Thesis and oral defense

The thesis (HONS 4001) and oral defense are the capstones of the Honors Program. In certain cases, such as in theatre or music, students prepare an Alternate to the Thesis (HONS 4002). The
discussion of whether or not the thesis or alternative to thesis is appropriate should occur between the student and the Honors Program director no later than that student’s junior year. Exception: If the student is majoring in biology, the student will sign up for BIOL 4391, 4392, and 4393; these courses constitute a research-based senior project. In addition to the senior project, biology Honors students must give a presentation of their research at a professional meeting, such as Beta Beta Beta, Association of Southeast Biologists or the Georgia Academy of Science. The senior project also is presented to all biology majors, instructors, including faculty who served to direct and advise the thesis. This panel must also include the Honors Program director. The project is approved, signed, bound and otherwise treated as a thesis.

It is recommended that the Honors student enroll in HONS 4001 or HONS 4002 the first semester of his/her senior year in order to have plenty of time to research, write and defend the thesis. The student may be assigned the grade IP at the end of a term if the thesis is incomplete, the defense has not occurred or the first defense was unsuccessful.

A faculty member in the student’s major will serve as director of the thesis. Thesis directors will receive an honorarium at the end of the school year to recognize their service.

Once the student has decided on a topic, the student should complete a Thesis Proposal Form, which must be signed by the student, the thesis advisor and the Honors Program director.

The length of the thesis will vary according to the nature of the discipline but generally is shorter in the sciences (15-25 pages as directed by thesis AND Honors Program directors) and longer in the humanities, business and social sciences (40-60 pages as directed by the thesis and Honors Program directors). Citation method (APA, MLA, Turabian, Chicago, etc.) will vary by discipline.

The thesis director will chair the student’s Oral Defense Committee and will be a voting member. The thesis director will select two other faculty members (usually in the major or in the area of the thesis) to serve as voting members on the Oral Defense Committee. The CSU Honors Program director will be the fourth member of the Oral Defense Committee. The student will give members of the Oral Defense Committee a copy of the thesis at least one week prior to the date of the defense.

The defense will be held at a time mutually agreeable to all and at least two weeks from the end of the semester, thereby allowing time for revision and for binding of the thesis.

If the thesis and defense are acceptable, members of the Oral Defense Committee will sign the Thesis Cover Page of the thesis. The thesis and defense will be graded P/F (pass/fail).

An unsuccessful defense will not in itself interfere with a student’s graduation unless the thesis hours are needed for graduation. If the defense is unsuccessful, the student may revise the thesis according to the recommendations of the committee and may defend a second time. If the second attempt is unsuccessful, the student will not have satisfied the requirements of the Honors Program, even though all other requirements of the program may be fulfilled.

Thesis Binding: It is the responsibility of the Honors student to provide CSU with the minimum of three bound copies of the thesis as follows: Two copies of the bound thesis will be placed in the Simon Schwob Library and one copy will be given to the Honors Program director. The student may order additional copies for personal use. Honors students should follow the directions for thesis binding on the CSU libraries Web siteage. The binding color for Honors theses is mauve.

Requirements for the Alternative to the Thesis will vary according to the requirements stipulated by the department and coordinated with the Honors Program director. For example, in theatre, the thesis alternative could involve a set design or other impressive project. In the case of music performance, the alternative generally involves a public lecture on the composers of the music in the student’s senior recital.