Choose one track. Master’s proposals target Spring 2027. Final scope and programme approval are agreed with the supervisor; bachelor scopes are suggested adaptations.
TRACK 01 · IMPLEMENTATION INCLUDED
Technical track
Develop a working solution and test whether it addresses the problem.
Possible research question
Can an assistant grounded in code, documentation and business-process relationships improve understanding of change impact?
Suggested tasks
Read research on knowledge transfer around legacy systems and compare existing solutions.
Identify one problem faced by developers and system owners.
Write a research question and define what the solution should do.
Choose a small existing codebase and map its main components, interfaces and documents.
Build a tool that connects business workflows to the code and answers questions about the effects of a proposed change, with source links.
Compare it with ordinary repository search. Test whether users find the right components and correctly explain the likely effects of a change.
Explain what worked, what did not, and how the results compare with earlier research.
Evaluation, degree scope and deliverables
Study and evaluation
Compare the implemented solution with ordinary repository search and document retrieval without an explicit graph. Combine reproducible technical tests with an appropriate empirical evaluation.
Impact-analysis precision and recall
Task completion and incorrect changes
Understanding of system behaviour
Degree scope
Bachelor’s
Build an explorable dependency map for one small codebase and connect it to business documentation. Evaluate navigation and simple impact-analysis tasks.
Master’s
Compare graph-grounded answers with retrieval alone on maintenance tasks, explaining when explicit relationships help or mislead.
Background
Programming
Code analysis
Databases or graph representations
Possible deliverables
A focused literature review, justified problem and research question
A working prototype with source code and setup instructions
A reproducible comparison and an appropriate study of use
A report explaining design lessons, results and limitations
TRACK 02 · NO IMPLEMENTATION REQUIRED
Non-technical track
Study existing systems, information or work practices. You do not need to develop software.
Possible research question
How do teams recover organisational knowledge when changing unfamiliar legacy information systems?
Suggested tasks
Read earlier studies of knowledge transfer around legacy systems.
Choose one problem and write a research question the study can answer.
Map the documents, people and tools used to understand a small existing system.
Interview maintainers and observe bounded change-impact reasoning tasks without requiring implementation.
Analyse gaps between code knowledge and business-process knowledge, including reliance on AI answers.
Analyse the interviews, observations or documents using a clearly described method. Look for disagreements as well as common patterns.
Explain the findings, compare them with earlier research and suggest practical improvements.
Evaluation, degree scope and deliverables
Study and evaluation
Use a bounded empirical study of knowledge transfer around legacy systems. Justify case selection, recruitment and the analysis method. Distinguish observed behaviour from participants’ perceptions; use triangulation or a comparison where it serves the research question.
Knowledge gaps and informal recovery practices
Organisational memory and understanding of change impact
Evidence for the findings, conflicting cases and limits of the study
Degree scope
Bachelor’s
Study one case or a small set of existing materials. Agree the interviews, documents or scenario tasks with the supervisor. Describe the method, analyse the findings and give practical recommendations.
Master’s
Use a clear research question and relevant IS theory. Justify the cases, participants and analysis method. Explain what the findings add to earlier research and where they may apply. No software development is required.
Background
Literature review and academic writing
Qualitative or quantitative research methods
Interest in knowledge transfer around legacy systems; no programming prerequisite
Possible deliverables
A literature review and research question
A study plan and approved research material
An analysis supported by interviews, observations, documents or scenario results
A thesis with findings, recommendations and limitations
Scope and access
One modest repository, one language and a few workflows. Reconstruct historical information as it existed before a change to prevent answer leakage. These implementation-related limits apply when developing or testing a technical solution. For a non-technical study, agree access to participants or existing materials early, use approved or fictional cases where appropriate, and distinguish perceptions from observed outcomes.
Agree access to data, participants or existing materials and any required ethics or privacy review before committing. A non-technical track needs a systematic study, not a working prototype.
Full academic proposal
Working topic
Graph-Grounded AI Assistance for Understanding and Changing Legacy Systems
Brief outline
This proposal examines knowledge transfer around legacy systems in the work and information needs of developers and system owners. The technical track combines a literature review and justified gap with requirements, design, implementation and evaluation of a bounded solution. The non-technical track investigates practices, experiences or organisational conditions through a systematic study of existing systems, documents or scenarios, without requiring implementation. Choose one track and agree the final research question, degree scope and contribution with the supervisor.
Programme fit
Information Systems. These are suggested research approaches, not a statement of confirmed programme policy. Agree the final title, track, degree scope and contribution with the supervisor and programme.
Shared research foundation
Review the literature; identify and justify a gap; formulate research questions; conduct a systematic study; analyse the evidence; explain the contribution relative to prior research and discuss limitations. The technical track additionally includes requirements, design, implementation and evaluation of an artifact.
