Writing an honors thesis does not guarantee graduation with honors. If a student pursues an honors thesis that is not conferred honors status, the student's record will show that s/he successfully completed a Senior Thesis.
Writing an honors thesis does not guarantee graduation with honors. If a student pursues an honors thesis that is not conferred honors status, the student's record will show that s/he successfully completed a Senior Thesis.
The opportunity to pursue honors in anthropology is a privilege. Students are selected to become honors candidates based on a number of criteria, including: standing and grades in the concentration; a viable research project; the support of a faculty advisor; submission and approval of the proposed project.
Students must apply to become an honors candidate by the end of the semester before they begin their thesis work, ordinarily at the end of the sixth semester.
To be eligible to apply for honors, students must:
Both your primary thesis advisor and secondary reader for your honors thesis in Anthropology must be anthropologists. Additional readers from outside of anthropology are welcome to participate.
Your primary thesis advisor must be a regular faculty member in the department. It is a good idea to have taken a class with the proposed thesis advisor, so that s/he has an idea of the student's interests and abilities, and so that the student has a good idea of the faculty advisor’s approach to research.
Students interested in pursuing honors should have an idea for a thesis project by the spring semester of the junior year. Many faculty advisors limit the number of theses they advise per year, so it is good to approach a faculty member early.
Prepare a thesis proposal of 2-3 pages, describing the major research questions and methods to be used. The proposal should have a primary research question and will define what you are doing for your research (and why). The proposal must have a working bibliography attached. Candidates will prepare their proposals in close consultation with their primary advisor. Submit the thesis proposal, with the proposed faculty member’s approval, to the Director of Undergraduate Research (DUR) in anthropology by the end of the spring semester of your junior year (specific dates are specified each year).
As students proceed with the honors project, the direction taken may differ than that originally outlined in the proposal. In consultation with the primary faculty advisor, the student will identify a second reader, who will sign on to the project by the second week of the student's senior year (or seventh semester).
Once accepted as honors candidates, students will pursue a course of study that goes beyond what is expected of a regular concentrator. This includes:
All honors theses must be based on original research and advance an argument. The thesis must be more than a report on existing scholarship. It must advance an original argument or analysis, either by presenting new sources or data or by bringing a new interpretation to bear on known sources.
That research might involve:
The thesis may take a variety of forms. The candidate and primary advisor should decide on the format at least two semesters in advance of the thesis completion (typically September of the candidate’s graduating year). Once the candidate and primary advisor settle on a format, the DUR should be contacted for final approval.
Possible thesis formats include:
All written material should adhere to the following format requirements, unless an article is being prepared for submission to a journal, in which case that journal’s format may be used:
Two honors students from the Class of 2021 share some advice on thesis writing here.
All students who satisfactorily complete ANTH 1970 will receive course credit for their thesis work. In order to receive Honors in anthropology, however, several additional criteria must be met. Upon submission of the thesis, the student must:
If a student has a viable research project and the support of a faculty member, but does not meet the eligibility for pursuing honors, the student may write a senior thesis in anthropology, with the approval of two faculty members. A senior thesis writer will also be expected to take the thesis writing courses (ANTH 1970) and has the option to present his or her work at the honors thesis symposium. Senior Theses generally follow all of the requirements and guidelines of the Honors Thesis, although with a later deadline for the thesis proposal (start of the seventh semester).
As with an Honors Thesis, the Senior Thesis must be more than a synthesis of or report on existing scholarship. It must advance an original argument or analysis, either by presenting new sources or data or by bringing a new interpretation to bear on known sources.