Thesis and - ASU



Thesis and

Creative Project

Handbook

The Barrett Honors College

Arizona State University

PO Box 871612

Tempe, Arizona 85287-1612

Irish A 121

Thesis/Creative Project Handbook

Table of Contents

What is a Thesis/Creative Project? Page 2

Advantages of the Thesis/Creative Project Page 3

Your Thesis/Creative Project Team Page 3

Getting Started Page 4

The First Steps Page 4

Your Topic Page 5

Registration Page 5

The Prospectus Page 6

Getting Into the Written Project Page 7

Your Working Bibliography Page 7

Research Tips Page 7

Writing Tips Page 8

Technical Considerations Page 8

Style Manuals Page 8

Manuscript Guidelines Page 9

Title Page Page 9

Wrapping Up Page 9

The Oral Defense Page 9

Your Grade Page 10

Last Steps Page 11

Final Thought Page 11

Checklist Page 12

Thesis/Creative Project Due Dates Page 13

What is a Thesis/Creative Project?

Perhaps the most intellectually fulfilling exercise in the honors experience at ASU is the bachelor’s honors thesis or creative project. The thesis/creative project involves three to six credit hours of directed research, performance, artistic production, or other original work conceived and executed by the candidate.

Thesis: The bachelors honors thesis reports in the accepted style of its subject matter the results of research activity, whether it be meditative, experimental, archival, exploratory, or aesthetically creative. The report presents and evaluates the activity on which it is based. Normally, it culminates or caps the student’s undergraduate education. An honors thesis normally receives three-to-six semester hours credit, often in two parts: honors directed study (492) and thesis (493). This division is arbitrary and is not meant to impose explicit structure on research and writing. Students who write theses may alternate between research and writing or may conduct research into the second semester. While there are core guidelines, honors theses are different in every department and for every topic. Lengths vary widely. Theses with significant amounts of tabulated or formulaic data may be quite short, while literature-based theses may be 80 pages or longer. The two courses (XXX492 and XXX493) count as courses for upper division honors credit. XXX493 or its equivalent is required for all students graduating from the Barrett Honors College. The thesis process concludes with an oral defense at which the student presents the motivation leading to the work, the work and its methodology, and its results, including discussion of the importance of the thesis to the student.

Creative Project: The honors creative project is appropriate for many students in engineering, computer programming, architecture, the visual and performing arts and communication. Some students in those colleges may prefer writing a traditional thesis; students in other colleges may opt for a creative project. A creative project must be documented by both expository text and appropriate evidence of the work submitted (slides, audio and/or videotape, etc.) The text should describe the process involved in the work’s production and, as appropriate, offer an analysis of or commentary on that work. This writing assumes the function of an exhibition catalogue, narrative program, or comparable supporting document and will be evaluated as an integral part of the project; it is required to meet the University’s L (Literacy) and, sometimes, HU (Humanities) requirements. Engineering and architecture students may wish to complete their thesis/creative project in conjunction with the departmental capstone requirement. The decision for creative project or thesis rests with the individual department and, particularly, the director and student in consultation with each other.

The Advantages of the Thesis/Creative Project

Writing a thesis or producing a creative project can be the most rewarding experience of an undergraduate career. The activity provides an opportunity for you to explore areas of academic interest in greater intensity. Completion of the thesis or creative project gives a profound dimension to your academic studies that students without this experience rarely acquire.

Alumni who have completed their thesis/creative project have told us in recent surveys that the work involved has been good preparation for graduate and professional school and the world of work. The undergraduate thesis can give students an introduction to graduate thesis writing and, in some cases, contribute to graduate work. The project can be very helpful in getting the attention of graduate and professional schools. You can expect a meaningful letter of recommendation from a professor who has worked through the process with you, and that professor may be able to place you in contact with colleagues at other schools. Also, graduate schools frequently require writing or research samples as part of the application process.

The honors project can also be beneficial to those entering the job market. A tangible piece of research and writing or creativity serves as an excellent presentation to prospective employers. Honors thesis/creative project manuscripts demonstrate experience with the design, execution, analysis and presentation of large projects. For students majoring in business, the scholarly background to putting together a business plan and then the development of that plan can be very impressive to a prospective employer.

