Regulations & Guidelines

Course Admission & Attendance

Please be aware of the following policies that apply to all students who register for a course offered by our Chair:

  1. Student numbers

    To ensure a quality learning experience, no more students will be admitted to a course after the announced number of places has been reached.

    Students on the waiting list should attend sessions during the first 14 days following the official start of classes (Vorlesungsbeginn), as places from students who de-register during this period will be immediately allocated to those on the waiting list (see also points 2 and 3 below).
  2. Attendance in the first session is compulsory.

    Students who have been admitted to a course via U:SPACE/UNIVIS but do not show up in the first session will automatically lose their place. Their places will be filled up with students from the waiting list who attend the first session (based on their place in the waiting list).

  3. Time limit for deregistration is 14 days after the official start of classes

    Groups for projects are usually formed very early in a course and people on the waiting list are (understandably!) anxious to find out whether they will get a place in the course or not. Therefore it is important to know as soon as possible how many people who have got a place via U:SPACE/UNIVIS will definitely stay in the course. For this reason the time to de-register is limited to 14 days after the official start of classes (Vorlesungsbeginn) unless otherwise stated by the course instructor.

  4. Attendance throughout the course is compulsory.

    For all our courses except for Einführung in das wissenschaftliche Arbeiten, ABWL Marketing I and Foundations of Marketing: Data Analysis for Marketing Decisions there is “Anwesenheitspflicht”. Students failing to attend three sessions will automatically fail the course. There will be no exceptions.

  5. Exception rule for ABWL Marketing II registration (2nd exam date ABWL Marketing I) 

    Students who plan to do the final exam of ABWL Marketing I on the 2nd exam date (October/March) and wish to attend ABWL Marketing II during that semester (only possible if there are enough free places!), need to register for this course in UNIVIS/U:SPACE (status of the registration needs to be "angelegt") and attend the classes. As soon as the grades of the ABWL Marketing I exam are calculated, the students will know if they passed/failed the exam and therefore if they have the necessary requirements to attend the ABWL Marketing II course.

Plagiarism

It is important for you to realise that there are strict rules governing your behaviour in an academic setting. We at the Chair of International Marketing regard the act of plagiarism as a serious academic offence, which is totally unacceptable in a scholarly community dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. Students who engage in plagiarism undermine the values and beliefs that underpin academic work, anger and discourage other students who do not use such tactics and devalue the integrity of University of Vienna awards and qualifications.

It is an academic offence for a student to use another person’s work and to submit it with the intent that it should be taken as his or her own. Any work which is not undertaken in an Examination Room under the supervision of an invigilator (including but not limited to: essays, project work, reports, experiments, observations, and specimen collecting), but which is nevertheless required work forming part of the degree assessment, must be the student’s own.

Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, the following are some examples of plagiarism offences:

  • Collusion, where a piece of work prepared by a group is represented as if it were the student’s own.
  • Commission or use of work by the student which is not his or her own and representing it as if it were (e.g., paying ghost writers, wholesale downloading of coursework, cut-and-paste plagiarism).
  • Duplication of the same or almost identical work for more than one course.
  • Copying or paraphrasing a paper from a source text without appropriate acknowledge.
  • Submission of another student’s work, with or without that student’s knowledge or consent.

There is a number of sophisticated electronic tools and software currently available to assist in the detection of plagiarism and we intend to make full use of them if such conduct is suspected. We also intend to routinely submit samples of students’ work to scrutiny for plagiarism. Thus all work (other than formal examinations) submitted to the Chair of International Marketing for assessment must be accompanied by an electronic copy in Word or PDF format.

Oral Presentations

  1. Group presentations should last for 20 mins maximum, followed by a 10 mins “Questions & Answer” (i.e. discussion) session. For the IM Seminar only, presentations can last up to 30 mins maximum.
  2. At least three students in each group should take part in the presentation for their group. For the IM Seminar, all team members must present.
  3. All students must attend all presentations. Failure to do so will adversely affect their own grade.
  4. In making their presentations, students should focus on key issues and not attempt to fully reproduce the written report.
  5. Simply reading out the written report is not acceptable. Having some notes to consult is fine.
  6. Appropriate visual aids to help structure the presentation are welcome.
  7. It is expected that all students will actively participate in the discussion by asking questions, making comments, etc.
  8. It'll be a long day, so please make sure that your presentations are well-prepared, informative and interesting.

