Bachelor of Science in Human Science Honors Program

About

The honors program in human science recognizes those students pursuing a high level of independent discovery research (laboratory, archival, community, epidemiological) during their undergraduate years, culminating in a senior undergraduate thesis as they complete their Human Science major course of study.

The purpose of this program is to permit students of high academic achievement to enjoy greater responsibility and initiative in their major work. The honors program in Human Science requires a significant mentored research experience in a topic of the student’s choosing.

Graduating with Honors in Human Science requires completion of the Human Science curriculum with the addition of a senior thesis. Students who complete an acceptable Honors Thesis and all other requirements for the Human Science major will graduate with a B.S in Human Science with Honors.

Eligibility for Human Science Honors

Full-time human science students with at least a 3.0 science GPA may apply anytime after the end of their first year, but before the posted deadline.

How to Apply

Application Requirements

Prior to completing an application, the student should identify a thesis mentor. If a student chooses to work with someone other than one of the Human Science faculty mentors, then the student must confirm a Human Science faculty member who will serve as the co-mentor for the thesis.

The application from the student to the Human Science Faculty will include:

1. A completed application page, indicating support by thesis mentor(s). If the primary mentor is outside of the department, a letter demonstrating support of the work is recommended.
2. A description of the idea and methods of the proposed thesis work.
3. A proposed curriculum plan including Independent Research (HSCI-3940) for at least one term (minimum of 3 credits, but not to exceed 9 credits) pertaining to their thesis project prior to their senior year and the final Honors Thesis class.

The proposal should include an extensive literature review of the topic (introduction/background/rationale), hypothesis, a research plan/methods to answer the hypothesis, a bibliography list inclusive of current literature (at least 10, more is preferred), and the time frame in which the project will be completed.

Students should submit proposals to the Chair of the Human Science department.

Honors Proposal Timing

Sophomore and Junior students may apply for honors by submitting their honors proposal at any time during their degree progression, which will be considered by the faculty at the next regularly scheduled faculty meeting.

Rising Senior students should submit their honors proposal no later than August 15 prior to their senior year. Rising Seniors should submit a draft of their proposal for feedback to their Human Science faculty mentor (or co-mentor) at least one month ahead of the August 15 deadline. The proposal will be considered and voted upon during the first faculty meeting of the academic year.

Approval for Human Science Honors

The Chair will circulate the application to the Human Science Faculty, who will vote on the proposal.

Human Science Honors Curriculum

Human Science Honors students will meet all Human Science major curriculum requirements in addition to the research course sequence. A student working on an Honors project will enroll in a minimum of three (but no more than nine) credit hours of Independent Study research course pertaining to their thesis project prior to their senior year. Enrollment in Honors Thesis (HSCI-4998) the final term of the project is also required.

Proposed Timetable of Activities

2nd year

• Student will initiate research with approval of the student’s Honors mentor.

2nd or 3rd year

• Student will build the idea for the thesis topic and formulate a question/hypothesis to study.
• Enrollment in Independent Study (HSCI-3940) with Honors research mentor. A thorough review of the literature is suggested.

4th year

Complete research project and thesis:

• July 15: Latest date by which a draft/outline of the thesis proposal submitted to HSCI mentor/co-mentor
• August 15: Latest date by which proposal/application can be submitted to the department.
• Fall semester: Weekly updates/progress reports to mentor; establish committee members.
• December: Update meeting with committee members to include summary of results.
• December 20: Under special circumstances, oral defense of the thesis may be scheduled for final exam week with input of mentor and committee. However, this decision must be communicated to Academic Affairs by this date.
• January 1 – February 28: Develop, expand and revise draft of thesis.
• February 28: Initial thesis draft due to thesis mentor. Schedule oral defense with mentor and committee; oral defense must take place on or before the last day of classes.
• March 31: A complete thesis draft due to thesis mentor and committee.
• April – May: Public defense of thesis. (Note: Students and mentors may agree to defend in the beginning of final exam week, but only if approved by Academic Affairs — see deadlines). Thesis must be distributed to Human Science faculty one week prior to oral defense.
• May: Completed thesis (i.e., after incorporation of changes suggested in public defense) due to department the Friday before grades for graduating seniors are due.

Note: Students who fail to adhere to the deadlines indicated above may jeopardize their ability earn a “Pass” for their work.

Guidelines for Preparing a Written Thesis

• The final thesis product will have a limit of 6,000 words not counting references, figures, figure legends, abbreviations page, or tables.
• The paper must be double-spaced, 12-point font and 1” margins.
• References and citation formatting should conform to guidelines of a journal of choice of the thesis mentor and punctuated consistently throughout the thesis document.
• The final thesis product should be formatted according to the standards of a scientific thesis as outlined here:
  • Title page: title, author, contact information, 3-6 key words, and word count
  • Abstract page: limit to 250 words
  • Abbreviations page (if applicable)
  • Introduction
  • Methods
  • Results
  • Discussion
  • Acknowledgements
  • References (at least 15, inclusive of current literature)
• Tables: Embed table in appropriate location within text, or at the end of the document.
• Figures: Embed figures in appropriate locations within text or at the end of the document. Include figure legends with figures.

Thesis Defense

Committee: Prior to submitting a complete thesis draft, the student, in consultation with his/her faculty thesis mentor, should select a minimum of three (including the thesis mentor) faculty to serve as members of the thesis committee. At least two must be Human Science faculty. The committee’s role will include, but is not limited to, providing guidance at the results/project update meeting at the end of Fall semester, providing guidance on the overall scientific merit and written presentation of the thesis work, and attendance at the oral defense.

Preparing the Final Draft: Each committee member should be given a rough draft of the thesis and each member will provide the student with feedback. The final draft of the thesis must be distributed to all Human Science faculty members at least one week before the oral presentation.

Oral Defense of Thesis: The student will present the thesis orally at a public venue, open to all faculty and students who wish to attend. Generally, the student should prepare a 30-minute presentation and expect the total defense time to last approximately 1 hour. The student may be interrupted during the presentation to answer clarifying questions posed by the audience. The goal of the defense for the student is to generate a discussion of the topic and defend the strategy and results of the experiment(s).

Grading the Thesis: Immediately following the oral defense of the thesis, all non-faculty members in attendance will be excused and the faculty remaining will determine if the thesis receives a “Pass” or “No Pass.” All faculty members who have read the thesis and attended the oral defense are eligible to grade the thesis. No letter or other grade will be applied to the thesis. If the thesis project is deemed acceptable, then a notation will be placed on the transcript.

Thesis Revision: The committee (or all voting members present at the thesis defense) may request specific revisions to be made before a transcript notation will be issued. The student will revise the written product of the thesis between the date of the defense and the due date. The last version of the thesis is due to the committee on the Friday before grades are due for graduating seniors. A final reading will take place and the final transcript notation will be issued.

Course Description

HSCI-4998 – Honors Thesis (Spring of Senior year only)
During their last semester of the senior year, students in the honors program bring their research projects to conclusion, complete the written thesis for the faculty committee and make an oral presentation of the results to a seminar group of faculty and students. The student will be encouraged to submit the thesis for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.
Credits: 0
Prerequisites: A minimum of one (1) Independent Study Research (HSCI-3940) of at least three credits.

Past Honors in Human Science Senior Theses