What is a senior honors thesis?

A senior honors thesis in Science, Technology and Society is a substantial independent research project completed over the course of a year, from January to December.  A thesis is a scholarly essay (10,000-20,000 words or 40-80 pages, not including bibliography) on a question of your choosing that engages the interdisciplinary field of STS.

What is the honors process in STS?

  • Enroll in STSC 4000 in spring of junior year
  • Submit a thesis proposal for approval at the end of the term
  • Research during the summer
  • Write the thesis during the fall term under an adviser's supervision (enrolled in STSC 4980, senior thesis independent study)
  • Submit the thesis by the end of fall exam period
  • Participate in Senior Symposium the following April

Past STSC Senior Thesis Topics

STSC Senior Thesis FAQs 

Timetable for the Senior Thesis

Spring of Junior year — Enroll in STSC 4000 - Research Seminar (spring of junior year) This course fulfills the Capstone requirement.

   During this course you will:

  • Develop a research question in keeping with the goals of the major and develop a project that engages the disciplines of STSC (science, technology, history and sociology) by talking to relevant faculty and researchers about its viability
  • Read the list of past STSC senior thesis topics (see above) to inspire and guide topic selection
  • Review secondary and primary literature for your topic
  • Write a research paper (this fulfills the Capstone requirement)
  • Develop a formal proposal for a thesis

April of junior year — Apply to write a senior thesis

  • Submit thesis proposal to faculty committee
  • Receive permission from instructor and program director to proceed and receive application
  • Confirm your thesis adviser
  • Submit application to write a thesis to be registered for STSC 4980 

May-August between junior and senior year — Summer Research

  • Continued research of existing literature and of new material
  • Stay in contact with your advisor
  • Apply for funding if needed during the spring term in STSC 4000

Fall of Senior year — enrollin STSC 4980: Senior Thesis Independent Study

September

  • Submit 5 page write-up of summer research
  • Submit schedule of meetings with your advisor, signed by the advisor
  • Attend mandatory meeting where you submit these materials

October and November

  • Mandatory monthly meetings with STSC Chair & Associate Chair
  • Submit complete rough draft to adviser by Thanksgiving
  • Begin revisions on rough draft

December

  • Submit revised final draft of thesis to advisor by the end of fall term (NOTE: the final draft of the thesis must be turned in and graded for the fall term. No incompletes are granted for STSC 4980.)

January of Senior year — Submit final copy of thesis

  • January 31 - Submit corrected and bound copy of thesis to the Associate Director.

April — Senior Symposium

  • Present oral research summary and research poster at Senior Symposium in a lightning round and poster session (Attendance Required)
  • Get certified for Honors

GENERAL INFORMATION

What a senior thesis looks like: In general, we expect the final thesis will structured similarly to an article or book published in the core disciplines. This would include:

  • Title Page
  • Table of Contents
  • List of Figures/Illustrations (if applicable)
  • Acknowledgments (optional)
  • Introduction 
  • 2-4 substantive chapters/sections
  • Conclusion
  • Bibliography, divided into source type (archival; primary; secondary, etc)  


Who should do a senior thesis?

Many students seem to think that if they have done well in the major so far, they should do a senior thesis. However, a senior thesis is different than taking an advanced class. It involves a magnitude,  mentorship and advance planning far in excess of anything required by other research projects. Most importantly, it requires an investment and commitment in the topic that can sustain the student through months of research, writing, and frustration as well as satisfaction.  

The term "honors" can be misleading: some of our most outstanding and accomplished students don't graduate with honors. For various reasons each of these students choose not to write a thesis. On the other hand, some majors who write excellent honors theses don't have the highest GPAs in the major. Writing a thesis is not for everybody, and it isn't necessary for being successful in the major.After many years of supervising honors theses--successful and, well, not quite so successful--our advice would be something along these lines: you don't choose a thesis, a thesis chooses you. If there is a project or a topic that you have been thinking about already, and can't shake--something that has grabbed hold of you and won't let go--and you have (or will have) a solid advising structure in place, go for it. We will support you 100%.

A few things to keep in mind:
Most of your thesis research will be completed during summer before your senior year. 

  • Grants: In past years students have been successful at earning grants to help defray the costs associated with research (including living expenses!) over the summer 
  • Summer jobs/internships: While we expect that students will be pursuing other work and pursuits over the summer, commiting to writing a thesis necessitates that you allot time for research. This may constrain the choices you make regarding work, etc. 
  • How writing a thesis impacts study abroad: Students who want to study abroad during spring of junior year or fall of senior year cannot do a thesis
  • Course load: We strongly recommend that students, in addition to their senior thesis "course" (498) only take only three other courses their Senior Fall, as you will be writing the bulk of your thesis and meeting with your advisor during this semester.  The thesis is always more work than students expect and the bulk of it happens in the last six weeks of the term.

Eligibility for Honors

  • Successful completion of senior thesis by the last day of exam period in December
  • Grade of A or A- on the senior thesis
  • Attendance and presentation of research and research poster at Senior Symposium