Questions and Answers (Seminars)

Usage of terms must (not), should (not), and may according to RFC 2119. See also the general Q&A and the Q&A on lectures, labs, and thesis projects.

How are the seminar topics assigned?

We present the seminar topics in the first week of the semester. Afterward, students apply for the seminar and indicate which topics they prefer. We then select the participants and assign the topics. The kickoff meeting with all selected students usually takes place in the second week of the semester.

What’s the purpose of the kickoff meeting?

In the first week of the semester, we introduce the seminar topics to all interested students in the topic presentation meeting and explain how to apply. The kickoff meeting is only for the selected students. In the kickoff meeting, we present the timeline of the seminar, align the dates of the group meetings, and explain the guidelines for preparing the seminar presentation and report.

How does supervision work?

Supervision takes place on demand, either in 1:1 meetings with the supervisor or via email. After the topics have been assigned, students must contact their supervisor to schedule their first meeting. In addition, all students of the seminar meet in two group meetings during the semester. The first group meeting takes place after the report/talk structure is due, the second one after the draft of the talk slides is due, shortly before the presentations. In the group meetings, we discuss the students’ progress and give feedback on their report/talk structure and the draft of their talk slides. The exact dates are listed in the calendar on the corresponding course page.

What progress is expected by the first group meeting?

Students must at least have read the provided literature, so that they can prepare questions about the content or request additional resources. To get early feedback, students must submit a first draft of their report structure and/or talk structure by the meeting.

What progress is expected by the second group meeting?

Students must have read, understood, and discussed all papers that were previously decided to be within the scope of the seminar topic (that is, the main paper and the additional papers). They must have discussed a first draft of their report structure and talk structure by the meeting; they also must have submitted a draft of their talk slides.

How should the main paper be referenced?

The introduction must contain a brief description of the main paper (i.e., the paper that defines the scope of the seminar topic). The main paper must be correctly cited (see the section on citation). Depending on the structure of the report, this section may also be moved to the background section (see the section on structure of the report). Throughout the text, the main paper must be cited when making comparisons between papers or when directly quoting from it. For the sake of readability, not every thought taken from the papers as part of indirect quotes (i.e., rephrased in the student’s own words) needs to be referenced. However, in the discussion and critical reflection, students must refer specifically to the parts of the papers that they discuss and critique.

Can figures/tables from referenced papers be used in the seminar report or the presentation slides?

Figures and tables can be reused, but students must clearly mark the reuse. In the report, they should indicate the reuse in the description of the figure/table (e.g., Figure 1: … (adapted from Author et al. [1])). In the slides, they should use a footnote to reference the source. See also the section on references in the presentation.

Should figures/tables be included in the appendix of the report?

Students should place figures/tables that they created themselves in the main body of the report. Figures/tables taken from papers may be placed either in the main body or in the appendix. If students believe that a figure/table taken from a paper is important enough for readers to see it while reading the report, they should include it in the main body using an appropriate reference (see the previous section on reusing content from papers).

How should transitively referenced papers be assessed?

If they appear to be important for the seminar topic, they must at least be skimmed. Usually, it is sufficient to read the title, abstract, introduction, and conclusion, and skim through the rest of the paper. Students must read enough of the paper to determine whether they need to read it in more detail. See also our recommendation regarding citation of transitively referenced papers.

What position should students take toward the main paper?

First, students must describe the content of the papers neutrally in their own words. They should compare and contrast the papers that they read. A critical engagement with the topic is also desired (see the section on criticism).

Is criticism encouraged in the seminar report and the presentation?

While a neutral position must be taken in the main body of the report and presentation, a critical reflection on the topic and papers must be included in the discussion. Tips for structuring a critique can be found, for example, here.

What determines the main focus of the presentation and report?

The topic descriptions on the website and the referenced papers must serve as a starting point for the seminar presentation and report. However, students may expand the background chapter to provide a more holistic introduction to the topic or include more papers than the required additional papers. Nevertheless, the core of the report and presentation must be the main paper.

Which additional papers should the seminar report cover?

Each seminar topic is defined by a main paper. Main papers are usually peer-reviewed full papers published in recognized software engineering venues, sometimes also in venues from related fields such as AI/ML, information systems, or human-computer interaction. Students must carefully read and understand the main paper of their topic. Students must also identify and analyze additional papers. These papers do not have to cite the main paper, but they should be related to it. For bachelor students, the seminar report must include at least two additional papers. Bachelor students must summarize the main paper, provide an overview of the additional papers, and discuss how these papers relate to or extend the main paper. For master students, the seminar report must include at least three additional papers. In addition to summarizing the main paper and the additional papers, master students must provide a deeper comparative analysis, critically evaluate the contributions and limitations of the additional papers, and discuss open challenges and future research directions.

Which additional papers are acceptable?

Additional papers must be peer-reviewed and published in conference proceedings or journals. Good reference points are the venue of the main paper and established software engineering venues such as ICSE, FSE, ASE, TSE, TOSEM, or EMSE. Students who are unsure whether a venue qualifies should ask their supervisor. If a paper is also available as a preprint (e.g., on arXiv), students must cite the published version. Papers that cite the main paper are one way to identify additional papers. Each topic description links to the Google Scholar “Cited by” list of the main paper, and the publisher’s website typically lists the papers that cite it as well. Another way is a keyword search in digital libraries such as the ACM Digital Library or IEEE Xplore. Students may use gray literature, such as engineering blogs, tool documentation, and developer forum discussions, to motivate the topic and to describe its background. Gray literature may count toward the additional papers only where the topic description explicitly allows it.

How is the overall grade determined based on the presentation and the report?

After the presentation, we will share a grade range with each student. The seminar report, which students submit afterward, will then determine the final grade within that range. In addition to the grade range, students will also receive feedback on the presentation and guidance on what to focus on in the report. They should address that feedback in their seminar report to end up at the higher end of the grade range. The templates used for assessing the seminar talk and the seminar report are available here and here.

How long should the seminar report be?

A rough guideline is around 15 to 25 pages for a bachelor seminar and 25 to 30 pages for a master seminar. These numbers depend on factors such as font size (typically 11pt or 12pt) and other aspects such as spacing and layout. However, students must discuss the specific requirements for their topic with their supervisor, preferably based on an initial draft of the report.

How long should the seminar presentation be?

For the bachelor seminar talks, we allocate 20 minutes for the talks plus 5 minutes for discussion. For the master seminar talks, we allocate 30 minutes for the talks plus 10 minutes for discussion.