Tampere University Sustainable Architecture Master’s Thesis Guide: 30 ECTS, Pass/Fail, Turnitin and Trepo

What this guide covers

Tampere University’s Sustainable Architecture study option sits inside the current 120-credit Master’s Programme in Architecture. The thesis is not a generic non-technical pro gradu and it should not be treated like an engineering thesis with a numerical grade. It follows Tampere University’s technology/architecture diplomityö route, carries 30 ECTS, and an Architecture master’s thesis is assessed pass/fail.

That distinction shapes the whole workflow. Sustainable Architecture students may work through architectural design, planning and implementation, empirical research, literature-based research, or a combination of these approaches. The method must fit the question. A design proposal can be central to the thesis, but the proposal still needs an explicit research or inquiry logic, evidence, transparent methods and a written argument that lets examiners understand why the design choices are defensible.

This guide uses the current 2026-2027 curriculum and Tampere University’s current thesis instructions. It focuses on what students need to decide, document and verify from topic selection through Trepo submission and final approval.

Programme and degree structure

Sustainable Architecture is an English study option in Tampere University’s Architecture education, organised through the Faculty of Built Environment. The current Master’s Programme in Architecture is 120 credits and leads to the Master of Science (Architecture) degree.

The programme-level learning outcomes matter when choosing a thesis. Architecture students are expected to combine architectural design and research methods, scientific working methods, sustainability thinking and professional responsibility toward society, nature, the built environment, clients and users. The Sustainable Architecture module adds an evidence-based emphasis: students are expected to analyse sustainability claims critically and consider spatial, aesthetic, technical, environmental and human implications.

For thesis planning, that means “sustainable” cannot function as a decorative label. The research problem should identify what is being investigated or improved, what evidence is relevant, what design or analytical method will be used, and how the proposed outcome will be evaluated.

The thesis is 30 ECTS

Tampere University’s Technology/Architecture thesis carries 30 credits. The university describes it as the final academic project required for the Master of Science (Architecture) or Master of Science (Technology) degree and normally places it near the end of master’s studies.

Do not use the university’s non-technical 20-40 ECTS thesis range for Sustainable Architecture. That belongs to another thesis regime. Sustainable Architecture is an Architecture degree and follows the 30-credit diplomityö framework.

The public instructions do not impose one universal page count for every Architecture thesis. Scope should instead be controlled through the 30-credit workload, the supervision plan, the research plan, agreed deliverables and the programme-specific expectations communicated through Architecture teaching and supervision.

What can a Sustainable Architecture thesis look like?

The university’s Technology/Architecture framework explicitly allows empirical research, planning and implementation, or review of existing research literature. This is important for architecture because strong theses can take very different forms.

A design-led thesis might investigate adaptive reuse, low-carbon housing, climate-responsive envelopes, circular construction, inclusive public space, biodiversity-sensitive urban form or another architectural problem and use a design proposal as part of the inquiry. A research-led thesis could study post-occupancy evidence, policy, materials, building performance, housing quality, user experience or architectural theory. A hybrid thesis could combine literature, case analysis, simulation, interviews and design exploration.

The method should follow the question. Do not add laboratory experiments merely to make the project appear scientific, and do not assume a complete building design is mandatory. What matters is whether the evidence and method allow the student to answer the stated question and demonstrate the programme’s architectural and sustainability learning outcomes.

Choosing and narrowing the topic

Tampere recommends starting topic exploration early, ideally near the beginning of MSc-level studies. A topic may be developed independently, offered by the university or commissioned by an external organisation. An unpaid, independently developed topic is also possible.

For Sustainable Architecture, useful topic tests are: Is the problem genuinely architectural? Is the sustainability dimension specific enough to evaluate? Can the work be completed within the agreed thesis period? Are the required data, drawings, case materials, software, stakeholders or sites realistically available? Does the question allow a reasoned conclusion rather than only a visual proposal?

