Scientific writing and presentation is very important in the academic world. Findings and results of research should be communicated in a clear and correct way. In the master studies, these soft skills are indirectly evaluated in seminar works or when performing the master thesis.

How to improve soft skills in scientific writing and presentation?

If a student would like to improve their soft skills in scientific writing and presentation, we recommend reading the following materials:

• J. Zobel: Writing for Computer Science - 2nd Edition, Springer-Verlag, 2004.
• D. Evans, P. Gruba and J. Zobel: How to Write a Better Thesis - 3rd Edition, Melbourne University Press, 2011.
• H.B. Michaelson: How to Write and Publish Engineering Paper and Reports - 2nd Edition, ISI Press.
• R.R. Rathbone: Communicating Technical Information - A New Guide to Uses and Abuses in Scientific and Engineering Writing - 2nd Edition, Addison-Wesley.
• C. Turk and J. Kirkman: Effective Writing: Improving Scientific, Technical and Business Communication - 2nd Edition.

Some more online links:

• How to write and present a thesis/dissertation: http://www.learnerassociates.net/dissthes
• Structure of a CS thesis: http://www.cc.gatech.edu/fac/Spencer.Rugaber/txt/thesis.html
• A nice collection of material and links on how to write and present scientific research: http://research.microsoft.com/en-us/um/people/simonpj/papers/giving-a-talk/giving-a-talk.htm

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the uncredited use of the ideas or words of somebody else. Definitions on what constitutes plagiarism can be found at http://plagiarism.org/plagiarism-101/what-is-plagiarism, while types of plagiarism are classified at http://plagiarism.org/plagiarism-101/types-of-plagiarism.

In the master studies, plagiarism is considered as an act of fraud. According to Art. 31 of the “Règlement pour l’obtention du Master en Informatique / Reglement für die Erlangung des Masters in Informatik” such an act can be sanctioned. Each home university additionally provides a series of disciplinary measures to be taken against such conduct:

• Bern: Richtlinien der Universitätsleitung betreffend das Vorgehen bei Plagiaten
• Neuchâtel: Directive du rectorat sur la procédure en cas de fraude ou de plagiat estudiantin and Instructions en matière de lutte contre plagiat
• Fribourg: Directives concernant la procédure en cas de soupçon de comportement scientifique incorrect / Richtlinien über das Verfahren im Falle des Verdachts auf das Vorliegen wissenschaftlichen Fehlverhaltens

To avoid plagiarism, acknowledge all sources. For more information on how to avoid plagiarism, please have a look at http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_plagiar.html and Guide sur le plagiat à l'attention des étudiants.