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Honors Thesis. HONR 4957. 3 hours. Completes the work begun in HONR 3957. Successful
completion includes thesis/project approval by the student’s committee and the director of the
UHP. Grading is satisfactory/unsatisfactory.
Normally UHP students take this course in the last semester of their senior year under the
direction of a full time faculty member in their academic majors. Grading is
satisfactory/unsatisfactory.
The Honors Thesis is usually a research paper documenting a sustained piece of research
that adds to the knowledge in the student’s field. Lengths vary, but should represent a
significant research and writing effort.
A creative project can meet the requirements of the senior thesis. The production,
performance or creation of work should be fashioned according to the requirements of the
student’s specific area of study, and must be deemed appropriate by agreement of the
thesis advisor and thesis committee. Projects will vary, often considerably, according to
the requirements of the student's discipline/major.
A traditional defense, public presentation, or other public display should be scheduled.
Responsibility for scheduling the thesis defense/presentation/display rests with you, the
author. The thesis defense must take place at least a week before final exams begin in
the semester you wish to graduate, and a final draft of your thesis must be
submitted to your committee at least a week prior to the scheduled defense.
Confirming a location and time for the defense can be a complicated process, so begin it
as soon as possible. As a rule of thumb, students graduating in the spring semester should
contact their committee members and the UHP Coordinator no later than March 31 about
scheduling a defense; students graduating in the summer semester should do so by June
30; and students graduating in the fall semester should do so by October 31.
Thesis Defense (traditional)
Plan to begin your thesis defense with a 5-10 minute overview of the work. Your
committee will ask questions in a formal manner, led by your thesis advisor.
Your defense will be open to the public, and all participants in the University Honors
Program will be encouraged to attend.
You may invite anyone you want. You may have and consult notes, an outline, your
entire thesis, but please don’t merely read from your thesis.