Your Thesis/Creative Project Team

Director. Normally, a bachelors honors thesis committee consists of three members, the thesis director, a second reader, and a third reader appointed by the college or its designee. The director is the faculty member with whom you will work most closely on your thesis or creative project. The director is normally a regularly-appointed member of the ASU faculty, chosen by you, with professional expertise in the thesis/creative project area. He or she should be someone you trust and with whom you enjoy working. Among the members of a thesis committee, the director’s suggestions and vote are the most heavily weighted.

Second Reader. Typically the second reader is a faculty member, but exceptions to this rule are sometimes appropriate. In all cases, the second reader will be another suitably credentialed person that your thesis director and you decide is appropriate to serve. This committee member is responsible for assisting you with research as needed, reading one or two of the drafts, giving you comments on those drafts, and being present at the oral defense. Some second readers meet almost as regularly with students as the director; others become involved only at significant points (e.g. a statistician when statistics are being analyzed).

Third Reader. The third reader represents the Barrett Honors College in the thesis process. He or she can be a faculty member or, increasingly, someone from the Phoenix community. The third reader is responsible for upholding the college’s standards of quality and for bringing a distinct viewpoint to the subject matter. In the case of faculty, he or she will typically not be a member of the department in which the thesis/creative project is registered. In the case of community members, the college looks for people with a keen interest or professional expertise in the subject matter. The third reader should interact with you early in the process, ascertain what level of involvement, if any, he or she would like to have in the actual research and writing process, and attend your oral defense.

Getting Started

The first steps. Although the honors thesis/creative project is usually part of the student’s final year, it is the culmination of an entire undergraduate course of study. Therefore, you should be open to possible directions for your thesis/creative project from the beginning of your academic career. Every class has the potential to open for you an area of interest that might become an avenue to the thesis/creative project. You should be alert to the possibilities. If something you hear, read or experience in conjunction with a particular class excites your interest, take the time to discuss with the professor whether or not this topic would lend itself to a thesis or creative project. That professor might be delighted at the prospect of having a bright, motivated student work with him or her on research in that field. You might be able to get an early start on your thesis/creative project and accumulate honors research credit throughout your years at ASU.

The junior year is a time to plan seriously for the thesis/creative project. Some departments have formal programs for introducing students to the thesis process. The Department of Psychology and the College of Business, for instance, both have course sequences that lead to the thesis. Business students enroll in COB 492 and 494 in addition to the three credits of thesis work. Psychology students take PSY 492 and PSY 497 spring semester junior year and PSY 493 and PSY 497 fall semester senior year. If your department does not have such a curricular program and you have not yet identified your director, you should talk with faculty members about serving on your thesis/creative project committee no later than the second semester of your junior year. If you are not sure which faculty members might be interested in helping with your intended thesis/creative project areas, there are two options.

• A visit to the honors disciplinary advisor in your department or college is a good starting place. All students should make a point of visiting their honors disciplinary advisors at the beginning of the junior year to make sure they are on track for the thesis/creative project.

• Call for an appointment with Janey Swanz in the Barrett Honors College at 480-965-0920.

If you plan to study abroad, you should make contact with faculty before going overseas. The foreign study experience generally provides a superb springboard for a thesis/creative project. You can be gathering information while overseas, even if the experience happens in your sophomore year.

While it is possible to begin the process as late as the senior year, you will have to be highly organized, focused, and have a manageable topic. It is preferable to select the committee and have both it and the proposal approved during the pre-registration period prior to the intended first semester of research.

The following is a list of steps you should take as you begin the process leading to your thesis/creative project:

• Investigate the research areas of the faculty in your department. Your disciplinary honors advisor can be a help you.

• Based on the research areas and perhaps what you have learned in a particular class, choose your thesis director.

• Work with your director to find a second reader.

• Write your prospectus and have it signed by your director. Take it to the Barrett Honors College advisement office so the College can locate a suitable third reader for you.

• Make sure all three readers on your committee have seen the prospectus and are comfortable with it.

• Sign up for the appropriate thesis/creative project credit. Typically this will be XXX492 and/or XXX493 in consecutive semesters. When registering for XXX 493, if you plan on writing a six-credit-hour thesis over two semesters, make sure your director’s department allows the Z grade option. If you are using your major-mandated capstone design project (engineering, architecture) as the base for your bachelor’s honors thesis, you and the your faculty director must sign a footnote 18 contract for that class.

2. Your Topic. You will probably base your thesis or creative project on an aspect of your coursework that piqued your interest. A topic often emerges from a solid background in a specific subject. It is a good idea to take two or three courses that concentrate in a specific area. For example, if your interest is the French Revolution, prepare by taking course offerings having to do with French history and Early Modern Europe before you begin your research.