A broad theme such as “sustainable housing” is usually too large. A better thesis question defines a context, scale, user or environmental problem and evaluation frame. The topic can then support a coherent research plan rather than becoming a collection of unrelated sustainability ambitions.

When you are academically ready to start

Before beginning the master’s thesis, the student must have sufficient subject expertise for the proposed work and meet the expected learning outcomes of the degree programme. Tampere’s current instructions also say that the bachelor’s degree must have been completed or the bachelor’s thesis formally approved before the master’s thesis begins.

This is a practical boundary, not merely an administrative one. A Sustainable Architecture thesis often requires advanced design judgement, the ability to evaluate evidence and the ability to position a proposal against existing architectural and sustainability knowledge. Starting before that foundation is ready usually makes the research question and scope harder to control.

Supervisors and their roles

The university appoints one or two supervisors, with one designated as the primary supervisor. Supervisors are chosen based on the thesis topic and are normally connected with advanced teaching or research in the field. The primary supervisor will typically also act as an examiner.

If the thesis is commissioned by a company or other organisation, an external supervisor may support the practical side of the work. That person does not replace the university supervisor’s academic role. The academic argument, research quality, thesis structure and compliance with Tampere’s degree requirements remain university responsibilities.

Students should maintain regular communication, attend agreed meetings and ask for feedback at the stages defined in the supervision plan. Supervision is collaborative, but Tampere explicitly leaves responsibility for completing the thesis with the student.

The Thesis Supervision Plan is mandatory

Technology and Architecture students must prepare a Thesis Supervision Plan with the supervisor. This is one of the most useful pieces of the Tampere process because it turns a broad thesis intention into an agreed project relationship.

The plan records supervisory practices, frequency of meetings, key stages and the expected timeframe. The expected completion timeframe also defines the intended duration of the supervisory relationship. Through the same process, the responsible supervisor nominates the examiners at the beginning of the thesis.

For Sustainable Architecture, use the plan to make architectural deliverables explicit. Agree when the literature/research frame, site or case analysis, concept development, design iterations, technical or environmental evaluation, written chapters, visual material and final manuscript will be reviewed. This avoids reaching the end with a polished design but an underdeveloped academic argument.

Build a research plan before serious production

Tampere requires a preliminary research plan and expects it to be reviewed with the supervisors. The plan can evolve, but it should establish the logic of the work before large amounts of analysis or design production are completed.

A strong Sustainable Architecture research plan normally identifies the background problem, research or design question, relevant literature, cases or precedents, evidence/data, method, design process if applicable, evaluation criteria, ethical or data-protection issues, intended outputs and timetable.

For design research, separate what you are designing from what you are investigating. A thesis may produce a housing proposal, reuse strategy or urban intervention, but the research question must explain what knowledge the design process is intended to test, demonstrate or develop.

Ethics, personal data and participatory work

Architecture theses can appear low-risk until the student begins interviewing residents, running workshops, analysing mobility or occupancy data, photographing identifiable participants or collecting survey responses. Once personal data are involved, Tampere requires the data-processing procedures to be discussed with the supervisor and the university’s data-protection guidance to be followed.

Ethical review depends on the actual research design. A thesis that forms part of a larger scientific project may rely on the project’s principal investigator for the ethical-review process. Interventional health or medical research has additional ethics requirements. Most Sustainable Architecture projects will not fall into that category, but the correct conclusion is “check the method,” not “architecture never needs ethics review.”

Seminar, presentation and thesis support

The Technology/Architecture process expects students to use the thesis seminar or thesis course included in their programme where one exists. These activities support refinement of the research problem, structure, method, analysis and reporting. Tampere also identifies an oral thesis presentation as part of the thesis process.

Architecture students should use these checkpoints for more than showing final visuals. Present the research problem, evidence, design decisions and evaluation logic. Peer questions can reveal where a sustainability claim is unsupported, where a site strategy needs stronger evidence, or where the relationship between written research and drawings is unclear.

