If you decide to do a thesis, what comes next? In this section, we’ll look at how to go about doing a thesis.

A. Setting Up a Thesis Committee

Fairly early on, begin to talk with faculty who might serve on your committee. They can help by suggesting sources, books, journals, and people, as well as by discussing past and present research in the field. As you begin to narrow in, sample the current literature in the field to gain a sense of issues to explore as possible thesis topics. When you have a specific research question or project goal in mind, you’re ready to set up a committee and to write a prospectus.

A thesis committee consists of at least two people: the thesis chair and the Honors contact. You select a faculty member to serve as the chair of your committee, while the Honors contact is appointed by the Honors Program to represent the Honors Committee. You don't need to worry about the Honors contact at this point in the process. For now, your main concern is with finding a faculty member who is willing to support your work by serving as your mentor throughout the project.

The most important person on your thesis committee (other than you!) is your chair. As you begin to define your project, think about which faculty member would best help you achieve your goals. A thesis chair should commit to meeting with you about once every two weeks. In deciding who you will approach, consider both the faculty member's area of expertise and the nature of your interactions with that person.

Especially if you are working in an interdisciplinary area, you might decide to add another faculty member to your committee and create a three-person thesis committee. The function of the third committee member is outlined below, but generally students chose to add a third person when they know of a faculty member whose knowledge or support can be particularly helpful.

B. Developing a Prospectus

A prospectus is a brief summary (generally 2-3 pages, but may be longer depending on the project) of your chosen topic prepared in conjunction with your thesis chair to provide the Honors Committee with an overview of the project as you have defined it in the very early stages. Basically, you want to give the Honors Committee a clear sense of what you intend to accomplish in your thesis and how you plan on accomplishing it. The focus of the prospectus should be on the project, not on you. While the Honors Committee encourages you to write in a natural voice, the prospectus should be formal enough to meet the standards of academic writing.

Your prospectus should cover these issues (although not all apply to all projects):

1. Brief Description of the Project. Introduce the subject in a way that will allow readers who are unfamiliar with the discipline understand your project and what questions or goals you will address. Define specialized vocabulary carefully as you go along.

2. Background/Rationale. Provide readers with enough background so that they can grasp why this project matters and what assumptions and knowledge underlay the project. Carefully define the scope of the project and the rationale behind it. What research are you drawing upon in your work? What theoretical approach provides the framework for your project? What authors/artists have shaped your own creative work? What probable answers to this question do you anticipate at this point in your research? What is the likely outcome of your project? As the word “thesis” suggests, you should have a central idea that informs your whole project.

3. Methodology. How will you go about answering the question or meeting the goals you've identified? What types of materials will you examine, or research will you conduct? What kind of experimental design, survey instrument, creative techniques or research tactic will you use? What types of information will this research likely produce? What types of information will you need to succeed in the project? If your project builds on the on-going research of your faculty advisor or another researcher, what piece of the collaborative project will be yours? How will your work fit into the larger framework? Basically, the methodology that you describe should be realistic for a one-year project, appropriate given the resources available to you as an undergraduate at the University of North Dakota, and designed in a way that will provide data relevant to the research question you've identified.

4. Literature Review (this section may be incorporated into the Background/Rationale section or addressed in a separate Bibliography or Literature Review section). All research is based on the work of others. What previous research or theories have you considered? What controversies relate to your question? How have previous researchers attempted to answer your question and how do you assess the strengths and weaknesses of their results? What background, information, assumptions, and context must be established before you can proceed to make your own contributions? If you incorporate a literature review into the body of your prospectus, include a Works Cited page. If you do not cite any specific articles or books, attach a preliminary working bibliography to your prospectus (labeled either Works Consulted or Bibliography).

5. Appendices. For creative theses, or for projects based on a previous paper, please include either sample works to demonstrate your proficiency in the art form or the paper that you will extend upon or incorporate into your thesis.

The point of the prospectus, then, is to demonstrate that you have defined a feasible project and that you possess sufficient knowledge or have done enough preliminary work to understand the key issues. Your prospectus must be reviewed first by your thesis chair and revised as needed in light of your chair's feedback. If you have asked an additional faculty member to serve on your committee, that person must also read and approve your prospectus before you submit it to the Honors Office.

