I am currently studying agricultural economics at a good central
European university and in the next six months I have to plan and
organize everything about my thesis, which I will start in roughly a
year from now.

Clearly, my goal is to write an awesome thesis and I am hoping to
improve my chances to find a great job in the professional world.

I am looking for good suggestions for finding a good thesis in this
field and I am grateful for every help you can give me.

Some examples of questions I have:
- How important is a thesis for future references anyway?
- Should I look for possibilities at a university in a foreign country
to broaden my perspectives?
- Should I maybe look for a possibility at an Ivy League University in the US? 
- Should I choose a good professor or a famous professor as supervisor?
- Should I try working together with an agricultural company?
- In which field do you think will an agricultural thesis be most
important for future references?
- Is there a question nobody has tried answering before and you think
would be a good shot?
- Where and how can I find the right questions I would like to answer in my thesis?
- Where can I find the right resources (next to libraries and internet)?

Thank you in advance for answering my question. As I am a student I
can?t pay that much at the moment, but I promise to give you a $50
tip, if you blow my mind with your answer. If I make a great thesis
thanks to your help, I will tip you another $100, I can promise you
that! :-)

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Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 18 Feb 2006 05:39 PST

matthi-ga,

If you narrow down your multiple questions to a single, well-focused
question, I think you'll have a much better chance of getting a
response from a Google Answers Researcher.

Best of luck,

pafalafa-ga

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Clarification of Question by matthi-ga on 19 Feb 2006 07:37 PST

Thank you pafalafa for your hint!

Let me rephrase:
What are the major factors for writing a great thesis?

If you can't come up with an idea of your own, then maybe graduate
school isn't where you should be

This is slightly intriguing.

You sound as if you are in France, and probably French
The English is very good but:  'I am grateful for every help' is a slip up

It is hard to tell at what level you are studying, in the UK a
'thesis' would be at doctorate level, at graduate or MSc/MA it would
be called a 'dissertation'.

>>- How important is a thesis for future references anyway?

Probably not very, it is just one among many, another grain of sand on the beach

>>- Should I look for possibilities at a university in a foreign country
to broaden my perspectives?

I don't follow that, you mean after the thesis ?

>>- Should I maybe look for a possibility at an Ivy League University in the US? 

Similarly, I don't follow that.

>>- Should I choose a good professor or a famous professor as supervisor?

That is very astute, and what caught my interest.

>>- Should I try working together with an agricultural company?

That is also astute, you have as I see it three career paths,
academia, government and 'industry'
- the latter might be the most interesting, although it will probably
be in the combined role of a PR rep, and an interpreter, it looks the
widest avenue.
- getting your foot in the door early is generally a smart move

>>- In which field do you think will an agricultural thesis be most
important for future references?

No idea, but very few people will ever read it anyway
- choosing a good title is the most important thing
- for the future, the ideal thesis would be written in invisible ink

>>- Is there a question nobody has tried answering before and you think
would be a good shot?

Agricultural Economics is not my sphere, but your first objective is
to get the thing accepted, so you need to study what the examiners
(forget the right word) want and expect.
Since you are asking these questions, I don't think you are doing a
PhD and have a bee in your bonnet, so it is probably wise to play it
safe.
Note also, that your 'examiners' have their own axes to grind.

>>- Where and how can I find the right questions I would like to
answer in my thesis?

Well, you have to find your thesis first.
- probably you'll have something suggested to you
- probably also, you will land up doing grunt work for your
supervisor, who will capitalize on your research to produce his own
'inches' of papers.

>>- Where can I find the right resources (next to libraries and internet)?

I would suggest the 'real world', you need to find a goldmine of
statistics, pillage it and produce a semi-plausible theory.


Somehow I detect a streak of cynicism and pragmatism in you, that is a
compliment - not at all an admonition or criticism.

I've also a suspicion that you are not cut out for the world of
academe, which is an advantage as it means you will not be much of a
threat to your 'mentors', indeed they might regard you as a useful
future contact.

In my opinion, and it is uninformed in your specific area, you need to
find something slightly controversial, with wealthy corporate backers,
who have shed loads of statistics.

I would be tempted to look at the 'economic' reasons for GM products,
the cultural differences between their acceptance in Europe and the
USA, and the 'economic' implications for both economies.

If you got it right, you could come up with two opposing conclusions,
each acceptable to both sides of the spectrum, while you sit happily
on the fence.

Another slant, more aimed at getting you into government rather than
the flesh pits of industry, is to investigate farming crises over the
20th century, also the working of 'markets'
- bearing in mind that without Government intervention the 'Free
Market' ceases to exist.
- in this case you would get access to a wealth of CAP statistics - handy

I'll leave you with this little oeuvre.

A long time ago, long before you were born, I needed a job and a well
connected uncle got me an interview with the 'Research Department' of
a major UK bank.

It turned out that they were producing trivial pamphelets aimed at 'businessmen'.

I don't know who was more embarrassed, they knew that they were
writing kiddie's literature - and I wanted to vomit.

Economics is a good training ground, but you need to keep wide horizons ...

Hi Fred,
I'm not sure that was helpful  - though very interesting.  I doubt
that France counts as "Central Europe", at least in the eyes of the
French.

Matthi,
A thesis that could be published  - could find a publisher -  would
really be helpful to your career, but that is unlikely, to be
realistic.  Below that level, a thesis oriented towards your career
goal in Government (EU?), academics or industry would be helpful for
your first position, but after that your professional track record
would be wanted counted most.
Pointing out the shortcomings of EU agricultural policy could be an
awesome thesis, but might not be the entree to a government job in an
EU country.

Yes, a degree from country in Western Europe or the States would be
advantageous.  I don't know if the Ivy League is strong in your field.
A good, compatible professor is probably better than a famous one,
unless you are a star student in his eyes.  Only at the highest
academic level is someone going to notice and say:  "Oh, you studied
under so-and-so," and then only when you are applying for your first
job.

A topic:  The best people to ask are professors in the field, which
isn't always easy to do in European universities.

As you probably know, comments are only that, free, and not an
official answer to your question, which only a G-A Researcher with a
blue user name can post.

Good luck, Myoarin

@MyOar,

I detected a streak of healthy cynicism, and felt that dropping a few
hints might be helpful. The Socratic approach - or a variation.

Somehow, I think, Matthi knows the answer to his questions, but has
yet to come round to admitting it.

Oddly, my views on the CAP and agriculture in general, have been
rather revised in the past few years.

Obviously 'intervention' is incredibly stupid, as it leads to infinite
surpluses and storage is a nuisance. However the agricultural sector
is pretty small, and a bit of subsidy might not be a bad idea in the
long run.

Fred,
Maybe you are right, on all points ...
Cheers, Myo

thanks fred for your comment!
thank you myoarin for your helpful comment!