Colloquium

Table of Contents

1. What is a Colloquium?
2. What does “Colloquium under Reservation” mean?
3. How does a Colloquium proceed?
4. What is a scientific presentation?

What is a Colloquium?

The colloquium is a scientific oral discussion of your thesis. Its purpose is to assess your academic skills based on your thesis. This includes testing your:

• Knowledge (e.g., being asked about certain theories),
• Methodological understanding (e.g., justifying or evaluating methods),
• Scientific thinking (e.g., assessing how your results advance the research context, discussing future research questions),
• Critical thinking (e.g., questioning theories and assumptions, answering “what-if” questions, making evaluations), and
• Application-oriented thinking (e.g., how the results can be applied).

Important: The colloquium is not about proving that your thesis is correct or perfect in every aspect (no scientific work is). Instead, it focuses on your ability to critically reflect on your own work, to know its strengths and weaknesses, and to present it confidently.
That means: The colloquium is less a defense and more a scientific discussion.

What does “Colloquium under Reservation” mean?

In many (Teams) invitations to the colloquium, you may see the note “under reservation.” Don’t be alarmed — just prepare normally for your colloquium.

“Under reservation” means that the examiners at IU reserve the right to cancel the colloquium if major deficiencies are found in the written thesis (e.g., significant plagiarism). In such cases, the written work will be graded as “failed,” and therefore there is no need for an oral examination (colloquium).

Since the examiners aim to accommodate you by conducting the process quickly, students are often invited before a thorough review of the written thesis has been completed. For this reason, invitations are issued “under reservation.” The status of these invitations is rarely updated before the date of the colloquium for time reasons.

If your written thesis were to be graded as “failed,” I would contact you personally as early as possible before the colloquium date — which is very rare.

In short: there is normally no reason to worry if your colloquium invitation includes the note “under reservation.”

How does a Colloquium proceed?

Colloquia are held virtually, usually via Microsoft Teams. The following people are present:

• Student
• First examiner
• Second examiner

The colloquium consists of three parts (in this order):

1. General part

The colloquium begins with a few administrative points, namely the verification of identity and health condition.

Please have your ID ready for identity verification.
You will then be asked whether you are in good health and free from the influence of drugs or alcohol. Once you confirm this, the colloquium begins.

2. Presentation of your thesis (approx. 15 minutes)

Please make sure to strictly adhere to the time limit. Exceeding it is often interpreted as a sign of insufficient preparation.

Here’s a suggested structure for your slides.
This is how most scientific presentations (e.g., at conferences) are structured:

Introduction (6–8 minutes)

• Goal: establish a logical flow and practical relevance.
• Present the following points in a clear, coherent sequence:
  • What do we already know about the topic?
  • What is the current state of research (results, theories)?
  • What is the research gap?
  • What is your research question?
  • What is the added value (theoretical, practical, methodological)?
  • Provide a short overview of your methodological approach.

Methods (3–4 minutes)

• Present only the most important aspects:
  • Number of participants (including gender distribution).
  • Short description of methods and instruments used.
  • Key analysis details (e.g., ANOVA factors or qualitative approach).

Results (approx. 5 minutes)

• Present only the results relevant to answering your research question.
• Use visualizations (bar, line, or scatter plots).
• Label your axes clearly and specify what error bars represent.
• Report statistical results in APA style, e.g.:
  Main effect of Age: F(1,180)=23.43, η²=0.56, p<0.001.

Important notes:

• When interactions are significant, main effects may be stated but not interpreted.
• Null effects (non-significant results) must not be interpreted.
• Interpret results only in relation to your research question.
• Make sure your results actually answer your research question.

Qualitative results

• Present key original quotes or overall impressions.
• Show intermediate analytical steps (e.g., category systems) or include them in an appendix.
• Demonstrate that the results answer the research question.

Discussion (2–3 minutes)

This section addresses the broader meaning and implications of your findings.

• Briefly restate your research question and main findings.
• Compare your results with existing studies.
• Critically reflect on your methodology:
  • What are the limitations of your methods?
  • How might they affect interpretation?
• Note: representativeness is usually not a goal in theses.
  (See: Weird People Study – Henrich et al.)
• Discuss practical implications: What do your findings mean for real-world application?
  Base all statements strictly on your data.

References

• Don’t forget to include a complete reference list at the end.

3. Question and discussion session (15–30 minutes)

This is followed by a discussion with both examiners.
They will take turns asking questions about:

• Theory
• Methodology
• Interpretation
• Application
• Reflection on your work

Tip:
Thinking aloud, showing critical reasoning, and weighing alternatives are valid scientific responses — not signs of uncertainty.

What is a scientific presentation?

A scientific presentation should summarize your thesis briefly, precisely, and scientifically correctly.
It should be objective, critical, and logically structured.

Relevant content:

• Emphasize the relevance and importance of your topic
  (e.g., its usefulness for daily life, professional practice, or research)
• Present the current state of knowledge (theories & studies, with citations)
• Identify the research gap and state your research question
• Explain the methodological approach
• Show key results (graphs, statistics, APA-style)
• Interpret results: What answers do they provide to your research question?
• Discuss:
  • Theoretical implications
  • Methodological limitations
  • Practical applications
  • Potential future research questions
• Include a reference list

Tips for structure and focus

Since presentation time is limited, prioritization is crucial:

• Focus on the main points that best answer your research question.
• Avoid side topics.
• Keep your presentation coherent, clear, critical, and logical.

Example:
If you conducted several analyses but have limited time, present only the most relevant one that best answers your question.
You can mention that additional analyses support this result and include them in an appendix for reference if questions arise.

Reference notes

Remember to include citations on your slides.
Make sure you have a reference list at the end of your presentation and show it briefly.

For more details on how to structure a scientific presentation, see How does a Colloquium proceed.