Transforming Interactions in Thesis Supervision: An Exposé-First Workflow in Higher Education

2026-08-12

AI Summary

This study addresses the challenges of insufficient early-stage preparation quality and ambiguous role allocation in high-workload thesis supervision by proposing a structured “proposal-first” workflow. This approach transforms the initial phase into a staged process encompassing proposal drafting, feedback, and formal approval, supported by two digital platforms to facilitate collaboration. For the first time, the thesis proposal process is analyzed as a sociotechnical system, integrating qualitative and quantitative data through a mixed-methods design informed by Frauenberger et al.’s four lenses of reflective design. Findings reveal that while the restructured workflow enhances procedural clarity, it systematically underestimates the administrative coordination burden. Students gain earlier clarity on objectives and greater agency, while supervisors shift focus toward iterative feedback and feasibility assessment, resulting in a redistribution—rather than reduction—of overall effort.

Abstract

At the studied research institute, one professorship oversees approximately 20 theses per semester, while day-to-day supervision is distributed among doctoral and postdoctoral researchers. To manage this supervision demand, the institute uses an exposé-first workflow in which students prepare a research proposal before entering the main thesis-writing phase. This paper asks how students, supervisors, and administrators experience the exposé-first workflow as a structured process for early thesis preparation, and how it redistributes responsibility, supervision, and administrative coordination work across roles and two digital platforms. Based on a mixed-methods study analyzed through Frauenberger et al.'s four reflective design lenses, the findings show that the exposé-first model made thesis preparation more structured by turning early research planning into a staged process of proposal writing, feedback, and approval. Students reported that this process helped them clarify research goals and take ownership of their research plans at an early stage. However, the workflow redistributed rather than reduced work: supervisors shifted toward iterative feedback, feasibility checking, and preliminary quality assurance, while administrators carried much of the coordination across platforms, deadlines, submissions, and feedback. The paper contributes an analysis of exposé-first thesis preparation as a sociotechnical workflow, showing how workflow redesign can improve structure while leaving essential administrative coordination work underrecognized.

Problem

• thesis supervision
• exposé-first workflow
• administrative coordination
• supervision redistribution
• sociotechnical workflow

Innovation

• exposé-first workflow
• sociotechnical workflow
• thesis supervision
• reflective design
• administrative coordination