Aalto University Architecture Master’s Thesis Guide: 30 ECTS ARK.thes, 30-Minute Presentation and 2027 Deadlines

Aalto University’s Architecture major is the Master of Science (Architecture) route in the School of Arts, Design and Architecture. In the current 2026–2028 curriculum the degree is 120 ECTS: 90 ECTS advanced studies in module ARTS3104 and 30 ECTS elective studies. The major includes 60 ECTS of advanced-major coursework and the separate 30 ECTS ARK.thes master’s thesis. The maturity test is ARTSt.matr, 0 ECTS.

This guide is intentionally separate from Interior Architecture even though both majors sit under the same parent programme and share many ARTS thesis procedures. The current codes are different, the major-specific topic structures are different, and the oral-presentation formats are materially different. Architecture uses a 30-minute presentation slot with a maximum 15-minute student presentation, while Interior Architecture uses a 45-minute slot with a 20–25-minute student presentation. Combining those into one guide would make the administrative route unclear.

The shared thesis backbone is substantial. Aalto describes the thesis as design, research or art, or a combination of these, and every thesis includes a written component of 50,000–140,000 characters. The 30 ECTS work is divided into three 10 ECTS parts, the oral presentation is mandatory before examination, the final thesis is submitted through MyStudies, the file must be PDF/A under 100 MB, the Department of Architecture exhibition poster is submitted at the final deadline, and the Programme Committee confirms the grade after examiner review.

For 2027, Aalto already confirms four final thesis submission dates: 26 May, 30 July, 17 November and 31 December 2027. The current public Architecture presentation table still contains 2026 dates only. Those calendars must not be confused: this guide does not invent 2027 oral-presentation dates.

Where the thesis fits in the current Architecture degree

The current Architecture degree totals 120 ECTS. The advanced-studies module is ARTS3104, 90 ECTS, and the degree also contains 30 ECTS of elective studies. Within the major, the current advanced-major coursework is 60 ECTS, while the master’s thesis is the separate ARK.thes, 30 ECTS component. The maturity test is ARTSt.matr, 0 ECTS.

The curriculum places thesis preparation and completion in the second study year. It also includes ARK-E5520 Thesis Seminar, 3 ECTS, and requires students to choose 3 ECTS between ARK-E1521 Introduction to Architectural Research and ARK-E1522 Architectural Research Basics, Self-Paced Online. These courses help build the research framing around the thesis, but they do not increase the formal thesis from 30 ECTS.

Architecture is a field where research and design can be closely connected. A thesis can investigate a design problem, an urban or building question, a historical or theoretical issue, a technical or computational approach, a sustainability challenge, or another academically grounded architectural problem. The formal topic must still sit within the current Architecture topic route and be agreed with the relevant teaching field.

Use the Architecture thesis seminar as a development stage

Architecture students are instructed to enrol in the Thesis Seminar before starting the thesis. In the 2026–2028 curriculum this is ARK-E5520, 3 ECTS, taught in the second study year.

The seminar is not a second thesis and it should not be added to ARK.thes. Its value is that it creates a structured place to clarify the topic, connect a design interest to a researchable problem, test the evidence and methods, identify suitable supervision, and make the scope realistic for a 30 ECTS project.

The same year includes the 3 ECTS research-course choice between ARK-E1521 and ARK-E1522. Students should use the seminar and research-method preparation together: the seminar develops the actual thesis problem, while the research course strengthens the methods and academic reasoning needed to carry it out.

Understand the ARTS thesis format before fixing the scope

Aalto’s current parent thesis instructions allow a master’s thesis to be a work of design, research or art, or a combination of these. This gives Architecture students considerable intellectual and practical flexibility, but the flexibility does not remove the academic requirements.

Every thesis includes a written component. The current shared instruction states 50,000–140,000 characters. This is a character range for the written component, not a universal word count and not a reason to force every project into the same chapter structure. A design-heavy thesis and a theory-heavy thesis may distribute their work differently while still needing clear questions, evidence, reasoning, documentation and conclusions.

The 30 ECTS scope is approximately half an academic year of full-time work. A student should design the project around what can realistically be researched, designed, documented, written, presented and revised within that workload. A visually ambitious design project can still fail academically if the research problem and reasoning are weak, while a long written report is not automatically a stronger architectural thesis.

