Pathway Overview:
General Application" — An option requiring minimal initial preparation on your part. You may apply for a thesis layout without a predetermined topic preference. Mr. Siegert will subsequently propose suitable research questions aligned with your academic background and scientific interests.

General Application Requirements:
Designed for students who have not yet selected a specific topic but are committed to conducting research within the lab's core fields. This pathway requires comprehensive information regarding your current academic standing and a professionally structured timeline.

To apply, please submit an email inquiry to Mr. Siegert including the following formal details:

• Mandatory Subject Line Format: "Supervision / [ BT or MT ] / Option 1: General Application"

a.      A formal statement indicating your "general application" within Mr. Siegert's active research fields, which will be cross-referenced with current institutional priorities, including both listed and unlisted or upcoming topics.

b.        A clearly defined and realistic proposal for your intended commencement date and overall timeline.

c.       Comprehensive academic metrics, including your current study program, specialization track, and current academic standing (enrolled semester and completed credit points).

Pathway Overview:

"Announced Topics" — An option requiring focused but manageable initial preparation on your part. You may apply for specific research topics that Mr. Siegert has officially published in the active topics directory.

Announced Topics Requirements:

Designed for students who wish to pursue a predefined research question. This pathway demands that you select up to three specific titles, articulate a clear academic interest in them, and provide your formal enrollment metrics.

To apply, please follow these steps:

1. Select 1, 2 or a maximum of 3 of the available titles outlined in the current topics directory (accessible here).

2. Submit an email inquiry to Mr. Siegert including the following formal details:

• Mandatory Subject Line Format: "Supervision / [ BT or MT ] / Option 2: [ Title(s) of the Selected Topic(s) ]"

a.       A concise justification demonstrating your specific academic interest and suitability for the selected research topics. 

b.       A clearly defined and realistic proposal for your intended commencement date and overall timeline.

c.      Comprehensive academic metrics, including your current study program, specialization track, and current academic standing (enrolled semester and completed credit points).

Pathway Overview:

"Propose Your Own" — An option designed for highly proactive students wishing to pursue an independent research project. If you choose to propose a custom topic, a thorough initial literature review, the clear identification of a compelling research gap, and a well-defined research question are strictly expected. Furthermore, you should demonstrate familiarity with the existing theoretical frameworks utilized to investigate your specific area of interest.

"Propose Your Own"-Requirements:

Designed for students with a strong academic drive who wish to conduct independent scientific inquiry. This pathway demands that you independently review current academic literature, articulate a concrete research gap, and submit a structured conceptual outline alongside your formal enrollment metrics.

To apply, please follow these steps:

1. Conduct a comprehensive review of current academic research literature to identify a noteworthy research gap.

2. Formulate a distinct research gap and a precise research question (or set of questions) based on your reviewed literature (e.g., by critically evaluating published literature reviews, journal papers, and their respective "discussion" or "future research" sections).

3. Submit an email inquiry to Mr. Siegert including the following formal details:

• Mandatory Subject Line Format: "Supervision / [ BT or MT ] / Option 3: [ Your Proposed Topic Title ]"

a.       A concise justification demonstrating your specific academic interest and motivation for the proposed research topic.

b.       A structured outline of your preliminary literature review, clearly highlighting the specific research gap you have identified and intend to address.

c.       A clearly defined and realistic proposal for your intended commencement date and overall timeline.d. Comprehensive academic metrics, including your current study program, specialization track, and current academic standing (enrolled semester and completed credit points).

Pathway Overview:

"Corporate Partner" — An option designed for students wishing to carry out their thesis in collaboration with an external company. Please note that the corporate partner must formally grant permission for the data, methodology, and results of the thesis to be utilized for scientific purposes in a fully anonymized form.

"Corporate Partner"-Requirements:

Designed for students seeking to bridge academic research with industry practice. This pathway demands that you independently secure a corporate partner, define a relevant research question with scientific merit, and obtain formal, written confirmations regarding both data access and anonymized publication rights prior to contacting Mr. Siegert.

