Aalto University Urban Studies and Planning in Architecture Master’s Thesis Guide: ARTS Process, Presentation and 2027 Deadlines

Aalto University’s Urban Studies and Planning in Architecture route is the Master of Science (Architecture) pathway inside the joint Master’s Programme in Urban Studies and Planning. The parent programme is shared across Aalto schools, but the thesis administration is not. Aalto’s own USP thesis page explicitly tells Architecture students to follow the School of Arts, Design and Architecture (ARTS) Architecture thesis process, while USP in Real Estate Economics students follow the School of Engineering route.

For the current 2026–2028 curriculum, the ARTS Architecture route is clear:

• ARK.thes Master’s Thesis: 30 ECTS;
• ARTSt.matr Maturity Test: 0 ECTS;
• thesis timing: second study year;
• thesis formats may include theoretical, artistic or applied research and may include a design/production component;
• the written component is recommended at 25–70 pages, approximately 50,000–140,000 characters, depending on the production component;
• the thesis is developed as three 10 ECTS progress parts;
• oral presentation is mandatory before examination permission;
• the final thesis is submitted through MyStudies as PDF/A, under 100 MB;
• the Department of Architecture process also requires an exhibition poster; and
• the thesis is examined by two examiners and graded by the Programme Committee.

This is not the same administrative route as USP in Real Estate Economics even though both theses are 30 ECTS. The differences in thesis format, staged progress, presentation, exhibition poster, examiners and school approval make a separate Architecture guide necessary.

Where the thesis fits in the degree

The current USP Architecture degree totals 120 ECTS, with 90 ECTS of programme studies and 30 ECTS of elective studies. The 30 ECTS ARK.thes thesis sits inside the programme studies and is scheduled for the second study year. ARTSt.matr is the separate 0 ECTS maturity test.

The common USP curriculum gives students an interdisciplinary urban-studies foundation, while the Architecture degree route connects the thesis to Urban Planning and Design. The Architecture thesis page lists Urban Planning and Design as the formal thesis topic area for USP Architecture, with supervision drawn from the relevant professorship fields.

A thesis can therefore investigate urban form, planning systems, urban design, spatial transformation, governance, housing, public space, climate adaptation, computational or evidence-based planning, participatory processes or other academically grounded urban questions. These are examples, not a prescribed topic list. The final topic must fit the student’s advanced studies and the expertise of the supervisor.

The thesis itself remains 30 ECTS regardless of whether the work includes a substantial design/production component.

Use the USP Architecture thesis-seminar route correctly

USP Architecture has a programme-specific seminar layer. The Architecture thesis page states that students participate in the thesis seminar at the University of Helsinki, and Aalto additionally recommends taking ARK-E5520 Thesis seminar.

The important point is that the seminar is a preparation and thesis-development environment, not a second thesis. Students should use it to clarify the topic, test the research/urban-planning or design problem, organise the evidence and design component, and identify an appropriate supervisor.

Do not import thesis-seminar credit structures or course codes from other Aalto programmes. USP Architecture follows the seminar arrangements stated for its own degree route.

Understand the ARTS thesis format before scoping the project

ARTS permits more thesis forms than a conventional engineering research report. A USP Architecture thesis may be theoretical, artistic or applied research, a work of art, or a combination of these. It may include a design or other production component, but a written component is always required.

If the thesis combines written and production components, the student specifies the intended emphasis of those components for evaluation. The thesis is nevertheless evaluated as one whole thesis, not as two separately graded projects.

The current curriculum recommends a written component of 25–70 pages, approximately 50,000–140,000 characters, depending on the extent of the production component. This is an ARTS Architecture recommendation and must not be copied into the ENG Real Estate Economics route.

Formalise the topic, supervisor and advisors in MyStudies

The Department of Architecture process begins through the thesis seminar. During the early stage, the student develops and presents a Thesis Proposal, a concise description of the intended project.

The proposal is important because it gives the programme enough information to match the project with appropriate supervision and to test whether the topic is realistic. The supervisor is confirmed after proposal presentations according to the topic and the programme or major process.

Once supervision is in place, the supervisor approves the thesis topic and advisor or advisors. The supervisor also has responsibility for ensuring that the topic is academically appropriate and feasible within the intended timeframe.

A useful proposal should therefore make the research or urban-planning or design problem visible, explain why it matters, outline the intended conceptual or theoretical basis, identify likely methods or planning/design practices, describe the expected production or empirical material where relevant, and provide a realistic timetable.

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/urban-planning/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.

USP Architecture thesis methods are not universal

The programme spans different urban-planning and architecture research cultures. The current public sources do not impose one universal empirical method for every thesis.

Depending on the project, a thesis may use interviews, observation, participatory design, co-design, prototyping, material experiments, studio practice, archival or visual analysis, design case studies, service or systems research, practice-based inquiry, user studies, critical making, theoretical work or combinations of approaches.