Formalise the topic, supervisor and advisors in MyStudies

Architecture students choose their topic, but the topic must be academically located within the major. The current thesis page organises Architecture thesis topics into Building Design, Urban Planning and Design, and History and Theory of Architecture. The student and a teacher from the relevant field agree the subject.

This topic taxonomy connects the thesis to the teaching and research expertise that can examine it properly. A topic may cross boundaries, but the student should still be able to explain which architectural field carries the main academic responsibility.

The formal thesis record is managed in MyStudies. Topic, supervisor and one or two advisors are entered there, and the supervisor confirms supervision and approves the topic and advisor arrangements. The approved topic is valid for one year, so a project that extends beyond that period needs renewed approval.

Students should complete these formal steps early. A thesis can evolve during research and design, but the administrative record should not remain disconnected from the real project until the final hand-in.

The thesis is developed in staged parts

The current ARTS Architecture process divides the 30 ECTS thesis into staged work.

Part 1 (10 ECTS) establishes the thesis plan, scope and early framework as agreed with the supervisor.

Part 2 (10 ECTS) develops the methods, design/research work, evidence and preliminary outcomes. The supervisor approves the progress stage.

Part 3 (10 ECTS) completes the research/architectural/design work, written component and any production/documentation, followed by the mandatory oral presentation and final examination submission.

This staged structure is useful because it makes the thesis a sequence of reviewable academic decisions rather than one large document submitted only at the end. Students should use the stage reviews to correct scope, method, documentation and argument before the final submission period.

Architecture thesis methods are not universal

The Architecture major covers several research and design cultures, so Aalto does not impose one universal method for every thesis. The method must follow the actual research or design problem.

A project might use design research, case studies, archival work, historical analysis, visual analysis, interviews, observation, computational or simulation work, material or construction experiments, site analysis, participatory methods, comparative analysis, theoretical inquiry, research through design, or combinations of these. These are examples rather than a compulsory menu.

The student should explain why the selected method can answer the research question or develop the architectural proposition credibly. Methodological strength comes from alignment between question, evidence, process and interpretation, not from choosing a method because it sounds more technical.

The current public sources also do not prescribe one universal citation style or compulsory chapter sequence for every Architecture thesis. Aalto provides thesis-format guidance and a template, but the template is not a substitute for agreeing the appropriate structure with the supervisor.

MyStudies manages the formal thesis record

The current thesis process is administered through MyStudies. Students use the thesis area to provide and maintain the basic thesis information and metadata, add the supervisor and advisor or advisors, and submit the completed thesis for evaluation, approval and archiving.

The supervisor confirms supervision in MyStudies and approves the topic and advisor arrangements. Students should not leave these formal steps until the final submission stage. A clean MyStudies record is part of the thesis workflow.

When the thesis is finally approved, MyStudies also provides access to the grade and evaluation information.

Supervisor, advisors and examiners

The supervisor is selected through the programme process based on the thesis topic and confirms supervision in MyStudies. The supervisor approves the topic, advisor or advisors and the staged thesis progress. A thesis may have one or two advisors, and the supervisor and advisor may be the same person where appropriate.

Advisors can support detailed development of design, research method, technical questions, source work or writing. Students should make responsibilities clear so that advice does not become fragmented across several people.

After Thesis Part II is completed, examiners are named. The programme director confirms them. The supervisor is normally one examiner, while the second examiner may be programme faculty or an external expert from the field. The thesis should therefore contain enough written and visual documentation for a second examiner to understand the argument and evidence without depending on informal knowledge of the project.

The Architecture oral presentation is mandatory and has a 30-minute format

The oral presentation is a hard examination prerequisite. Aalto states that the thesis cannot be evaluated if the presentation is missing.

For Architecture, the current major-specific format is a 30-minute slot. The student’s own presentation may take a maximum of 15 minutes, and the remaining time is reserved for discussion. The presentation should therefore communicate the problem, approach, key design or research decisions, main evidence and conclusions rather than reproduce the whole thesis.

The student must confirm with the supervisor that the thesis is ready to be presented at least two weeks before the presentation. The thesis is sent to the supervisor by email at least one week before the presentation. Feedback from the session can then be used in final corrections before examination hand-in.

