2024-2025 / ATFE9011-1

Master's thesis and Internship

Duration

750h Proj.

Number of credits

 Master Msc. in Energy Engineering, professional focus in Energy Conversion30 crédits 
 Master Msc. in Energy Engineering, professional focus in Networks30 crédits 

Lecturer

Bertrand Cornélusse

Language(s) of instruction

English language

Organisation and examination

All year long

Schedule

Schedule online

Units courses prerequisite and corequisite

Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program

Learning unit contents

The master thesis ("TFE" in French) is a substantial individual project. It is generally considered the equivalent of 4 months of full-time work. The subject must be proposed or approved by a promoter, who must be a permanent academic or scientific staff member.

The master's thesis is associated with an internship in a host organization (a private company, a research center, or another university) or within the University of Liège. However, the internship must represent a physical presence onsite of 80 days.

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

The purpose of the master's thesis is to prepare the student to make the transition to the world of business or research. The student will have to prove that they are capable of carrying out substantial work using knowledge and know-how, both theoretical and practical, acquired throughout their studies. The work will almost always include a preliminary assessment, research or substantial achievement, and evaluation.

By the end of the internship, the student will also have discovered a professional environment and techniques specific to the visited company or research center.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

Taking the elective course(s) that best prepares you for the work is advisable. Ideally, This is discussed with the promoter at the beginning of the year.

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)

Face-to-face course


Additional information:

Fully embedded (no homeworking) in a company or research center.

 

The professors propose subjects for their final year work, which they would accept as the promoter. These subjects are designed by the promoter in areas close to his research or collected from companies. A student may also submit a proposal, but a promoter must approve it.

The student should choose a topic as early as possible, ideally at the end of the previous academic year, to increase the chances of completing the project within the normal timeframe.

The Study Council ensures that each student is assigned a topic and that the jury's composition is correct. The student must keep his/her promoter informed of the progress of the work with adequate frequency.

Course materials and recommended or required readings

Exam(s) in session

Any session

- In-person

oral exam

Written work / report


Additional information:

The evaluation is first based on the student's report. There are no formal constraints on the report's length, but it will typically be between 50 and 100 pages. The student will describe the context, the problem posed or specifications, the proposed solution with the argumentation of the choices, its evaluation, a conclusion, and possibly appendices. The student's defense of the dissertation is oral and public. It includes an oral presentation (12 min), a question-and-answer period (10 min), and is followed by a deliberation. The final grade considers the scope and quality of the work provided, the quality of the written report and the oral presentation, and the relevance of the answers to the questions.

 

For the internship, a non-technical chapter or appendix is added to the master's thesis with an analysis of strategic aspects of the company, providing it with a competitive advantage in the marketplace. These non-technical aspects can include marketing strategy, human resources strategy, financial strategy, R&D strategy, etc.

Work placement(s)

Organisational remarks and main changes to the course

Professors (or permanent scientists) propose internship subjects they would be willing to sponsor academically. These subjects emanate from companies or research centers. Students can propose subjects, but an academic sponsor must approve these subjects.

A non-exhaustive list of subjects is available on the website http://www.fsasurvey.ulg.ac.be/tfe/list.php.

Students' University registration must be complete by the time they start the internship.

Before the internship begins, the student has to send the completed internship agreement and the risk analysis form (cf. https://www.facsa.uliege.be/cms/c_3178752/fr/facsa-stages) to the internship coordinator.

More information can be found at  https://vimeo.com/561215997/afec998b43. However, part of this video is outdated!!! The information on this page prevails in case of conflict.

Contacts

Direct contact: Anne Scheuer (ascheuer@uliege.be)

Coordinator: Bertrand Cornélusse

Apparitorate:

Association of one or more MOOCs