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  Select the type and/or theme of the work you want to do from those proposed in
the following sections.

The proposal must contain at least the following elements:

 Your personal data and contact details.

 The general type of work you plan to do.

Here you should stick to one of the types of work covered by this title, which are
explained below.

 A provisional title.
It should synthesize in a few words (no more than 12 or 15) the fundamental
contribution of your work. It must be motivating and give a clear idea about the
subject matter you are addressing, which should be related to the contents of the
degree. This relationship is also reflected in the general type of your MD and the
lines of work you can choose.

 Brief description (justification, aims and methodology).

Here you should describe why the topic is relevant and what type of solution you
raise. Any work starts from the identification of some kind of problem or need,
and it is made concrete by building some solution or contribution, generally
shuffling a set of alternatives. To evaluate both the problem and the possible lines
of solution, you will have to consult bibliography relevant to your topic, which you
will include in your proposal. This way you will show that you've already read
something about the subject and have an initial idea of its meaning, complexity
and how to deal with it.
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Once you send the Application, the academic direction of the degree will make a
previous evaluation that you will be able to consult. At that time, and taking into
account the subject of your proposal, you will be assigned a suitable director who will
accompany you in the elaboration of your work during stage 2. Below is information

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 on some specific aspects of this title, which you should read carefully before
completing your proposal.

3.2. Types of Master’s Dissertation

In this degree, the following general types of MD have been defined, which focus on
different approaches to the type of contribution you will develop. Each of them will
allow you to direct your work towards a field of your preference, and to apply in a
more effective and personalized way the competences you have been acquiring in
the rest of the subjects of the degree.

In your proposal you will have to choose one of these types of work. In addition, each
of them can have associated to a specific structure recommendation for the final
document, which you will find in the instructions for the elaboration of the MD in the
virtual classroom of the subject. Also review this document before completing your
proposal, because it gives indications on the specific content of the sections, which
can help you choose one type of work or another. The types of work you can choose
are the following:

A. Intervention Proposal
Design of an educative proposal with no implementation in the classroom
environment.

B. Experimental Research
Design and implementation of an intervention proposal with data collection and its
analysis
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 3.3. Lines of work or topics

In addition to the type of work, which is unique and marks the general approach of
its elaboration and discourse, you can choose one or several of the following lines of
work that are related to the contents dealt with in the different subjects of the
degree. Think about which of the studied contents you are interested in working with
in more depth, and they are more appropriate for the topic of work that occupies
you:

Line 1. Any topic within the context of Teaching English as a foreign language.
Line 2. The cultural and intercultural dimension in the learning process of foreign
languages.
Line 3. Methodological resources for teaching and learning English as a foreign
language.
Line 4. Practical applications of the European framework of reference for languages
Etc.
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 Stage 2. Realization of the Master’s
Dissertation
This is the central part of the process and the longest in time. In it you will work on
the proposed topic, once approved, making a contribution according to the
objectives of the degree and the load of credits associated with this subject. During
the whole period you will have the direction of a director, who will review the
deliveries making a personalized follow-up of your progress. The result of your work
will be recorded in a written document, which will be evaluated by an evaluation
committee in stage 3 of the process.

In the virtual classroom you will find a weekly Schedule and a series of deliveries (in
Tasks / Activities) and deadlines for them. Do not lose sight of these dates and be
sure to plan your work so that you can make each delivery with the required content.
This is the best way to ensure a good follow-up by your director, ensuring that you
can reach the end of the phase with a finished document.

Do not lose sight throughout this phase of the evaluation heading that will be used by
the evaluation committee in the defense phase. You can consult it and download it in the
virtual classroom.

At this stage you must pay special attention to the points described in the following
sections.
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 4.1. The figure of the Director of the Master’s
Dissertation

Once the work proposal has been approved, and taking into account its subject
matter, you will be assigned a MD’s director. These sections describe his or her roles
and responsibilities, and the communication mechanisms for relating to him or her.
You will meet him or her in a first individual session, in which you will address your
proposal and finish focusing on the topic of work.

Keep in mind throughout the process what your MD’s director does and doesn't do.
His duties are as follows:

1. Direct and orient yourself during the execution of the work. Rely on it
to resolve doubts about the content of the work. Take his comments
into account, as they will always be aimed at improving the quality of
the work and preparing a positive evaluation by the evaluation
committee.
2. Assess the degree of progress and supervise the process, ensuring that
the objectives are met. It will be in charge of correcting the different
deliveries that you make during this phase. Bear in mind that in this
subject the valuations of the deliveries have no impact on the final rating
of the Final Degree Project, which will depend solely on the evaluation
carried out by the evaluation commission in stage 3. However, they will
serve to correct and guide your progress. Read carefully what is said
about deliveries and their assessment in this guide.
3. Authorize the final result for your deposit and defense. Finally, the
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director must evaluate the complete document that gathers the results
of your work. According to his criteria and experience, he will authorize
or not the deposit in stage 3 related to the evaluation of the MD.