If a programme does not use a conventional thesis seminar, Tampere notes that alternative support activities may be available. Follow the current Architecture-specific instructions and Moodle guidance for the year in which the thesis is being completed.

Writing, drawings and the technical-fields thesis guide

Tampere directs Technology/Architecture students to its Guide to Writing a Thesis in Technical Fields and the designated MSc thesis template for engineering and architecture. These resources establish the formal writing and presentation framework.

For architecture, visual material should not sit beside the text as decoration. When drawings, diagrams, simulations, photographs or models are central to the method, the written thesis should explain what they demonstrate and how they connect to the research question. Likewise, sustainability metrics or environmental claims should be traceable to evidence rather than asserted through labels.

The university does not publish one universal Architecture thesis length on the public thesis page. Follow current programme and supervisor guidance rather than importing page-count rules from another discipline.

AI use in a Sustainable Architecture thesis

Tampere permits AI to support learning under defined conditions, but thesis use must be agreed with the primary supervisor and properly acknowledged. The university’s current AI guidance is materially stricter than “anything is allowed if disclosed.”

Students must not upload confidential information, personal data or other people’s protected work to external AI tools. AI-generated material should not be treated as a direct scholarly source. Students remain responsible for their own analysis. AI may be used to discuss preliminary analysis or draft improvement, but current guidance says students should not ask AI to rewrite or complete the draft.

This matters particularly in architecture because image generators and design assistants can produce persuasive-looking output. AI-generated images, figures or graphs require acknowledgement, and copyright and data rules still apply. Discuss design-image generation, coding assistance, simulation support and language editing with the supervisor before building them into the thesis workflow.

Maturity test: understand which route applies

A maturity test is part of the master’s thesis process. For international master’s students in Technology/Architecture, Tampere states that the thesis abstract serves as the maturity test. The examiner assesses the abstract’s content and the faculty records the approved maturity result in Sisu; the Technology/Architecture page says this route has no language checking.

However, students whose degree requires a maturity test with language checking follow the university’s separate EXAM procedure. Therefore, do not assume that every Architecture student has exactly the same maturity workflow. Confirm which maturity implementation applies in Sisu and with the supervisor.

The abstract should be treated as an academic component of the final thesis, not an afterthought. It should accurately communicate the problem, method, key result or design contribution and conclusion.

Turnitin comes before Trepo

When the thesis is ready for final examination, the student and supervisor agree that it is complete enough for the official originality check. The completed thesis is uploaded to Turnitin, and the supervisor reviews the similarity report.

A similarity percentage is not itself a plagiarism judgement. Tampere explicitly notes that the report identifies similarities but must be interpreted. Correct citations, repeated standard phrases and problematic copying can all create different kinds of matches. The supervisor’s review is therefore part of the academic assessment process.

After preliminary examination, final revisions and the primary supervisor’s permission, the student proceeds to formal submission.

Trepo is the examination and archiving route

After the Turnitin check has been reviewed, the student deposits the final thesis in Trepo, Tampere University’s institutional repository. The student must be registered as attending to submit a thesis for examination and receive the credits.

The University Library normally sends an email within three working days of the Trepo deposit containing the address through which the examiner or examiners can access the thesis. The student must forward that information to the examiners promptly.

All master’s theses are archived electronically and stored permanently. For archiving, the thesis must be submitted in PDF/A format.

Examiner timeline: 21 days or 28 days

The normal examiner assessment window is 21 days after the thesis has been submitted for examination. If the student must also complete a separate maturity test as part of the master’s thesis process, the assessment window is 28 days.

Treat these as assessment windows, not as a guaranteed total time to graduation. The thesis is only one part of the final degree process, and the graduation request, final credit registration and other degree requirements can introduce additional timing considerations. Tampere’s graduation guidance tells students to agree the exact thesis schedule with the supervisor.

