(Common) Questions & Answers

1. I'm interested in writing a student thesis at your institute. What do I have to do?

--> Please check the open topics that are listed below. If you are interested in any of them, please write an email to the mentioned contact person. Please also read the general information below the open topics.

2. Can I write a student thesis with an industry partner?

--> Yes, this is possible. Please refer to the information given below.

3. I need Professor Guettler to sign the application of my student thesis (as first supervisor). What do I have to do?

--> Please send the completed application form (with your name & matriculation number, title of the thesis, starting date, and your signature) as a PDF document by email to Professor Guettler. He will reply ASAP and you can send the application form to the student secretary.

4. I would like to ask Professor Guettler to act as second supervisor for my master thesis. What do I have to do to ask whether he is available? How do I obtain his signature? Do I need to discuss my research in detail?

--> Please send Professor Guettler an email to ask whether he is available as a second supervisor. Mention the title of your thesis and your first supervisor. In case he agrees to act as second supervisor, please send the completed application form (with your name & matriculation number, title of the thesis, starting date, your signature, and the signature of the first supervisor) as a PDF document by email to Professor Guettler. He will reply ASAP and you can send the application form to the student secretary.

5. How long does it take until the thesis is graded?

--> This depends on the type of your thesis. If Professor Guettler acts as first supervisor, the thesis is graded within six weeks in more than 97.5% of the cases. Thus, grades for the Bachelor thesis are done by then. For Master thesis, you typically have to add some time for the second supervisor.

Research proposals in case you have your own research ideas

The Institute of Strategic Management and Finance welcomes research proposals for empirical student theses (BSc/MSc) in the area of banking, mutual funds, and credit ratings. Proposals are restricted to one page and should describe the research question, the necessary data / how to get access to the data (lack of data is a deal breaker!), and hypotheses. Please note your preferred start date and send your proposal as a pdf file to Andre Guettler. 

Student theses in cooperation with an industry partner

We particularly welcome student theses that you write in cooperation with an industry partner (e. g., while you are working at a bank as an intern or on an ongoing basis). Please also write a research proposal and clearly state that the thesis should be written in cooperation with an industry partner. The range of topics is wider in the case in which the industry partner provides some supervision and / or data. In the past, students were writing theses with companies such as Commerzbank, KPMG, Savings Bank Ulm, or XAIA.