Senior Honors Program
American Studies
Honors Track
Thesis Guidelines
Application to the Honors Program
Students who wish to undertake a more intensive and extensive program of study in American Studies, including an additional (Honors) seminar, participation in the American Studies colloquia series, a series of essay writing workshops, and an independent research thesis, are invited to apply for the Honors Program.
The Senior Honors project will be supervised by a teaching and research faculty member from American Studies. Occasionally, a faculty member from one of our cognate departments may direct a project.
The honors project must have a committee which includes a designated director and (with departmental consultation) at least one additional reader. The director assigns the final grade with the agreement of the committee. The final grade is a compilation of the entire Honors project and not just a reflection of the finished thesis.
Application to the Honors Program
is a two stage process beginning with an initial letter of intent. In stage one, the department will extend a notification of invitation to all sophomore students by the first week of April. Interested students who meet the Program’s GPA requirement of 3.5, or who have a reference from an American Studies faculty member are encouraged to submit a letter of intent which will include the following: a statement of interest in joining the Honors Program, the name of an American Studies faculty member who can serve as a reference, and a paragraph which suggests or describes in brief a possible thesis topic. The letter of intent is due by the end of April. Stage two of the process involves a more formal application and is due by April of the student’s junior year.