Academic Writing

Writing Guidelines


The first goal of writing is clarity. Readers of your work must be able to grasp what you are trying to say, and you accomplish this through clear writing. If your writing is muddled, your reader is likely to assume that your thoughts are muddled, too.

An introduction to academic writing is offered here.

 

Additional Academic Resources

 

English Grammar and Syntax

Special attention should be given to the use of correct English grammar and syntax. Non-native speakers often have problems with relative clauses, conditional clauses, the use of the passive voice in academic papers and the correct word order.
Make sure that the work is well written, with good spelling, grammar and punctuation throughout. Proof-read your work several times and use a spell checker.

 

Suggestions for Academic Writing in English

  • If you use technical terms, specify them clearly. Avoid using terms ambiguously.
  • Adopt a clear writing style and stick to facts. Avoid the use of a poetic and flowery language.
  • Stick to a concise language and avoid long sentences.
  • Do not use too many abbreviations as this will reduce readability.
  • Do not use superlative, pseudo-quantitative expressions (e.g. „intense research“, „enormous attention“).
  • Stay objective! Avoid statements that might reveal some emotive opinion.
  • Avoid pleonasms (redundant phrases (e.g. “a tiny little child”, “basic foundation”)).
  • Stick to your central theme and avoid interesting, but irrelevant facts.
  • Do not simply reproduce content that you have heard in class.
  • Accuracy is more important than a beautiful writing style.

Layout Guidelines

 
Format of the Work

  • Layout and Structure of academic papers follow specific rules that you have to stick to.
  • The content has to be structured logically as readers should be able to get an idea what your paper is all about by looking at the table of contents.
  • Footnotes can be used but should be limited to making useful notes or references to other fields of research. Footnotes are definitely not a place to stuff numerous quotations and remarks.
  • The structure should include title page, table of contents, list of tables/figures, list of abbreviations, introduction, main body (in sub-sections), conclusions, references and appendices.

Page Layout

  • The general format is based on DIN A4 paper, upright format.
  • Margins: 2,5cm (upper margin), 2.0cm (lower margin), 3,5cm (left margin) and 2,5cm on the right.
  • The font of the study should be Times New Roman with 12pt, 1.5 line-spacing with full justification.
  • Headings: Times New Roman, bold; Level 1: 18pt, Level 2: 16 pt, Level 3: 14 pt, from Level 4: 12 pt.
  • Space between two paragraphs: 12pt.
  • The headline should include the name of the respective chapter.
  • Page number: bottom, center.
  • The use of bold, italic, and underlined formatting is appreciated but should not impede the consistency of the text.

Abbreviations

  • If using abbreviations, you should include a list of abbreviations (usually before the introduction).
  • It is not necessary to include common abbreviations in German or English spelling and grammar (e.g. EU for European Union, UN for United Nations, or ÖVP for Österreichische Volkspartei).
  • However, include any further abbreviations used in your work. (e.g. AMA for American Marketing Association, COO for Country-of-Origin, CRM for Customer Relationship Management, JBR for The Journal of Business Research, or ROI for Return on Investment)

Citation & References


Correct citation is very important and the written work must not include any mistakes in this regard. It is indispensable that a chosen citation style is consistently carried out throughout the work.
The Chair of International Marketing does not suggest a specific citation system but recommends adopting one that is commonly used by International Marketing scholars (e.g., Harvard Convention or APA).