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 You should keep in mind that the director guides, supports and tries to ensure that
you do everything necessary to get a good end result, but is not responsible for some
elements:

1. The director is not a co-author of your MD. The contribution submitted is

ultimately your responsibility and is the element that will give you access
to complete your studies.
2. The director does not evaluate the MD. Although he corrects partial
deliveries by providing observations and recommendations, and takes the
decision to authorize the deposit of the work, the final qualification
depends solely on the judgment made by the evaluating commission
during the act of defense, relying on the rubric of evaluation.

Your director… Your director no...

DIRECTES AND ORIENTS
Orients in the search of bibliography.
Indicates aspects in which to deepen in
the work.
Gives indications of improvement of
aspects of the work.
Indicates if there are citation and/or
originality faults.
EVALUATES THE DEGREE OF PROGRESS
Review deliveries and give feedback on
writing.
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COAUTHOR
Provide sources or bibliographic
references.
Rewrite or correct written expression
or spelling mistakes.
Elaborate paragraphs or design
graphics or figures.
Review or mark all citation errors in
the document. And he is not
responsible for plagiarism even if you
did not notice it.
Grade the work nor is it responsible for
the final qualification; this corresponds
to the evaluating commission in the
act of defense.
Take responsibility for your defense.

AUTHORIZES THE FINAL RESULT FOR

THE DEPOSIT AND DEFENSE
Valuates the complete document and
authorizes or not the deposit of the
work.
Gives orientations for the defense.

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 Remember that the director does not grade the MD, although he does evaluate the final
result of your work and according to his criteria and experience, he will authorize or not
the deposit in stage 3. Trust his/her criteria because sometimes it is better not to
continue with a deposit if it is foreseeable that the result before the evaluation
commission is negative, saving you displacement, unnecessary expense and displeasure.

4.2. Communication with the Director

You can communicate with your director through the following channels:

 At the time of dispatch of the deliveries. Both in the document and in the
shipment itself you can include queries and other information that the director
will be able to read. He will also give you feedback on his comments in the
correction of the deliveries.
 The internal mail of the virtual classroom. Always use the internal mail of the
platform to contact your director about issues related to the content of the MD.
Don't hesitate to consult him or her and warn him or her of any problems you
encounter during the process. For administrative queries, remember that you can
always turn to your tutor.
 The individual live sessions. You will have a total of 4. One at the beginning of
stage 2 to meet your director and focus the work, and one after each of the three
partial deliveries. The specific schedule of these individual sessions will be set by
your MD’ director.

In these individual follow-up sessions, you can discuss the progress of your work
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with your director. Take advantage of them to raise any doubts or concerns and
take good note of the director's advice and recommendations, as they will help
you guide your work in the right direction and improve the quality of the result.

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 4.3. The figure of the tutor

Throughout the subjects you have had the support and follow-up of a tutor. When
you enter the MD development stage, this figure will continue to be your support.
Now what changes is the dialogue with your director, which will be direct and through
the established channels.

Therefore, the tutor will not be in charge of solving the students' doubts about the
elaboration of the MD but of the administrative or technical questions about the use
of the virtual campus tools, such as, for example: doubts about the sending of the
deliveries, about how to deposit the MD, about logistic issues related to the defense
act, administrative petitions, etc.

Your tutor… Your tutor does not…

Gives support if you have any technical
questions in the virtual classroom that
prevent you from making your
deliveries, and / or communications.
Orients you on how to process
administrative applications.
Gives training on how to make the
deposit.
Provides information on when, how and
what is necessary for defense logistics.
Give guidelines for the production of
the MD.
Make the deadlines for delivery or the
deposit of the MD more flexible.
Send jobs to the director in the event
of technical incidents.
Give indications of improvement of
formal aspects of the work.

4.4. Activities and deliveries.

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In the virtual classroom you will find the weekly Programming, that is, a planning that
marks different milestones in the process of developing your MD. Check the delivery
dates of these activities and keep them in mind in your personal planning, in order to
make sure you get there in time to send every one of them.

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 It is important that you consider the following aspects:

 Number of deliveries: you must deliver three drafts that mark different
degrees of incremental progress. Finally, you will make a predeposit delivery
that will no longer admit modifications, containing the document as it will be
deposited once the approval and authorization of your director has been
obtained. No additional, intermediate or extraordinary deliveries are allowed,
and all deliveries must be made through the corresponding activities defined
in the virtual campus.