C. Oversight of Your Project

A thesis is a 9-credit project that stretches over at least two semesters. To ensure that you define and execute a project that reaches a successful conclusion within that framework, the Honors Program has a fairly elaborate oversight process that involves these steps from beginning to end: initial application with prospectus; development of a Memorandum of Agreement; final approval by the Honors Coordinator; end of semester progress review by your thesis committee; and final review. The next sections of these guidelines provide an overview of this process.

1. Initial Application
When your thesis chair has approved the prospectus, have that faculty member sign the Thesis Application Form and submit the form, together with 3 copies of your prospectus, to the Honors Office. If you have a third committee member, that person should also sign the form.

Within three weeks, the Honors Office will contact you via e-mail with information on who will serve as the Honors contact on your thesis committee. The Honors contact represents the Honors Committee. With this appointment, your thesis committee is complete. You can then set up a meeting with your committee to develop a Memorandum of Agreement.

2. Memorandum of Agreement
In order to enroll in thesis credits, you must turn in a completed, signed Memorandum of Agreement to the Honors Office. This Memorandum of Agreement serves as a kind of contract that approves your thesis project and the details of how you will conduct it. Upon receipt of the Memorandum of Agreement, the Honors Coordinator will give a final review of your project, and the Office will then authorize you to register for thesis credits.

The Memorandum of Agreement will include specific details about any changes to your project as described in the prospectus that were agreed upon by you and your committee. The Memorandum will also provide an agreed-upon a time line for completing the project and specify exactly how the thesis credits will be allocated. A thesis project must involve nine credits of coursework divided over a minimum of two semesters. You may, however, include previous coursework as part of those nine credits; you may also divide the credits among several different course numbers. A portion of the credits should fall under a "489" number, which indicates on your transcript that you have undertaken a senior thesis. To register for a 489 course in any department, you must obtain approval from the Honors Program.

Since 489 projects normally span at least two semesters, you will receive either "SP" for Satisfactory Progress or "UP" for Unsatisfactory Progress, as determined by your thesis committee at the end of the first semester. This grade will remain in effect until the project is completed, at which point the Honors Office will report the final letter grade to the Registrar; the final grade will then replace the temporary grade for all semesters of the project. Note: If you fail to make sufficient progress on your project, you may not be permitted to enroll in any further thesis credits. Also, you may not graduate until all SP or UP grades have been replaced with a permanent letter grade.

You might need to change the terms of the Memorandum of Agreement at some point during the project, if, for example, you decide to pursue a new direction in your research, or you extend the project into additional semesters. All such changes should must be approved by your thesis committee and must be noted in writing on a memo that is signed by you and all committee members.

3. Semester Progress Report
A successful thesis project involves continuous collaboration with your thesis chair. Plan on meeting with your thesis chair regularly throughout the year. In addition, you will meet with your thesis committee at least once a semester to review your progress. (You should also feel free to consult with other committee members as necessary depending on any problems that arise or guidance you need. Remember that your thesis committee is there to help you succeed. Draw upon their expertise.) Before arranging for that meeting, you should submit a written report summarizing your work to date or copies of current drafts of any written sections of your thesis to your committee members by the first day of the last month of the semester (Dec. 1, May 1, or Aug. 1).

Set a meeting date that gives your committee members at least a week to review your draft. At the review meeting, make a brief presentation on your progress to date and then discuss your work with your committee. This is a good opportunity to acknowledge any difficulties you might have encountered, so that your committee can help you resolve those difficulties. At the end of the meeting, the committee will determine if you have made satisfactory progress and will complete and sign the Thesis Progress Report Form. The Honors Office must receive this form directly from the thesis chair or designated committee member at least three days before grades are due to the Registrar. In the absence of a Progress Report form, the Honors Office will submit a grade of "UP" to the Registrar.

