Breno Alves Beirigo
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  1. Thesis writing
  2. Start here
  1. Thesis writing
  2. Start here

Start Here

  • Overview
  • How we work
    • Research Collaboration System
    • Communication and Feedback
    • Thesis Guidelines
    • Thesis Confidentiality
    • Authorship and Independence
  • Thesis writing
    • Start here
    • Research Design
    • Scope and Limitations
    • Problem Statement
    • Research Question
    • Context Analysis
    • Literature Review Guide
    • Research Gaps
    • Method vs. Methodology
    • Choosing Optimization Methods
    • Benchmarking Optimization Methods
  • Templates and checks
    • Problem Statement Template
    • Report Sections (Project Plan)
    • Report Quality Check
    • MSc Thesis Examples
  • Project milestones
    • Overview
    • Timeframes and Page Limits
    • Project Plan and Kickoff Meeting (MSc)
    • Thesis Preparation (MSc)
    • Greenlight Meeting Preparation Checklist (MSc)
    • Project Plan (M11) and BSc Thesis (M12)
    • The Green Light Philosophy
    • Colloquium Logistics

This section helps you write a thesis that is easy to understand and easy to defend: clear problem, clear questions, justified choices, and an argument that ends in a concrete contribution.

Use the map below to jump to the page that matches what you need right now.

Framing (Turn a Topic into a Feasible Plan)

  • Research Design: Connect your research question to evidence (data, baselines, evaluation) and make your plan reviewable.
  • Problem Statement: Draft a first version using the template, then iterate until a reader can tell what is wrong, for whom, and why it matters.
  • Research Question: Turn a vague goal into answerable questions with a clear baseline/comparison and measurable outcomes.
  • Scope and Limitations: Write boundaries you can defend (scope) and limitations you can manage honestly (impact + mitigation).
  • Context Analysis: Write the setting and baseline clearly, so your problem statement and research questions make sense.

Literature (Justify Your Gap and Approach)

  • Research Gaps: Learn how to identify and articulate a research gap that justifies your thesis.
  • Literature Review Guide: How to find, read, organize, and summarize relevant papers to frame your research question and methodology.

Methods (Write What You Did Clearly)

  • Method vs. Methodology: Use when drafting the methods chapter so your terminology and rationale stay clean.
  • Choosing Optimization Methods: A practical checklist for selecting solvers/algorithms and justifying the choice.
  • Benchmarking Optimization Methods: How to benchmark against company baselines vs SOTA/BKS, design fair experiments, and write up negative results.
Authorship and Independence
Research Design

Breno Alves Beirigo
Assistant Professor of Stochastic Operations Research

University of Twente · IEBIS
Enschede, the Netherlands

Email · About Breno · UT profile · Source