Each academic discipline has its own requirements for research and for honors research projects specifically. To review the guidelines for your discipline, choose from the corresponding links below.
Art Business Communication Culinary Arts Education Health & Kinesiology History Languages & Literature Nursing Political Science Psychology & Family Science Sciences & Mathematics Speech-Language Pathology
Art Project Guidelines
Honors projects in the visual arts are professional presentations of original research or creative work. What distinguishes an honors project from most studio work is the ambition, size, and coherence of the body of work as well as the level of excellence that students are expected to achieve. All types of art honors projects require research beyond just studio work.
Because work in the visual arts tends to be time consuming and because honors projects require a lot of work, it is strongly recommended that students plan time for research. This could be accomplished by taking 401 in the spring and 402 in the fall and developing a beginning body of work in the intervening summer. Honors students could split 401 and 402 with a semester devoted to advanced level studio classes and therefore have a starting point for their 402 body of work. Most of the studio work needs to be produced in 402, but some can come from 401 or from work outside of class. Work created in studio classes cannot count as honors work but can be discussed in the honors papers and presentations.
It should be understood that working processes vary between artists; consequently, all suggestions about the size of a body of work or about the number of hours per week need to be seen as guidelines.
Note: All guidelines about the page length of papers do not include bibliographies and other attachments. All papers should follow the latest edition of the MLA Handbook unless the advisor chooses a different style manual.
General Types of Studies Suitable for Honors Projects
1. Independent studio work: This option is a continuation of independent work developed in previous studio classes. The work should meet the level of quality appropriate for a thesis exhibition or for an application to graduate school, and it should be displayed in the student’s senior exhibition (this work should be bulk of the exhibition). The work should be a reflection of a diligent and honest exploration and experimentation leading to the development of a unique body of work and an understanding of a personal sense of aesthetic. The amount of work should be equal to a group of work made from a 3-credit studio class, reflecting at least 12 hours of work per week. An example of an appropriate amount of work would be five large scale (4’x4′ or bigger) paintings (of which 3 or 4 are deemed worthy of exhibition) with at least 8 small-to-medium size studies (some of the studies may be exhibited too). All finished work should be ready to hang and meet gallery standards of presentation.
Research Paper: Although the studio work is the primary research, the studio honors student is required to support the work with a 5-7-page paper. The paper should be an extended artist statement in which the artist discusses her own work and the art historical lineage for the work. The student should try to place her work within a tradition of art beginning with the early 20th century and continuing to the present, discussing artists in detail and analyzing particular works (the student may discuss artists of earlier periods if doing so is particularly relevant). She should also discuss at least two contemporary artists who share interests with her work as well as analyze one her own works.
Proposal: The proposal for 401 should include a 3-page paper with 2 works of art as supporting material.
2. Art history-based research and studio work: This option is a research paper on a specific art history topic with a small body of studio work that reflects and supports that research. The research paper needs to be 12-17 pages, must use primary as well as secondary sources, and requires original analysis and interpretation of works of art.
Research Paper: The research paper cannot be only a discussion of scholarship; it needs to have an original thesis. The studio work should be equivalent to working at least 3 hours a week for a semester. It should strongly reflect the research, but it must also be a successful body of work separate from the research. An example of an appropriate amount of studio work would be 3 finished works and 5 studies. This studio work can be exhibited in the senior exhibition.
Proposal: 3-5-page paper (supporting artwork is optional).
3. Commercial design research work: This is an exploration of a particular topic in the fields of graphic design or interior design. The project should include a paper which discusses the research and a body of design work.
Research paper: The paper should be 7-12 pages, should use primary sources, and requires original analysis and interpretation of works from various designers. The student should also analyze her own design work. The body of design work should be the equivalent of 9 hours a week for a semester. An appropriate amount of work would be a graphic design campaign that included two poster designs, a full- page color print ad, three black and white half-page ads, and a brochure mailer. It is expected that some of this design work would be exhibited in the student’s senior exhibition.
Proposal: 3-page paper with 2 design works.
Proposal Format
Although proposals will vary greatly, the following serves as a guideline:
1. Introduction: Describe briefly and generally what you propose to do and its significance.
2. Review of Past Work: Discuss the previous research and creative work that is the foundation for your new body of work.
3. Review of Scholarship: Discuss generally the scholarship that relates to your project.
4. Review of Research: Discuss the research or creative work that you have already begun or completed for this project.
5. Plan of Research: Discuss what research you will complete by the end of the project
6. Plan of Studio Production: Explain how you plan to accomplish what you propose to do.
7. List of Works Cited: On a separate page list the works actually cited in the proposal. Make sure that the form used for each item listed is correct according to the MLA Handbook and that the information given in each item is accurate.
8. Bibliography: On a separate page list any works you have read or plan to read on the subject of your paper, excluding those cited in the proposal itself. Check each item listed for accuracy and correctness of form.
9. Appendix: Illustrative or supporting documents may be included in an appendix.
Business Project Guidelines
Honors students in the College of Business are expected to complete a thesis in their senior year under the direction of an Honors advisor and two other thesis committee members. The student will enroll in HO 401 and HO 402 (which may be taken in the Fall and Spring or Spring and the following Fall). In the first semester of thesis work, the student will conduct a literature review, present a research design at the Honors poster session, and produce a proposal. In the second semester, data are collected, analyzed and results are written up. Upon completion of the thesis, the student will present his/her work at the Honors Research Symposium. (See the rubrics for the oral presentation and written thesis for evaluative criteria.)