The public Architecture table currently publishes presentation sessions through 2026 only. Aalto separately publishes final thesis submission dates for 2027. Do not infer a 2027 presentation date from a 2027 final hand-in date; students should use current major communication for the relevant presentation session.

Turnitin and final integrity checks

The current Department of Architecture process requires an originality check through Turnitin according to programme practice. The thesis page also states that originality and AI-detection reports are generated when the final work is submitted and made available to the supervisor.

Students remain responsible for the academic integrity of the thesis. Sources, quotations, images, datasets, design precedents, external contributions and AI-assisted work should be handled according to the latest Aalto and programme rules.

Maturity test: the thesis abstract

For this Architecture degree route, the thesis abstract serves as the maturity test, and the supervisor approves its content. The current curriculum records the maturity test as ARTSt.matr, 0 ECTS.

Language checking can depend on the student’s language of education and on whether the required maturity and language obligations were already completed in the bachelor’s degree. Students with Finnish or Swedish language obligations should confirm the applicable checking process.

Aalto’s current AI guidance states that language models are not permitted in maturity examinations. The maturity-test abstract should therefore be treated as a protected assessment component even if some AI-supported activities are allowed elsewhere under current course or supervisor guidance.

Production and artistic components

An Architecture thesis may include a production or artistic component alongside the written academic publication. The current submission instructions recognise this possibility.

If a production component cannot be fully represented inside the written PDF, separate digital documentation such as images, audio or video can be archived as media appendix material with appropriate metadata and credits. Students should coordinate the examination of a production component with the examiners if it has not already been examined during the earlier stages.

The existence of a production component does not remove the requirement for a written academic thesis, research-founded reasoning, documentation and examination.

Submit the Department of Architecture exhibition poster

The current Department of Architecture workflow requires an exhibition poster at the same deadline as the final thesis. The poster is part of the department’s thesis showcase and is submitted in both PDF and JPEG formats.

The poster template asks for key project metadata, keywords, an abstract of up to 2,000 characters and selected visual material such as diagrams, site plans, drawings or perspectives. This poster belongs to the Department of Architecture thesis workflow and should be planned alongside the final thesis rather than treated as optional.

Final file: PDF/A and under 100 MB

The final thesis is submitted through MyStudies. The current ARTS instructions require the thesis file to be in PDF/A format and below 100 MB. Submission will not go through if those technical requirements are not met.

Aalto recommends checking the PDF/A conversion carefully and ensuring the archived file is identical to the intended final thesis. Students with image-heavy or production-heavy work should plan file preparation early rather than trying to solve format and size problems at the submission deadline.

The approved thesis is public

The thesis and its metadata are archived in Aaltodoc. Permission to publish the full text openly online is a separate question from whether the thesis is a public document.

Aalto allows the online publishing date to be postponed by up to one year for reasons such as another publication, a patent application or corporate concerns. However, postponing online publication does not make the approved thesis confidential. The public copy remains accessible according to Aalto’s public-document process.

For company-linked, commercially sensitive or unpublished design projects, confidentiality must therefore be planned before material is placed in the thesis. Information that cannot lawfully become part of a public thesis should be handled outside the public academic document under the applicable agreement and Aalto rules.

Assessment and Programme Committee approval

The thesis is evaluated by the appointed examiners. The current parent thesis page says the supervisor is normally one examiner, with another programme faculty member or external expert potentially serving as the second examiner.

The Programme Committee makes the thesis grade decision based on the examiners’ statement after the relevant hand-in deadline. Students should therefore distinguish between submitting the thesis, receiving examiner evaluation and the formal committee decision.

Current 2027 Architecture thesis submission dates

The parent graduation page confirms four final thesis submission dates for 2027:

• 26 May 2027: Programme Committee confirms grades 14–18 June 2027;
• 30 July 2027: grades 23–27 August 2027;
• 17 November 2027: grades 7–10 December 2027;
• 31 December 2027: grades 17–21 January 2028.

Other 2027 graduation dates appear without a confirmed thesis-submission entry and are not automatically thesis deadlines. The major-specific Architecture thesis page currently gives oral-presentation dates only for 2026, so students planning a 2027 hand-in must confirm the associated presentation session separately.

Graduation planning

Graduation is requested in Sisu using the student’s up-to-date primary study plan. The student must be registered as attending on the graduation day.

