Assessment of Master Thesis – Academic Consultant
Study programme:Quantitative Methods in Economics Field of study:Quantitative Economic Analysis
Academic year:2020/2021
Master Thesis Topic:The impact of aging on economic growth based on EU panel data Author’s name:Ruihanyu Sun
Ac. Consultant’s Name:doc. Ing. Tomáš Formánek, Ph.D.
Opponent:Mgr. Vladimír Holý, Ph.D.
Criterion Mark
(1–4)
1. Clarity and comprehensibility of the thesis topic and aims 2
2. The extent and relevance of the description of the current state of knowledge 2
3. The complexity of the thesis topic 1
4. Method adequeteness for solving the given issue, correctness of the choice and use 3
5. The extent, quality and precision of the result description 3
6. Relevance and correctness of the result discussion 3
7. Factual contribution of the thesis result 2
8. Information source relevance and citation correctness 3
9. Logical structure and cohesion among individual parts 3
10. Grammar, linguistic style, terminology and overall arrangement 2
11. Student’s initiative and cooperation with the supervisor 3
12. The use of analytical and data processing methods 3
13. Meeting the principles of ethics and sustainability 2
14. Critical and creative thinking 2
Comments and Questions:
Ruihanyu Sun’s MT is a reasonably solid text focusing on different aspects of ageing and their influences on various branches of the economy. The topic of research is well chosen as the effects of population ageing are becoming prominent and are gaining importance across the globe. The theoretical part of MT is sound, in-depth context to the phenomenon of ageing is provided. On the other hand, the empirical part of this MT – as presented in chapter 4 – is significantly weaker, yet defendable in my opinion. Chapter 5 provides a reasonable general discussion on mitigation of the adverse effects of ageing, yet this chapter mostly draws from literature resources, rather than from own research presented in chapter 4.
The quality of the empirical econometric part of this MT (chapter 4) suffered due to time constraints (actual work on the MT started late, despite of the “official” start in October 2020) and because the student waited a considerable time before responding to my baseline requests of defining explanatory variables as used in the empirical model (one would typically start with that, before discussing functional form of the model, different estimators, tests, etc.). I also have some minor objections towards literature referencing: Landry (1934) reference on page 28 (36/76 of the PDF file) does not match the list of references, three references to Smith (1776) in the text do not match the list of references, etc.
Overall, I recommend this thesis for defense, with a suggested grade: Good.
Conclusion: The Master Thesis is recommended for the defence.
Suggested Grade: 3
Date: 08/05/2021 doc. Ing. Tomáš Formánek, Ph.D.
Academic Consultant