Direct Citation

  • Direct citations are verbatim adoptions of someone else’s text sections in an author’s text.
  • Too frequent use of direct citations and extensive verbatim citations ought to be avoided.
  • In the text, citation is documented by short reference, full details are given in the reference list.
  • Example: A consumer’s brand image is defined as “perceptions about a brand as reflected by the brand associations held in consumers’ memory.” (Keller 1993, p. 3)

 

Indirect Citation

  • Indirect citations are adoptions of text sections and content.
  • In the text, citation is documented by short reference, full details are given in the reference list.
  • Example: A brand image consists of both tangible, functional and rational components as well as intangible, symbolic and emotional components (Aaker 1996; Homburg, Kuester et al. 2009; Kotlerand Keller 2009).

 

Citation Resources

 

 Citation of One Author

  • For indirect citations → (Last Name Year)
    Example: Market research originally took over projective techniques from clinical psychology (Boddy 2005).
  • For direct citations, the adopted text appears in inverted commas → (Last name year, p. XX)
    Example: Projective techniques have “numerous advantages compared to traditional methods” (Boddy2005, p.13).
  • For direct citations, when using an author’s name in the text → Author’s name (year).
    Example: Luhmann (1992) briefly wrote: „Love, too, is a medium“.

 

Citation of Two Authors

  • For indirect citations → (Last name & last name year)
    Example: All work and no play makes Jack a good boy (Emmer & Wolling 1999).
  • For direct citations, the adopted text appears in inverted commas → (Last name & last name year, p. XX)
    Example: „Investors also remained concerned about the lack of consensus between eurozonegovernments on resolving the debt crisis“ (Raval & Demos 2010, p.  401).

 

Citation of Three and More Authors

  • For indirect citations → (Last name et al. year)
    Example: Some of the most controversial measures were not included in the final bill, including a stronger ban on banks trading for their own accounts (Emer et al. 1999).
  • For direct citations → (Last name et al. year, p. XX)
    Example: As mentioned earlier, Emer et al. (1999, p. 798) claim that “.....”

 

Citation of a Work by an Entity

  • Examples: publications by the United Nations, European Central Bank, etc.
  • First time citation → (Name of the entity [abbreviation], year)
    Example: Under the proposals, countries will be required to impose an upfront levy on banks, with the proceeds to be paid into national funds to insure against future financial failures (European Central Bank [ECB], 2010).
  • Subsequently → abbreviations are sufficient.
    Example: Taxes will be levied (ECB, 2010).

 

Special Cases

  • Several sources at a time → To be listed alphabetically (not in chronological order)!
    Example: Various studies on the U.S. financial sector (Levinson 2003; Powell 1999; Rubinovitz2008) show...
  • Multiple identical last names → To be distinguished by initial letters.
    Example: Various studies on the 2010 Euro crisis (Habermas 2010; C. Johnson 2010; W. Johnson 2010) brought to daylight ...
  • Various works by one author of the same year → Works to be spelt out.
    Example: In her studies, Sonntag (1999a, 1999b, 2000, 2001) stressed that ...

 

List of References

  • Each source used in the text must appear in the list of references.
  • Sources are shown in alphabetical order while within the alphabet a chronological order is obligatory. Example:
    Bauer, A. (1951)...
    Kuhlmann, C. (1999)...
    Kuhlmann, C. (2000)...
    Kuhlmann, W. (2000)...

 

Article in Journal/Periodical

  • Last Name Author, Initial Author. (Year). Title of Article. Title of Journal, issue number (volume), pages.
  • Last name A, Initial A., Last name B, Initial B., & Last name C, Initial C. (Year). Title of Article. Title of Journal,  issue number (volume), pages.
  • Example: Beentjes, J. W., Koolstra, C., & van der Voort, T. H. A. (1996). Combining Background Media with Doing Homework: Incidence of Background Media Use and Perceived Effects. Communication Education, 45, 59-72.