Students planning around residence permits, study rights, employment, loan compensation or another hard deadline should therefore work backward from the intended graduation month rather than assuming Trepo submission three weeks earlier is always sufficient.

Architecture grading is pass/fail

This is the most important regime-specific exception in the guide. Tampere’s general Technology/Architecture thesis page explains the usual engineering 0-5 scale, but explicitly states that Architecture master’s theses are graded pass/fail.

Do not convert Architecture performance into engineering grade language such as “aim for a 5.” The correct focus is whether the thesis satisfies the Architecture assessment criteria and demonstrates the required architectural, research and professional competence.

The examiners’ statement and proposed result are sent to the student’s tuni.fi email. If the student accepts the examination, they may notify the faculty’s Study Services so the Dean can confirm the result according to the examiners’ statement.

Written response and appeal rights

If the student is dissatisfied with the proposed assessment, Tampere allows a written response within seven days from the email containing the proposed result. The response goes to the faculty. The Dean may decide based on the existing statement, request further examiner comments or appoint an additional examiner.

After the final decision, a student dissatisfied with the thesis grade/result can submit a written appeal to the Faculty Council within 14 days from the date when they had the opportunity to access the assessment result and information about how the criteria were applied.

Once the thesis has been approved, Tampere states that it is final and cannot be resubmitted. Students should therefore resolve substantive corrections before formal approval.

Public thesis does not mean automatic open-web publication

Tampere treats theses as public documents, but legal/public-document status and online availability are not identical. The university’s publicity guidance explains that theses can be accessed through the Library, while online availability depends on the student’s permission and, for article-based work, possible publisher restrictions.

For commissioned Sustainable Architecture projects, keep confidential business information, unpublished commercial data and other restricted material outside the assessable public thesis. A company commission does not create a confidential academic thesis simply by agreement between student and company.

If third-party drawings, photographs, maps or article manuscripts are used, copyright and publication permissions also need to be considered before Trepo submission.

Research data after the thesis

Tampere permanently archives the master’s thesis itself, but student-controlled research data are a separate matter. Where the student is the data controller, the university recommends retaining research data for five years in certain justified circumstances so research integrity can later be checked.

The student is responsible for secure storage of that data, and the university does not automatically store it on the student’s behalf. Data should be kept in a form that prevents research participants from being reasonably identifiable. Special legal rules, such as those governing medical research, can require a different retention period.

A practical Sustainable Architecture workflow

A reliable sequence is: verify that you are academically ready; identify a sustainable-architecture problem that can be answered within the thesis scope; secure a suitable supervisor; complete the Thesis Supervision Plan and examiner nomination; prepare and review the research plan; resolve ethics, personal-data and copyright issues; register for the current thesis support/seminar activities; develop the evidence and design/research work together; present and obtain feedback; draft using the technical-fields guide and Architecture template; agree AI use and acknowledgement; complete the maturity requirement; obtain supervisor permission; run the final Turnitin check; prepare PDF/A; deposit in Trepo while registered as attending; forward the Library access email to examiners; and monitor the 21/28-day assessment window and graduation requirements.

Final checklist

Before submission, confirm that the work belongs to the current Sustainable Architecture / Master of Science (Architecture) curriculum; the thesis is treated as 30 ECTS; the Architecture pass/fail regime is being used; the supervisor and examiner arrangements are documented; the supervision and research plans are current; design outputs are connected to an explicit question and evidence; personal-data and ethics requirements are resolved; AI use follows the supervisor-agreed and university-wide rules; the required presentation and maturity route are complete; Turnitin has been reviewed by the supervisor; the final file is PDF/A; Trepo submission occurs while you are registered as attending; and enough time remains for the 21/28-day examiner window plus the separate graduation process.

The strongest Sustainable Architecture thesis is not simply the most visually ambitious project. It is the project in which architectural decisions, sustainability claims, evidence, research method and written reasoning form one coherent academic contribution.