Topics can also stem from faculty members’ ongoing research, especially in the sciences where students are involved in laboratory work.

3. Registering for the Bachelors Honors Thesis/Creative Project. To register for thesis/creative project work, you must be a member in good standing of the Barrett Honors College and have the approval of the faculty member who serves as your thesis director. You must have an ASU grade point average of at least 3.33; students must have a 3.4 grade point average to graduate through the Barrett Honors College. Working on a three-credit-hour thesis or creative project typically takes one semester of research and one semester of writing. A thesis of up to six credit hours normally requires a minimum of one semester of research and up to two semesters of writing. You should sign up for your thesis/creative project credits (XXX493) during the semester(s) you actually write your thesis. To earn credits while conducting your research, speak with your director about signing up for XXX492 credits. She or he may advise against this.

You may write your thesis or produce your creative project in a discipline that is not your major. While most students choose to pursue a thesis in their field of study, the Barrett Honors College allows students to earn thesis credit through the disciplinary college and department of their choice. Thesis credits earned in a department other than your major may fulfill the required advanced honors hours to be earned outside of the major. Each department may set its own standards for methodology (i.e., empirical, comparative, or descriptive), thesis length, and so on. For more detailed information, consult your thesis director and the honors advisors in the department through which you register for the thesis. You must obtain the line number from that department.

The Prospectus. Every thesis/creative project is officially launched with a prospectus. The prospectus is an action plan for honors research and provides a definite list of goals and procedures with which you and your committee will work. As you progress on your project, you might have to update your prospectus to reflect changes that occur after the process begins. Your first draft may well not be your final draft, and in most cases, it is not. Give your committee time to read it; give yourself time to make corrections. The process of updating allows your committee and the Barrett Honors College to keep up with what your project is geared to accomplish. Make sure you document any changes in approach or content to avoid confusion as you near completion of your project.

Make sure you discuss timelines and expectations explicitly with your director. Do not guess at deadlines.

A prospectus should include the information from the following list. The length of a prospectus is generally two pages, double-spaced, but you should concentrate on addressing these points more than on the length.

a. What do you wish to study?

• What is the overall scope of your study?

• What is the specific topic you wish to study?

b. How will you conduct your research?

• Where are your resources?

• How many sources does your committee expect you to analyze?

• What process will you use?

• What access permissions are required?

c. What are the expectations of meeting frequency with your director and other committee members?

• How often will you meet?

• During the meetings, what does your director and/or committee expect to happen? What do you expect to happen at each meeting?

• What time commitment is expected of you between meetings with your director?

d. What is your timeline? Your prospectus is a “work in progress.” It will change as your project evolves.

• What is the timeline for your thesis/creative project?

• What are the interim deadlines for each semester’s work?

• What is the date of the oral defense of your thesis/creative project?

• When will you submit your manuscript to the Barrett Honors College? (See the section on “Thesis/Creative Project Due Dates”)

A thesis prospectus form is online at the Barrett Honors College website.

Getting into the Written Project

All bachelor’s honors theses and creative projects have written components, even when they are performances or artistic exercises. Whether yours is a humanities-style thesis or a video production, a portion of your project, at least, will be written. The following suggestions fit for the written parts of theses and creative projects in general.

1. Your Working Bibliography. A working bibliography is a preliminary list of sources for research. It will give you a good idea of what information is available on your chosen topic. If you find there are few works addressing your topic, you will want to consider expanding the scope of your work. If there are far too many relevant sources, this fact will indicate the need for narrowing the scope. You are not bound by this bibliography, but it is the foundation for your project and helps you define the parameters of your research and start on the path to your final bibliography.

Each academic discipline requires the use of a style manual that outlines the appropriate form for a bibliography.

2. Research Tips. Pace your research carefully. It takes time to evaluate large amounts of information. Be careful not to be haphazard in your research so as to become sidetracked as you encounter new sources.

Keeping accurate and useful notes is an integral part of research. You will be dealing with many sources and will need a way to track what you learn and where it came from. It is frustrating to have information that is unusable because its source is unidentifiable. Before you begin collecting data, speak with your thesis director regarding data collection and manuscript methods. Be sure you are in agreement about the methodology as well as the conduct.

Keeping accurate and useful notes is an integral part of research.