To apply, please follow these steps:

1. Identify a suitable corporate partner willing to facilitate an academic research project.

2. Define a current research topic, research gap, and precise question that can be rigorously investigated in cooperation with this partner.

3. Establish formal alignment with the company and obtain a written confirmation. This document must state that the partner supports the thesis, provides necessary access to employees and/or institutional data, and explicitly permits the publication of all results in an anonymized form for scientific purposes.

4. Submit an email inquiry to Mr. Siegert including the following formal details:

• Mandatory Subject Line Format: "Supervision / [ BT or MT ] / Option 4: Corporate / [ Your Topic and Company Name ]"

a.       A concise justification demonstrating your specific academic interest and motivation for pursuing this corporate-partnered thesis.

b.       A structured outline of your proposed research topic, including the identified research gap and central research question.

c.       A brief profile of the corporate partner, including the department and full contact details of your designated company mentor/supervisor.

d.       The formal written confirmation from the company regarding data access and anonymized scientific publication rights (as obtained in Step 3).

e.       A clearly defined and realistic proposal for your intended commencement date and overall timeline.

f.      Comprehensive academic metrics, including your current study program, specialization track, and current academic standing (enrolled semester and completed credit points).

* Commencement: Subject to Mr. Siegert's current supervision capacity.

** Official Duration vs. Total Project Lifecycle: The timelines stated above (12 weeks for Bachelor’s / 26 weeks for Master’s) represent the official, legally mandated writing periods set by the examination office once the thesis is formally registered. However, students must understand that the actual research and preparation lifecycle is significantly longer and typically spans up to one full academic year. Essential preliminary consultations, literature screening, and method scoping must take place well before the official registration date. To gain a realistic overview of the required milestones and avoid critical delays, students are strictly required to consult the comprehensive informational materials (accessible via the PDF guidelines below) prior to initiating contact. Continuous, structured alignment from the very beginning is the only pathway to a successful and timely submission. An exception is granted only in cases of unforeseen administrative constraints or genuine mitigating circumstances. If you find yourself in a compromised timeline due to external factors, viable pathways can often be structured, provided you show immediate proactive engagement.

*** Institutional & Lab-Internal Regulations: Individual university or faculty regulations always take precedence and may cause deviations in grading. However, as a core component of Mr. Siegert's academic mentorship, all candidates are integrated into the weekly research colloquium (lab seminar). For Master’s students: The mandatory defense/presentation will formally take place within this colloquium. For Bachelor’s students: Even if the respective faculty regulations do not require a formal oral examination, Bachelor's candidates are fully expected to deliver a (non-graded) practice presentationwithin this weekly seminar. This internal requirement is designed to provide students with a valuable opportunity to present their findings, defend their research in front of a scientific audience, and gain confidence in academic discussion.

**** Mandatory Submission Artifacts & Formats: Independent of varying faculty or examination office regulations, Mr. Siegert strictly requires the physical and digital artifacts specified above as a baseline standard. A thesis submission is only considered complete when both digital formats (exactly one editable DOCX file and one flattened PDF file) have been transmitted, and the physical copy has been delivered. To promote sustainability and minimize academic expenses, students are highly encouraged to utilize double-sided printing and simple spiral or comb binding (plastic or wire) for the physical copy. While expensive hardcover binding is explicitly not required, of course students are entirely free to choose higher-quality binding formats if they prefer.

Deadline Compliance & Submission Protocols: For the strict preservation of the legal deadline, the timely digital transmission—either via the official university examination portal upload and/or (additionally) via direct email to Mr. Siegert containing both the PDF and DOCX files (subject to your specific faculty regulations)—is entirely sufficient. However, the corresponding hard copy must be delivered within a maximum of 96 hours following the digital deadline. The physical copy can be submitted directly to the department secretariat or placed in Mr. Siegert's official mailbox. If the hard copy is dispatched via postal mail, students are required to send a brief email notification confirming the shipment. In the event of any unforeseen logistical complications, students must initiate contact with Mr. Siegert immediately to resolve the issue.

Mandatory reading prior to the initial consultation: