MASTER THESIS

Procedure for submitting a proposal for a Master´s thesis topic

Students are encouraged to propose their own thesis topics, which must be endorsed by a lecturer of the master’s program (tutor). To do so, the student must complete the application form (Form TFM-01) and submit it to the coordinator of the Master program for subsequent approval by the Master’s Thesis Committee.

The form must be submitted before beginning work on the project, as the proposal must be approved by the committee in advance. If a student is unable to identify a suitable project independently, they may contact the Master’s coordinator for assistance in finding an appropriate topic.

Writing the Master's Thesis. Summary slide (poster)

The result of the work carried out must be reflected in a written document. It is very important that the student emphasizes his personal contributions to the work, although other aspects must be incorporated, such as a summary, objectives, bibliography, etc. Likewise, it must also meet a series of format requirements: indexing of figures, references, etc. All of these aspects are detailed in the attached document 'TemplateTFM and Writing Standards'.

The students are also required to provide a summary-slide (poster) of the work carried out along the thesis in PPT format. The instructions and format for the poster are provided in the Master's Thesis Regulations document, and the template is also available here, 'Template Summary Slide'.

Procedure for the defence of the Master's Thesis

Application. To request authorization for the thesis defence, the student must submit the Defence Request Form (Form TFM-02), signed by the supervisor (and the tutor, if applicable). Additionally, the student is required to submit a bound copy of the report in the library, along with a digital version (PDF) of the Master’s thesis and the accompanying poster. Concurrently, the project supervisor will confidentially submit the evaluation of the student’s work (Form TFM-03). All documentation must be sent by email to secretaria.ing-materiales.caminos@upm.es, addressed to  the president of the end-of-degree committee.

Defence. The defence will take place in person and will consist of a public presentation of the most relevant results before a committee composed of three professors from the corresponding area. The student will have 20–23 minutes to deliver the presentation, followed by a question-and-answer session with the committee.

The defence dates for the 2025-26 course are:

• Thursday 22nd January 2026

• Thursday 16th July 2026

• Friday 18th September 2026

All forms and documents must be submitted to the secretary at least 10 days before the defence date. Theses submitted after September 9 will correspond to the following academic year, and the student will be required to re-enroll in the Master’s Thesis course.

Documents

The forms must be sent by email to secretaria.ing-materiales.caminos@upm.es. 

Form TFM-01 Proposal for a master’s thesis topic - application for master thesis 

Form TFM-02 Master's thesis defence application form

Form TFM-03 Project supervisor’s report for the master’s thesis

Master's Thesis Regulations The regulations for the application, preparation, and defence of the Master's Thesis are summarized in this document (Master's Thesis Regulations). Important dates for the 2025–26 academic year are also provided here. 

TemplateTFM and Writing Standards

Template Summary Slide

These forms are also available on UPM’s official e-learning platform MOODLE.