The apprenticeship is related to ongoing WAU research or to research or development projects organised by outside organisations. Normally, arrangements for the apprenticeship are initiated by the student who carries out research or other duties individually with the support of their study programme supervisors. Within the Rural Development Sociology specialisation, students may major in Development Sociology, Rural Sociology, Gender Studies in Agriculture and Rural Development, or Legal Anthropology, with one or two minor specialisations selected from other Departments within the university, e.g. in Communications and Innovation Studies, Agronomy, Irrigation, or Tropical Forestry. Finally, all students must write a thesis in their major field of specialisation which may be based on experience and research materials acquired by the student during the apprenticeship. Writing the thesis provides an opportunity for the student to demonstrate his or her command of the theoretical and practical issues relating to the chosen topic.
Students also have the opportunity to write additional theses on other major or minor subjects.