This list is illustrative, not prescriptive. Students should justify the method through the research question, the nature of the urban-planning or design problem, available evidence and the conventions of the relevant major. The supervisor and advisor should confirm whether the proposed approach is academically adequate.

The same caution applies to structure. Aalto’s current public programme sources do not publish one universal page count, word count, citation style or compulsory chapter template for all three majors. Aalto provides a thesis template, but the USP Architecture thesis page explicitly states that using the template is not mandatory.

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, advisor and examiners

The USP Architecture thesis page does not publish one simple universal job-title rule for the supervisor. Instead, the supervisor is selected through the programme process based on the thesis topic. The guide should therefore not invent a professor-only rule unless the current programme instructions specifically state one.

The supervisor approves the topic and advisor arrangements and makes sure the student receives appropriate advising and feedback. Advisor support can be important for day-to-day development of the urban-planning/design work, production, research method or writing.

After Part 2, examiners are named. The programme director confirms them. The supervisor is normally one examiner, while the second examiner may be another faculty member or an external expert from the field.

The oral presentation is mandatory and has a USP-specific format

For USP Architecture, the presentation is a hard examination prerequisite. Aalto states that the thesis cannot be evaluated if the presentation is missing.

The current route-specific format is a 30-minute presentation slot: the student presents for a maximum of 15 minutes, and the remaining time is used for discussion. The programme informs students of the detailed presentation timetable for each session.

The student should contact the supervisor and confirm readiness to present at least two weeks before the presentation. The thesis is sent to the supervisor by email at least one week before the presentation. After the presentation, the student incorporates relevant feedback and finalises the thesis.

Aalto currently publishes the USP Architecture presentation calendar through 2026 only. Do not manufacture 2027 presentation dates from the 2027 thesis-submission calendar. Students targeting a 2027 hand-in must use current programme communications for the associated 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 a Master of Arts degree at ARTS, the thesis abstract serves as the maturity test. The supervisor approves the content of the abstract.

The language requirements depend on the student’s language of education and whether the relevant language and maturity requirements were already completed in the bachelor’s degree. Students educated in Finland in Finnish or Swedish can have additional language obligations where those requirements have not already been satisfied.

Aalto’s current AI guidance states that language models are not permitted in maturity exams. Because the USP Architecture thesis abstract functions as the maturity test, the assessed maturity-test abstract should be treated as an AI-prohibited component. Students should not assume that permission to use AI elsewhere in thesis work also permits AI use in the maturity assessment.

Production and artistic components

A USP 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 requirement is specific to the ARTS/Department of Architecture process and should not be assumed for the ENG USP route.

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 Design 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 USP Architecture thesis submission dates

The USP graduation page now publishes four confirmed ARTS thesis submission dates for 2027. These are the dates that should be used for final thesis planning, not every monthly graduation date:

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

Other 2027 graduation dates appear on the page without a confirmed thesis-submission entry. Do not automatically treat those as thesis deadlines.

The current Architecture thesis page still provides only the 2026 presentation-session schedule. Therefore, a student planning one of the 2027 submission windows should confirm the corresponding presentation date with the programme rather than extrapolating from 2026.

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 urban-studies, planning and design foundation needed for a thesis. Keep track of possible questions, relevant Urban Planning and Design professorship fields, potential supervisors, datasets, sites, communities 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 University of Helsinki thesis seminar and the recommended Aalto ARK-E5520 Thesis seminar route 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 checklist

Before final submission, confirm that:

• your degree route is USP in Architecture / Master of Science (Architecture);
• ARK.thes is 30 ECTS and ARTSt.matr is 0 ECTS;
• you are using the USP Architecture seminar and programme instructions, not another Aalto programme’s thesis course;
• the topic is within Urban Planning and Design and has an appropriate supervisor;
• topic, supervisor and advisor information is approved in MyStudies;
• the three 10 ECTS thesis progress stages have been handled as agreed with the supervisor;
• the written component and any design/production component form one coherent thesis;
• the current 25–70 page / 50,000–140,000 character recommendation has been applied appropriately to the written component;
• the mandatory oral presentation has been completed before examination permission;
• Turnitin/originality requirements have been handled;
• the maturity-test abstract follows current language and AI rules;
• the final thesis is PDF/A and under 100 MB;
• the exhibition poster is ready in both PDF and JPEG;
• confidential material has been kept outside the evaluated public thesis;
• your Sisu study plan and attendance status are graduation-ready; and
• the live submission and presentation dates have been rechecked.

Final planning principle

The safest way to plan USP Architecture is to keep the ARTS route identity visible from the beginning: 30 ECTS ARK.thes, 0 ECTS ARTSt.matr, flexible theoretical/artistic/applied thesis formats, three 10 ECTS progress parts, mandatory USP-specific presentation, MyStudies, exhibition poster, two examiners and Programme Committee grading.

The intellectual form of the project can remain flexible. What should not be flexible is the administrative route. Students should not borrow School of Engineering thesis mechanics simply because the other USP degree also belongs to the same parent programme.