WELCOME TO THE COURSE
Welcome to the course Magister Thesis in Informatics , spring term 2024! On this page you will find important information about how to register for the course, links to the learning platform and course schedule, as well as contact information to the main teacher and our Student Support. You can also read more about the course, the university and student life. If you have any further questions, do not hesitate to contact us by using the form below.
Have you been admitted to a course or programme, but do not wish to keep your place? Then you should decline your offer by logging in to your account at Universityadmissions.se. In doing so, you free up your place to someone who is on the waiting list.
If you are in need of special support due to disability, you should apply for that in good time before you start your studies. Find more information about support for studying with disabilities.
As a new student, you need to activate your user account (your Umu-id) approximately two weeks prior to the start of the semester.
With your user account you can:
If you are a new student, you will automatically receive a user account when you are admitted, but you will need to activate it for it to function properly. You will not be able to activate it until approximately two weeks prior to the start of the semester.
Install MFA for a more secure login
To increase security and reduce the risk of unauthorised access to your information or account, students must enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) to log in to various systems, such as Canvas and the Student Web.
I want to activate my user account and install MFA
If you are an exchange student or tuition fee paying student, you will receive an email with instructions on how to activate your account.
If you are having problems activating your account or logging in, please contact our Servicedesk. You will find answers to common questions, and can submit enquiries.
Introduction meeting
You must be registered for the course you have been admitted to, in order to be allowed to follow the course and to get your results recorded during the course.
For this course, registration takes place during an introduction meeting on 25 March 2025. If you do not attend the introduction and have not notified Student Support Informatics in advance, you will not be registered and risk losing your place (seat).
Learning platform
The communication between students and teachers will mainly take place via Canvas, one of Umeå University's learning and collaboration platforms. Therefore, it is essential that you have access to a computer and internet connection with good transfer speed. In the learning platform, you will have access to the course's activities such as information about course literature, assignments, submissions, lectures and discussion forums.
To be able to login to Canvas you need to have activated your Umu-id account and registered for the course. You can find more information about Canvas and Umu-id on the Student website. Once you have registered for the course and logged in to Canvas with your Umu-id, you will see the course as an optional tab in your work environment. The learning platform in Canvas opens at the start of the course.
Reminder!
You need to be registered for the course in order to have access to the learning platform and be able to start the course.
You have been admitted to the Magister thesis course, 15 credits, at the Department of Informatics, Umeå University. My name is Rikard Harr, I am responsible for the course, and you will also meet Anders Lundström who will be responsible for some sessions. There are also a bunch of other teachers involved as supervisors and examiners.
This course is a special one as such a large part of the course consists of students working on their theses, with support from their supervisor, and in many cases in collaboration with external partners. Almost all lectures will take place during the first week, with two exceptions taking place at the end of the course. The course is arranged on Campus, but due to the limited number of classes, there will be a high degree of freedom during most parts of it. In the absolute end of the course, we will, in addition to the lectures mentioned above, have a student conference when you present, defend and discuss your theses. For this event your presence on campus is mandatory. There will also be a mandatory examiner seminar, on campus, a few weeks into the course, where you will present your progress and get feedback from examiners (those who will eventually grade your theses) as well as from other students on the course.
Canvas will be used as administrative support, and the course schedule will be made available in TimeEdit at least a month before the course starts (which is on March 25). The Canvas site will provide you with access to lots of material that can help you get started with the course and your thesis writing process.
All theses should be written in pairs (not trios) and to support you in finding a partner, measures will be taken. Before the course starts, when the canvas site is opened, you should present your suggested thesis topic in the Discussion forum in Canvas. Detailed instructions for how this is done will be provided in Canvas and the idea is of course that you should have a chance to find another student to work with. Students who have not yet found a partner when the course starts will be paired up with someone by me.
Besides finding a partner to write with, and perhaps an external organization to collaborate with, it is also a smart move to find a topic for your thesis well in advance of the course start. A description of a topic is submitted early on the course and then the supervision and writing process starts.
Welcome onboard and I look forward to the start of the course.
/Rikard
If you have questions about the course's content, you are welcome to contact the course teacher:
Rikard Harr rikard.harr@umu.se
Questions of an administrative nature such as queries about registration and certificates can be asked to our Student Support:
studentsupport.informatik@umu.se
We wish you a warm welcome and hope that you will enjoy your time here at the Department of Informatics!
Checklist for admitted students
Follow this simple list of things to complete your enrolment at Umeå University. It includes: how to secure housing, getting a residence permit (for citizens from outside the EU/EEA and Switzerland), tuition payment (if applicable), travel directions and more.
The Student web
The website for current students has all sorts of information about services, support, legal and practical matters at Umeå University. You can sign in to the learning platforms, see your schedule and course overview, get a study certificate, apply for a degree or sign up for an examination.
Recommended arrival times
International students are recommended to arrive at least a few days before the start of the regular semester, preferably prior to the Orientation. If you fail to arrive on time, you have to contact the study counselor as soon as possible, but no later than one week ahead of the course start, or you may not be able to register for the programme or course.
If you will have student housing through the Housing Office at Umeå University you will receive information about your arrival in your offer of housing.
Don't forget - Umeå has cold winters, so pack accordingly with a warm jacket, warm shoes, gloves and hat.
Orientation
Moving to a new country with an unfamiliar language, culture and customs can be a challenge. We would like to help you and ease that challenge so that you can focus on your studies. Therefore, we would like to offer you the possibility to take part in our Orientation, which begins a few days before the start of the semester (Autumn) or the same day as the semester starts (Spring).
Welcome Fair
Are you a new student at Umeå University? Visit the Welcome Fair – a perfect opportunity to learn what our university and Umeå can offer. The fair normally takes place in the beginning of each semester.
Get your UmU card
When you are on Campus Umeå, Umeå Arts Campus or Campus Örnsköldsvik, you will need a UmU card. The card has the following functions:
To get the card, you need to apply for it. Here’s how to apply for the UmU card.
Join a student union
There are three student unions at Umeå University:
They are actively involved so that fellow students have a high quality of education, good working environment, and fun leisure time.
Access to Microsoft Office 365
Students at Umeå University have free access to the programmes of Microsoft Office 365. This means that you have access to Teams, Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Whiteboard Forms, your student email and other services which can facilitate your studies and your collaboration with other students. To access Office 365 you need to activate your UmU-id.
Learn more about Office 365 and how to install it on your computer