Note-taking methods range from using note cards to typing information directly into a computer. One method uses notebook paper with wide margins. With this paper, notes are written to the right of the margin, while highlights and key words go to the left and are used to find information quickly without rereading several pages. The sheets can be organized in a three-ring binder.

The important thing to remember, no matter what method you use, is that you be consistent in recording page numbers and identifying direct quotations. Consult one of the university libraries’ reference librarians for the latest in research technology just to make sure you are familiar with every possible resource the library can provide.

If your research opens up new doors for you and you wish to redirect your project, do not feel trapped by your original prospectus. Talk with your thesis director and revise your prospectus as necessary. It is hard to write a research proposal before you’ve done any research, and so it is natural for things to change.

Writing Tips. By dividing the project into sections and writing a few pages each week, your thesis creation will go smoothly. You will be able to get accurate critiques; you will be able to see your progress. Be realistic in your schedule. Don’t try to do too much too soon or wait until the last minute to finish everything. Allow extra time at the end for the unexpected problems that appear for almost everyone.

Stay in touch with your director and readers. Let your director know how your work is progressing. Ask for assistance if you encounter roadblocks. While the project is your own, you are expected to seek the guidance you need to keep on track. Connect with friends who are also working on research or those who have completed the process. Talking about common problems can help.

Budget extra time at the end for unexpected problems.

Leave time between the original and final drafts so you can revisit the original draft with a fresh perspective. Give yourself a chance to recharge and tackle the final draft.

Pick a method of writing that works for you. There are many books that help writers compose their manuscripts. Each has its own point of view. Writing is a personal process and individual writers need to do what works for them.

Technical Considerations

Style Manuals. A style manual tells you the correct form of footnotes, bibliographies, tables of contents, title pages, etc., for your discipline. Every discipline uses a different style manual. For example, English uses the MLA Handbook. You should find out which one manual your discipline uses as soon as possible and consider formatting issues as you gather data.

Manuscript Guidelines. You must submit your manuscript to the Barrett Honors College office for forwarding to the library archives. Please ensure that the manuscript conforms to the style guide for your discipline (e.g., the MLA style for English, APA for Psychology) and is free of spelling and punctuation errors. Manuscripts must also meet the following requirements:

Typing:

• Unbound manuscript (no staples, clips, hole punches or bindings)

• White, 8 ½ x 11 inch, 20 pound paper – same brand, weight, and color throughout. Acid-free paper is not required.

• 10-, 11-, or 12-point font size or 10 to 12 typewriter pitch (consistent throughout text)

• Typeface must be consistent throughout except for items in appendices. Double-spaced throughout, except for block quotations, footnotes, itemized or tabular material, and certain creative manuscripts.

• Margin on 1 ½ inches on left side, 1 inch on all other sides

• Style consistent with style manual guidelines for your discipline

• No spelling or punctuation errors

• No ink or pencil corrections

• No widow lines at top or bottom of page.

1. Title Page: A title page must accompany the manuscript and bear the original signatures of all committee members. Photocopies are not accepted. This form is on-line at the Barrett Honors College website (asu.edu/honors).

Wrapping Up

1. The Oral Defense. While research and manuscript preparation are key parts of a thesis, there is another step to complete before the process is finished. You will take part in an oral defense before the members of your thesis/creative project committee. The defense is designed to be an exciting intellectual exercise, a chance to show what you have learned and discuss this topic, which is of such great interest to you, with similarly interested faculty and community members.

Where and when the defense will take place is up to you and the committee. If you encounter difficulties with this process, please contact Janey in the Barrett Honors College at 480-965-0920. An oral defense is a great way to show what you’ve learned over one or two semesters and to get valuable feedback on a significant piece of work.

Remember to prepare a Signature Title Page before the defense for committee members’ signatures. Be sure to take it with you to your defense.

The way an oral defense is conducted may vary by committee, but generally you and the committee members will meet for an hour or hour and a half, during which time:

• You will give a brief (15 minutes) seminar-style summary of the project designed to review the origins of your project, its scope, the methodology you used, significant findings and conclusions.

• The committee will ask questions about issues raised by the thesis/creative project, ask you to justify the choices made in the conduct of the project, and speculate on the applications or usefulness of your project.

• At the end of the question period, you will be dismissed from the room while the committee members review your performance. When they have reached a consensus, they will call you in to give you their appraisal and comments.