 Importance of deliveries: if you do not make a delivery or if it is qualified as

unsuitable by the director, it is possible that your work cannot be authorized for
deposit in ordinary call and you must work more towards the extraordinary call.
The deliveries are designed to assess your degree of progress and commitment to
the work, reflecting a dedication commensurate with the load of credits of the
subject and the acquisition of required skills. If the degree of progress is
insufficient in the ordinary term, the approval to deposit may not be feasible even
in the extraordinary term.

 Content of the deliveries: in each delivery you must adjust to the expected
contents described in the instructions that you will find in the virtual classroom. If
for any reason you do not make any of the partial deliveries, in the next you must
catch up with the undelivered content, thus making up for lost time. Even if the
work is divided into partial deliveries, you should not lose sight of the fact that it
is a unique work that must have coherence as a whole.

 Originality of deliveries: your work must be unpublished and original. Contents

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previously published or whose origin is not adequately mentioned, cited and

referenced are not allowed. Each delivery is reviewed by a tool that checks
originality problems and its results are verified by your director, who in case of
detecting any problem will notify you of it in the correction of the delivery. The

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 director will only report the problem; in these cases, it is the student who must
provide the necessary evidence to prove the authorship of the work.

 Delivery review: your director is responsible for reviewing each delivery and
correcting it by offering feedback to strengthen or reorient your work. Keep their
comments in mind and always apply them to the next delivery. After each, you will
have an individual face-to-face session with your director to discuss the progress
and outcome of the correction.

The Director reviews and comments on deliveries and applies the rating APPROPRIATE
/ COMPLETE or NOT APPROPRIATE / INCOMPLETE. These ratings have no influence on
the final decision that will be made by the evaluation committee at the time of the
defense but serve to track your evolution and commitment to the completion of the
work. Having one or more unfulfilled or unsuitable deliveries may result in the non-
authorization of the deposit of the work in the ordinary call. In addition, if the degree of
progress is insufficient in the ordinary term, the authorization may not be feasible even
in the extraordinary call.

Second-enrollment students who have their MD started in a previous period will

need to adjust to these same deliveries in terms of deadlines and expected content.
Only if the director deems it convenient, will it be possible to adjust the level of
advance required in each delivery so that the process can be speeded up taking
advantage of content already advanced. But in no case will the dates or the number
of deliveries be modified. In addition, in certain cases, the principal may recommend
to these students the total change of the MD´s topic.
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Remember that you will find the template and instructions for completing each delivery
in the virtual classroom.
Focus all your energies on reaching this last installment with a final draft that contains all
the sections that require problems and use the TFE evaluation rubric to critically analyze
your work.

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 Stage 3: Deposit, authorization and
defense
This is the final phase of the process and comprises: the deposit of the document with
prior authorization from your director, the preparation of the defense and the final
defense before the evaluation committee, which will evaluate your work and decide
on your qualification using the evaluation section.

5.1. Deposit and authorization of the Director

Once the last deposit has been delivered in stage 2, your director will review the work
and decide whether or not to approve the deposit. Don't worry, if the whole process
has gone smoothly and you've been taking note of your director's recommendations,
there won't be any problems and you'll be able to start this third stage.

After the director's approval, you will be able to proceed with the job deposit. You
must deliver the same document that you sent in the predeposit delivery. The
director will conclude the deposit process by authorizing or not authorizing it.

Please note that the deposit deadline is set in stone. We recommend that you do not
rush this deadline to avoid not arriving on time to the deposit for any unforeseen. Check
the virtual classroom and the calendar of your promotion so that you can take into
account this deposit date. If you have doubts, remember that you can ask your tutor.
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The director will conclude the deposit process by authorizing or not authorizing it.

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 5.2. Preparation of the defense

The defense will consist of an oral presentation of your work, followed by question
time from the evaluation committee. It is important that you prepare it well in
advance. It is highly recommended that you use some support or presentation to
support your defense. In the virtual classroom you will have the option of sending
this presentation and obtaining advice from your director. Use the resources you
will find in the classroom to prepare this document. And don't forget these points:

 Adjust the presentation so you can tell everything in 20/30 minutes.

 Focus on the most relevant aspects of your work; what you want to highlight
before the evaluation committee for them to consider.
 Use a pleasant style and format, not abusing the text and relying on visual
elements.

5.3. Oral Viva

The defense of your work is the culmination of the work done during the last few
months. Face it with a positive attitude. It is time to show and demonstrate the good
work done and highlight the aspects of which you are most proud. Keep in mind the
following points:

When and where is it performed?

The oral defense of your work will take place between 30 and 90 days after the
deposit. At least 10 calendar days in advance, you will receive in your personal mail
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an appointment with the day and time of the defense. If you have any doubt,
remember that you can ask your tutor.