 

Monograph

  • Last Name Author, Initial Author. (Year). Title of Book. Place: Publisher.
  • Last Name A, Initial A., & Last Name B, Initial B. (Year). Title of Book. Place: Publisher.
  • Example: Dearing, J. W., & Rogers, E. M. (1996). Agenda Setting. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

 

Contribution in Edited Volume

  • Last Name Author, Initial Author. (Year). Title of Article. In Initial Editor. Last Name Editor (Ed.), Title of Book (pages). Place: Publisher.
    Example: Myer, J. (2008). Swede Nothings: Contemporary Scandinavian Architecture. In K. Wallander, A. Strindberg, & B. Björnson (Ed.), Scandinavia Forever? Views on Denmark, Sweden and Finland(97-112). Malmö: Eriksson.

 

Contribution to an Online Journal

  • Last Name Author, Initial Author. (Year). Title of Article. Title of Journal, YY, pages. Downloaded on [DATE] from URL etc.
    Example: Beentjes, J. W. (1996). Combining Background Media with Doing Homework: Incidence of Background Media Use and Perceived Effects. Communication Education, 45, 59-72. Downloaded on December 12th, 2009 from ...

 

Online document

  • Last Name Author, Initial Author. (Year). Title of the document. Downloaded on Month Day, Year from URL, etc.
    Example: Office of the National Drug Control Policy (2005). National youth anti-drug media campaign: Communication strategy statement. Downloaded on April 5th, 2008 from www.mediacampaign.org/publications/strat-statement/contents.html.

Sources & Literature Search


Sources for Academic Writing can be divided into publications which are reviewed or selected by academics and independently written publications.

Publications reviewed/selected by academics:

  • Academic journals
  • Diploma Theses, Dissertations
  • Contributions to collected editions, conference proceedings

Independently written publications:

  • Scholarly monographs
  • Textbooks
  • Popular Science
  • Practice oriented publications
  • Others: Newspaper articles, Industry reports, etc.

Academic Journals

Database Search 

  • Search for articles related to a specific topic 
  • The University of Vienna offers access to various online databases (Datenbankservice / MetaLib)

Database Search Online

  1. Select and start database
  2. Enter search items
  3. View results 

E-Journals Search

  • Search for full texts of specific articles 
    (if you know title, author, name of the publication, year, volume and issue!) 
  • The library offers access to full texts of a large number of journals at Elektronische Zeitschriftenbibliothek (EZB) 
  1. Search for the journal
  2. Select year, volume, issue
  3. Download the article in pdf format 


E-Theses

U:Search

  • Searching tool by the University library
  • Enables searching for books and articles simultaneously 
  • U:Search Service

Remote Access to the Library's Research Tools

Access at home (or from your own computer, respectively) works via VPN (Virtual Private Network) or u:access.

2 ways to connect:

  • Client-based VPN:
    • set up a VPN-connection at your computer's network center (VPN server: univpn.univie.ac.at IPSec: vpnsec)
    • Use your u:net user name and password to sign in
    • Detailed guidelines for different operating systems can be found here
  • Browser-based access:
    • Open u:access using any browser
    • Use your u:net user name and password to log in
    • To have access to e-journals, e-books and databases, that are licensed by the University of Vienna, you do not need a VPN-connection anymore. Only use u:access for this purpose. 

For more detailed explanations please visit the ZID website. 

External Sources for Literature Search 

Library of the Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU Library)

  • "The Library maintains a collection of over 660,000 books, at about 130,000 eBooks, 670 printed journals, 25,000 eJournals, and 140 databases. Not only the largest library for economics and business in Austria, WU Library also ranks among the most extensive of its kind in German-speaking countries." (Source: WU)
  • Resources can be accessed within the library, if you hold a library card. To obtain a library card, you will have to bring your student ID and your residence registration form (Meldebestätigung). The library card costs 10€ per year. (More information)
  • Remote access is only possible for WU students, faculty and staff. 
  • The library is situated at the WU campus at Welthandelsplatz 1, 1020 Vienna. For a campus plan and description of the locations of the library branches, visit the WU website. 

 

FIW Database Tool 

  • The FIW (Kompetenzzentrum "Forschungsschwerpunkt Internationale Wirtschaft"; Research Centre International Economics) Database Retrieval Tool allows free access to various databases in the area of International Economics, for example Eurostat COMEXT, UN COMTRADE and several databases of the IMF.