Honors

World Languages & Literatures Honors Thesis

In advance of their final year in one of the majors offered by the Department of World Languages & Literatures, students are invited to submit a proposal for an Honors Thesis. The Honors Thesis is an independent research project completed in coordination with a faculty member over the course of the year, with a 4-credit thesis course^[1] completed in the Spring Semester. The final thesis is approximately 30 pages plus a bibliography and presents original research on a topic related to the student’s major.

To be eligible for honors students must have a GPA of 3.500 or higher in the major and overall.

Honors Thesis Timeline

FALL SEMESTER

August: The student consults with faculty about their interest in proposing a thesis. After coming to an agreement on a topic, the student begins conducting research.

Late October: Honors Thesis Proposal is submitted to the World Languages & Literatures Honors Committee. The 4-6 page proposal includes a project description, annotated bibliography, preliminary outline, and timeline.

Early November: Students and their advisors meet with the World Languages & Literatures Honors Committee for a chance to present and discuss the honors project. Shortly after, students are notified if their proposal has been approved or denied. In some cases, a revised proposal is requested, in which case, the student has approximately three weeks to revise and resubmit with advisor approval.

December: The student submits a complete outline to their faculty advisor, and they agree upon a plan for work to be completed over Winter Break.

SPRING SEMESTER

Approximately every two weeks, the student will submit a new chapter plus revisions on the previous chapter, leading up to the full thesis draft being completed by the 8th week of the semester. The student will receive comments and feedback from their faculty advisor on each chapter, and will typically meet every 2-3 weeks to discuss their progress.

Early April: The student circulates to the faculty the final, complete, and revised version of their work, revised based on advisor feedback.

Mid April: Thesis presentation is held and Honors are approved or denied.

All thesis students are encouraged to present at Festival of Scholars in April.

^1]This course is to be completed in addition to the major requirements, and cannot be used to count towards the major.

^[2] A detailed timeline with specific dates is determined each academic year.This timeline is intended to provide a general sense of the steps and pacing of the Honors Thesis process.