Depending on the amount and type of revisions the committee recommends (if any), you will leave the defense with one of the following sets of directions. You are responsible for undertaking the revisions proposed by the committee and consulting with the thesis director to ensure that the committee’s recommendations have been met.

• Approved

1. minor format/editorial corrections

2. all committee members sign the Signature Title Page

3. the thesis director makes any final recommendations

• Provisional Approval (a common outcome)

1. extensive format/editorial corrections and/or minor substantive changes (i.e., some text needs rewriting, consistent grammatical errors demand correction)

2. second and third readers make their recommendations and sign the Signature Title Page

3. thesis/creative project director signs the approval page only after the required corrections are made

• Not approved (very rare outcome)

1. basic design and/or overall execution of the study are significantly flawed

2. candidate’s performance in the oral defense is seriously deficient

3. Signature Title Page should not be signed

2. Your Grade. When the thesis/creative project is approved, the director will decide upon a grade. He or she may consult with the second and third readers concerning the grade, which uses the same scale as standard course grades (A, B, C,). For projects that extend over more than one semester, a grade of Z will be awarded. The assignment of a Z grade indicates that a project is in progress. The Z grade delays placement of any final grade on your transcript until the thesis/creative project is completed and successfully defended. After the successful defense, your thesis/creative project director and department submit a change of grade form for each semester of thesis enrollment. The assigned grade will then appear on the transcript.

3. Last Steps. Before the thesis/creative project is considered fully complete, students must submit to the Barrett Honors College:

• An unbound copy of the approved manuscript, project, or activity that meets the criteria outlined in the Manuscript Guidelines section.

• A title page with the original signatures of the committee

The Barrett Honors College will submit your thesis to the Arizona Collection of ASU’s Hayden Library. The College will also keep a bound copy for its own library and send a copy to the department in which your thesis has been registered. If you wish to have additional bound copies, you may make arrangements through the ASU Bookstore. Call (480) 965-7928 for information.

A Final Thought.

The most important thing to keep in mind about honors research is that there is always someone available to answer your questions. Stop by the BHC to talk with Janey Swanz about any aspect of the thesis/creative project. If you have questions about your area of study, remember that your department or college has an honors disciplinary advisor there to help you understand your options and responsibilities. We all want to do what we can to help you realize your full academic potential in this very worthwhile project.

Checklist for Thesis/Creative Project

Use this checklist to monitor your progress and make sure you don’t miss any steps.

I have:

❑ Read this brochure thoroughly and had my questions answered by an honors advisor and my honors disciplinary advisor.

❑ Selected my thesis/creative project director

❑ Selected the second reader

❑ Written my prospectus and had it reviewed by my thesis director

❑ Turned in my prospectus to the Barrett Honors College

❑ Contacted the third reader designated by the Barrett Honors College

❑ Completed the appropriate registration

❑ Completed and filed (if appropriate) the ASU Thesis Fund application

❑ Reviewed my progress regularly with my committee

❑ Revised my prospectus as necessary

❑ Reviewed my time-line for feasibility with my committee

❑ Prepared final manuscript with the guidance of my committee

❑ Presented at my oral defense and had my title page signed by my committee

❑ Submitted my manuscript to the Barrett Honors College

❑ Unbound manuscript

❑ Title page with original signatures (not photocopied) of all committee members

❑ Three copies of abstract

❑ Confirmed that my director submitted a grade for the completed project and changed the Z grade if one was submitted earlier (six-credit thesis/creative project)

Thesis/Creative Project Due Dates

Students must submit to the Barrett Honors College all thesis/creative project prospectus forms by the end of the third week of classes during the first semester in which they first enroll for thesis coursework, XXX 492 (if directed toward the thesis/creative project) or XXX 493. This declaration that you are beginning work on the thesis should be submitted to the reception desk at Irish A 121 by 5 p.m. on the appropriate day. If you have concerns with meeting any of these dates, discuss them with your thesis/creative project director as soon as possible. He or she can approve any changes. You should then notify the Barrett Honors College of the changes.

If you defend spring semester 2003

First draft completed March 7, 2003

Final draft completed April 1, 2003

Defense completed April 11, 2003

Signed title page and final unbound copy April 25, 2003

If you defend fall semester 2003

First draft completed October 6, 2003

Final draft completed November 3, 2003

Defense completed November 26, 2003

Signed title page and final unbound copy December 5, 2003

If you defend Spring 2004

Prospectus due February 9, 2004

Defense completed April 22, 2004

Signed title page and final unbound copy April 30, 2004

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