Other studies included in the degree should be completed and registered when the graduation request is submitted. The final thesis must be returned to MyStudies for grading according to the applicable thesis-submission schedule. A thesis grade may be entered after the graduation request if the Programme Committee decision occurs later.

A clean Sisu study plan matters because Sisu generates the degree certificate based on the approved study plan and graduation request.

Practical planning sequence

First year and early second year

Build the architectural design and research foundation needed for a thesis. Keep track of possible questions, relevant topic fields, potential supervisors, evidence, sites, precedents and design/research contexts. If the project may include a production component, begin thinking early about how the written and design components will work together as one thesis.

Seminar and topic clarification

Use the Aalto ARK-E5520 Thesis Seminar to clarify the problem. Contact relevant teaching staff, identify a suitable supervisor, and enter the topic, supervisor and one or two advisors in MyStudies. Remember that topic approval is valid for one year.

Part 1: first 10 ECTS

Agree with the supervisor what constitutes the first progress package. Establish the scope, conceptual/research framework, design or empirical strategy, source base and working schedule. The goal is to make the project examinable as a 30 ECTS thesis rather than simply ambitious.

Part 2: second 10 ECTS

Develop the actual research, planning/design work, evidence and preliminary findings. Record decisions and iterations so the written component can explain how the work developed and why the resulting claims or proposals are justified. When Part 2 is complete, the programme can move toward naming the examiners.

Final 10 ECTS and presentation

Complete the written component and any production/design work. Run the originality check early enough to fix citation or attribution problems. Confirm presentation readiness with the supervisor at least two weeks before the presentation and send the thesis to the supervisor at least one week beforehand. Complete the mandatory oral presentation and use the discussion to make final corrections.

Final submission

Prepare one compliant PDF/A under 100 MB, include the thesis abstract/maturity component, submit any separate production documentation as instructed, and submit the Department of Architecture exhibition poster in PDF and JPEG by the same deadline. Then submit the final thesis through MyStudies and, when appropriate, request graduation in Sisu.

Final Architecture thesis checklist

Before final submission, confirm that:

• your route is Architecture, Master of Science in Architecture under the current 2026–2028 curriculum;
• advanced studies are ARTS3104 90 ECTS and the degree also contains 30 ECTS electives;
• ARK.thes is 30 ECTS and ARTSt.matr is 0 ECTS;
• ARK-E5520 Thesis Seminar and the separate research-method course have been planned correctly;
• the topic is located within Building Design, Urban Planning and Design, or History and Theory of Architecture and has suitable supervision;
• topic, supervisor and advisor records are approved in MyStudies;
• the three 10 ECTS progress parts have been completed as agreed;
• the written component follows the current 50,000–140,000-character instruction and any design/artistic component is documented as part of one coherent thesis;
• the mandatory Architecture presentation has been completed using the 30-minute slot / maximum 15-minute student presentation rule;
• Turnitin, attribution and maturity-test requirements are complete;
• the final thesis is PDF/A under 100 MB and any separate media appendix has suitable metadata and credits;
• the Department of Architecture exhibition poster is ready in both PDF and JPEG;
• confidential information has been kept outside the evaluated public thesis;
• your Sisu study plan and attendance status are graduation-ready; and
• both the live final-submission deadline and the separate oral-presentation schedule have been rechecked.

Final planning principle

The safest way to plan the Aalto Architecture thesis is to keep the route identity visible from the beginning: ARTS3104 90 ECTS advanced studies, ARK.thes 30 ECTS, ARTSt.matr 0 ECTS, ARK-E5520 Thesis Seminar, three 10 ECTS thesis stages, mandatory 30-minute presentation, MyStudies, exhibition poster, two examiners and Programme Committee grading.

The intellectual form can remain flexible. A building-design thesis, urban-design thesis and history/theory thesis may look very different. The administrative route should not become flexible in the same way. Architecture students should not borrow SARK.thes, ARTSa.matr or the 45-minute Interior Architecture presentation simply because both majors share the same parent programme.

For 2027 planning, treat the four confirmed final thesis hand-ins as fixed current evidence and the oral-presentation calendar as a separate live variable. Recheck the presentation session with the major before locking the final weeks of the schedule.