4. Final Review

a. Graduation Application. In the semester in which you plan to graduate, submit a Graduation Application to the Honors Program (in addition to whatever forms are required for your college or school). This form must be received by the Honors Office by the date listed by the Registrar in the Time Schedule each semester for graduation application. In order for you to receive full recognition of your accomplishment at Commencement and on your transcript and diploma, the Honors Program must receive this form. You must also apply for graduation through your college. If you are earning a degree through the Honors Program and no other degree-granting program, then you must also apply for graduation through the College of Arts and Sciences. (This is a little confusing. The Honors Program is administratively separate from the College of Arts and Sciences, but students who are graduating through Honors and no other program earn an Arts and Sciences degree through Honors, hence Arts and Sciences must also approve their graduation.)

b. Abstract. If you complete your thesis in the Spring semester, you must submit an abstract (one-two paragraph summary of the project and results) to your thesis committee by March 1. (A committee meeting is not required at this point, but should any member of your committee raise serious questions about your abstract, you should arrange a committee meeting to address those questions.) Once your committee has approved the abstract and made a recommendation on whether you should give an oral or poster presentation at the Undergraduate Research Conference, ask your committee members to sign the URC Schedule Form and submit it together with your abstract to the Honors Office by March 8. This abstract will become part of the Undergraduate Research Conference Program. (Note: if you complete your thesis in December and don’t graduate until the Spring, you must meet all the requirements for Spring completers. If you graduate in the Fall or Summer semesters, these requirements may be waived upon approval by your thesis committee and Honors Coordinator. Please contact the Honors Office, 7-2219, honors@und.nodak.edu, for more information.)

c. Preliminary Approval Draft. If you complete your thesis in the Spring semester, a preliminary approval draft is due on April 1 to each member of your committee and to the Honors Office. When you deliver copies of your draft to your committee members, schedule a meeting with your committee to meet as soon as possible to receive their feedback and to give a trial run of your Undergraduate Research Conference presentation. (For Fall or Summer completers, the due date is November 1 or July 1.)

Note: This is also the draft that will be read by the Honors Committee to award the George and Margaret Starcher Undergraduate Research Award, a $500 prize given to the author of the best thesis each year at the URC banquet held on the night of the Undergraduate Research Conference. Awards are also given for the best oral and poster presentation at the conference.

d. Conference Presentation Approval. By April 8, you must meet with your thesis committee to rehearse your Undergraduate Research Conference presentation and gain their approval for your participation at the Undergraduate Research Conference on the URC Approval Form, which must be received by the Honors Office by April 9.

e. Participation in the Undergraduate Research Conference. All thesis students must participate in the annual Undergraduate Research Conference that takes place in April. (In addition, the Psychology Department requires an oral defense for students graduating with Departmental Honors in Psychology.) For students graduating in August or December, an individual thesis defense may substitute for participation in the Undergraduate Research Conference. If you plan on graduating in August or December and aren’t able to participate in the Undergraduate Research Conference, please contact that Honors Program for further information.

f. Revised Draft Approval. If you complete your thesis in the Spring semester, you must submit a revised draft of your thesis to your thesis committee by May 1. Your thesis committee will complete the Thesis Grading Form on the basis of this draft. The Honors Office must receive this form directly from the thesis chair or designated committee member at least three days before grades are due to the Registrar. If further revisions are required, the Honors Office will not record grades with the Registrar until notification from the faculty member designated on the Grading Form has been received that all revisions have been completed. If this Grading Form is not received in time, a grade of “UP,” Unsatisfactory Progress, will be recorded with the Registrar. (For Fall or Summer completers, revised drafts are due by December 1 or August 1.)

g. Binding Approval. When you have completed all revisions as approved by your thesis committee, bring two or more copies of your thesis (two are required, but you may wish additional copies for yourself, committee members or family) to the Honors Office. Honors staff will verify that the copies meet the guidelines for binding specified by the Chester Fritz Library and then sign the Library Binding Form which you will bring, together with the copies of your thesis, to the Chester Fritz Library Periodicals Dept. The Honors Office will then inform the Registrar that you have completed your thesis requirements and fulfilled all thesis requirements for graduating as a Scholar in the Honors Program or with Senior Honors. At the same time that you get the Library Binding Form from the Honors Office, the Office will ask you to complete a Thesis Assessment Form that evaluates your experience in participating in the thesis program and, if you are a full member of the Honors Program, an Alumni Assessment Form evaluating your overall Honors experience.

With this final step, you are done!