The preparation of a BA thesis is an optional choice for students. They have the opportunity to prepare a thesis during the 4th year of their studies (at the beginning of the seventh semester). However, thesis proposals are accepted from students who are either in the 5th year (9th semester) or in the 6th year of their studies (11th semester).
This educational activity aims to deepen students’ research skills. Each academic year, up to thirty (30) candidates may be accepted for the preparation of a thesis, provided that the conditions detailed below are met.
The thesis is equivalent to – and replaces – two elective courses (currently equivalent to 8 ECTS). The option of preparing a dissertation appears in the curriculum as an elective course, but the declaration of the dissertation is carried out electronically by the secretariat of the School.

The thesis is highly demanding an exercise, not only in terms of its length (approximately 8,000-10,000 words) but also qualitatively, as it must strictly follow the model of a scientific thesis.
Before submitting the relevant application, the student must consult with a faculty member of the School who has already expressed his/her willingness to supervise dissertations during the next academic year and has the knowledge to supervise the preparation of the thesis. The abstract of the research proposal must be accepted by the faculty member who may reject it if he considers that there is no possibility of improvements.
The number of dissertations that a faculty member is allowed to supervise at any same time will not exceed 5 (five). Only in special cases and with the approval of the assembly can s/he undertake a larger number of theses. Each faculty member can announce, if he/she so wishes, at the end of each academic year, the number and topics of the dissertations he/she will undertake during the next academic year.
The application for a thesis is submitted in writing to the secretariat (in a standard form prepared by the School) at the start of the courses of the winter semester until the date of the beginning of the registration period of the courses of the winter semester. The research proposal is also submitted with the application. The procedure for checking formal qualifications and criteria is determined by the assembly. At the beginning of the registration period of the courses of the winter semester, the candidate student is informed whether or not the formal specifications for the preparation of a thesis are met and the student can make the corresponding course statement. Students moving with the Erasmus+ program or other related exchange programs may, exceptionally, register for a thesis through the secretariat.
The selection of candidates is carried out by the faculty assembly at a special meeting after the completion of the course registration period. The assembly appoints the faculty member who will supervise the thesis. In case there are more applications than the maximum number of thesis, the assembly selects on the basis of the average score of the candidates. The registration of the thesis is then carried out by the secretariat.

The supervisor of the dissertation can be any serving faculty member of the School. The dissertation is evaluated by a two-member examination committee in which the supervisor must participate and a second member who may be a faculty member of the Department or other Departments of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki or another University.
The language of the thesis is Greek. Exceptionally, preparation in another language is allowed if the student has a level of C2 in that language and the supervising faculty member can support the evaluation of the thesis in that language.

For the preparation of the dissertation, students follow the instructions of the relevant Thesis Guide for undergraduate and postgraduate theses posted on the website of the School. In addition, they must attend the special essay writing seminars organized by the School and adhere to the schedule set by the supervisor. The Assembly may set a timetable for the preparation of dissertations, which is posted on the website of the School.

The thesis must be completed within the academic year in which it was declared. Its submission takes place by May 31st of the specific academic year. If the supervisor considers that the thesis requires corrections or improvement, he refers the text back with comments to its author who must make the necessary changes and submit the corrected thesis by August 31 of the same academic year. The dissertation is presented orally before the two-member committee during the examination period of June or September, respectively. It is graded according to the provisions of the Department’s regulation and is considered successful if it receives at least grade five (5).
In case the student does not prepare the dissertation on time or fails in it, the statement of the dissertation is deleted and for the completion of his/her studies he/she follows the normal course procedure as provided by the School regulation. If the student so wishes and at the same time the other conditions are met, he/she can undertake another dissertation topic in the next academic year with the same or another instructor as supervisor.

The completed thesis is submitted to the institutional repository of the dissertations of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Each academic year the two best dissertations may be published by the School in electronic form.

The process of writing the thesis strictly complies with the rules in force at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki to avoid plagiarism, as analyzed, inter alia, in this regulation and in the Code of Ethics and Good Practice of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Plagiarism is a serious academic offense and is mandatorily referred to the Assembly of the School, which takes the necessary measures to address the problem.

General Prerequisites
The prerequisites for a student to apply for a BA thesis are the following:
1. To have successfully completed courses corresponding to 150 ECTS from the curriculum of the School (not including free elective courses) at the beginning of the academic year in which they will apply for their thesis.
2. To have no outstanding course from the first year
3. To have been successfully examined in the course KY0000 “Introduction to the scientific research in Political Science”.
4. To have an average grade of more than 7.5 at the beginning of the academic year in which they will apply for their thesis.
5. To submit a research proposal of approximately 800 words that includes the working hypotheses, the main research questions, as well as the basic structure of the paper and the main bibliography of the topic.

Upon completion of the ΒΑ thessi, students will have succeeded in deepening their research skills and correctly and fully formulating a research hypothesis as well as implementing a relatively large scientific text

The thesis must be completed within the academic year in which it was declared. Its submission takes place by May 31st of the specific academic year. If the supervisor considers that the thesis requires corrections or improvement, he refers the text back with comments to its author who must make the necessary changes and submit the corrected thesis by August 31 of the same academic year. The dissertation is presented orally before the two-member committee during the examination period of June or September, respectively. It is graded according to the provisions of the Department’s regulation and is considered successful if it receives at least grade five (5).