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 How does it develop?

During your defense you will make an oral presentation of the work before an
evaluation committee. Go to the defense sufficiently in advance and don't forget to
take the following elements with you:

 The document of your presentation on a USB stick. If the format chosen is

PowerPoint, it is convenient that you also carry it in PDF format to avoid possible
compatibility problems. It is also a good idea to auto-send the MD document to
your personal email address so that you can download it from there if necessary.
 The documentation that accredits your identity (DNI or passport).

You will have 20/30 minutes to explain your contributions to the evaluation
committee, which will have previously received and read your work. Use the
presentation as a support and guide to develop your explanations, bearing in mind
that:

 It is important that at all times you show mastery of the content, making it clear
that the authorship of the work is yours, and that you know it perfectly.
 Demonstrate your ability to synthesize and don't try to summarize all the content.
Focus on the fundamental aspects and those you want to reinforce the most,
taking into account the time available.
 Remember that part of the evaluation rubric focuses on precisely this part of the
process. Keep in mind what the evaluation committee will assess.

Once your presentation is over, the evaluation committee will ask you a series of
questions, comments or nuances. It is a question of resolving possible doubts that
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have arisen from reading the work, or simply of offering you recommendations in
order to improve your training and complete your learning.

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 How should you behave?

Remember that this is an academic act and, therefore, quite formal and with a certain
protocol:

 Attire: attend with a presence and clothing in keeping with the importance of the
act. Dress in a formal way, although simple, and in any case avoid casual or casual
clothing.
 Verbal language: address the evaluation committee with respect, always from
you. They will do the same to you and try not to interrupt their questions and
comments. Use adequate language, avoiding the colloquial, but without falling
into pedantry.
 Body language: look in front of the commission, maintaining eye contact. Be
relaxed but confident. Rely on the presentation, if you have one, to reinforce key
ideas, but try not to show that you are reading or that you are carrying a learned
speech. The presentation is useful as a support for remembering the structure of
the information, but you are expected to elaborate the speech in a natural way,
demonstrating mastery over the subject.

The defense of the work is the moment when your mastery of the subject and the
authorship of the work must be clear. A fail in this part of the evaluation (not reaching
at least 50% of the rubric score in the exposition section) implies the immediate failing
of the MD, as it does not demonstrate a sufficient level of knowledge about the subjects
dealt with, which can lead to the presupposition of the non-authorship or partial
authorship of the work presented.
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 5.4. Grading

The evaluation committee will deliberate on your work behind closed doors and will
rely on the evaluation rubric to unify criteria and jointly decide on the rating your
work deserves.
Once the deliberation is over, the evaluation committee will inform you of the final
rating, evaluating: structure, contents and exposition. Remember that not reaching
at least 50% of the rubric score in the exposition section means the immediate failing
of the MD.
This rating will be given according to a numerical scale from 0 to 10, with the
expression of a decimal, to which the corresponding qualitative rating must be added:

0 – 4, 9 Suspenso (SS)
5,0 – 6,9 Aprobado (AP)
7,0 – 8,9 Notable (NT)
9,0 – 10 Sobresaliente (SB)

In the event that the MD is proposed for the Matricula de Honor by the commission,
the Academic Commission of the Title will decide the assignment of such mention.

5.5. Deposit and defense in the extraordinary call

The extraordinary deadline is a new opportunity to complete or finish improving
some aspects of your work. It is important to bear in mind that in this time you cannot
do a complete job (this would not make sense, depending on the load of credits of
© Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

the subject), but is an extension of time to complete those aspects that were
outstanding in the regular period and that prevented your director from authorizing
your work. If the reason for the non-authorization in an ordinary call has to do with
the non-originality of the work, bear in mind that you will have to make a
considerable effort to modify it.

Master’s Dissertation Guide

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Master’s Degree in Teaching English as a Foreign Language
 The process here is as follows:

 Final delivery in extraordinary call. You will have the opportunity to make a final
delivery of the work for your director to review. Take into account here the
comments of the last delivery made, as it will be the last opportunity to get the
approval for the deposit.

 Deposit in extraordinary call. If your director considers that the work meets the
minimum necessary to proceed to the defense, you can deposit the work, pending
that your director sends his authorization once he has reviewed the status of the
document delivered. As in the ordinary call, the director is not obliged to authorize
the extraordinary deposit if he considers that the work does not meet the criteria
established in the rubric. In any case, the final qualification will be decided by the
evaluation committee and may coincide or disagree with the director's
authorization decision.
© Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR)

Master’s Dissertation Guide

24
Master’s Degree in Teaching English as a Foreign Language