The business honors student is expected to conduct original research in a manner consistent with the research in his/her field of interest. This may include qualitative, quantitative, historical, experimental, or critical analyses. Primary data are not required, but if human subjects are involved, data collection must conform to the Institutional Review Board (IRB) procedures established in MUW Policy Statement #3503. Enough time must be built into the schedule to allow for review and approval of the research design, measures, and procedures.
Ideally, the completed thesis will be of publishable quality and/or suitable for presentation at a conference in a business-related field. (Many conferences have tracks for student-authored papers and the average length of these is 15 pages.) Faculty members are to provide guidance with this goal in mind. There may be an opportunity before or after the final MUW presentation to submit the paper for external review and possible publication.
The proposal drafted in the first semester of thesis work will include a title page, a clearly defined research question, a literature review, hypotheses (where appropriate), a proposed methodology, and references to date. This should be five pages minimum in length. The final thesis will include a refined first half of the paper plus an abstract, a completed methods section, data analysis, discussion, results, and references. No particular style manual is required. The student will use what is the norm for the proposed publication outlet. (Formatting instructions for submission to business journals and conferences are readily available.) Typically 12 point type and double spacing with 1″ margins are used.
An honors thesis should be 15 or more pages in length with a minimum of 10 references cited. A majority of the references should be from peer-reviewed business journals and infrequently from popular business periodicals. Again an abstract, tables, charts, the body of the paper and references should be formatted in a style consistent with major business journals. Appendices are to be used when necessary to include additional, relevant information.
Communication Project Guidelines
Communication scholars working with MUW’s Honors College are expected to produce original research. Dedication to the process, not the findings, is that which is most important. Students should consider presentation before the College an opportunity to test assumptions, to solicit essential feedback necessary for improving research, and to be responsible to a community of scholars and the wider public for the findings of their research. Ultimately, communication scholars should consider the College’s program as an ideal model for conference presentation of original research. Communication scholars are expected to produce original research of the quality worthy of conference-level presentation. All subject matter, theoretical/conceptual perspectives, and methodologies are appropriate for consideration, but it is the scholar’s responsibility to be able to defend the choice of subject matter, theoretical/conceptual orientation, and method for study.
Subject areas for communication research vary greatly, but general areas of research include rhetorical and cultural analyses of “texts” (written, spoken, visual, etc.), aspects of interpersonal dynamics, aspects of group and organizational dynamics, political communication, computer-mediated communication (CMC), media and medium effects, matters of communication law and policy, communication historical analyses, analyses of technological development, and matters related to advocacy and education. Deductive tests of specific theories or hypotheses are as appreciated as inductive case studies, etc.
Important:
Students are expected to follow these recommendations as general guidelines. Specific mandates (e.g., the relevance of particular types of references) should be negotiated with each student’s committee. Adhering to the published guidelines of the Honors College and recommendations of the Honors Director and Honors Committee, each student’s research committee will make the final determination for the specific requirements for communication honors research and evaluation of that research.
Average Length (Proposal):
5-10 pages (text-body, excluding cover page, abstract, bibliography, appendices, and other attachments). A minimum of 15 relevant references is required. Proposals must include sufficient content to justify conducting research and must be complete through explanation of the method(s) students intent to employ.
Average Length (Final Project):
10-20 pages (text-body, excluding cover page, abstract, bibliography, appendices, and other attachments). Twenty relevant references are required.
Style Manual:
Various manuals are used in communication research. Communication students are expected to be familiar with the most current version of the American Psychological Association (APA) Publication Manual. Unless negotiated otherwise, students should adhere strictly to APA guidelines. Note: The most current published version of the APA Publication Manual (or any other publication manual negotiated for use) must be referenced as the final authority. Use all other resources (e.g., internet sites) with caution.
Culinary Arts Project Guidelines
An Independent Study is an integral part of the requirement of Honors graduates. This requirement is met in part by enrolling and completing HO 401 and HO 402. An original, scholarly independent study is the primary goal and endpoint for each student. These guidelines for the independent research project will assist culinary students in this process.
1. Each student will develop an area of interest and topic of her/his research proposal. Students are encouraged to talk with the representative from Culinary Arts on the honors faculty committee and are encouraged to brainstorm ideas with fellow Honors students. Prior to starting the Independent Study, an informal gathering of Honors students in Culinary Arts will be organized by the honors faculty committee member. Attendance is highly recommended.
2. Once a student has established an original study topic, she/he will write a one page pre-proposal and submit it to the honors faculty committee member in Culinary Arts. The pre-proposal will contain a statement of the problem based on observations or historical data, a testable hypothesis, and expected outcomes based upon a scholarly research design. The student and honors faculty committee member will fine tune the pre-proposal and collectively develop a list of possible faculty mentors who might serve on the project committee. The student will then ask faculty members if they will serve on the committee by submitting the pre-proposal to them for review.
3. The project committee, which includes the honors faculty committee member in Culinary Arts, will serve as the guiding body for the review and approval of the ongoing and final independent study project in consultation with the Honors Director.
4. The student will develop a formal research proposal from the approved pre-proposal. This formal research proposal will serve as the basis for the poster presentation as required by the Honors College. Elements of the Research Topic Proposal must include: An Introduction (Statement of the Researchable Problem), a Survey of the Literature pertinent to the researchable problem, a formal Methods and Approach (Testing the Hypothesis) Section, Results Section (Data Collection and Summary), and a Conclusions and Discussion Section.
5. Students may combine their Culinary Internship (CA 350) requirement with the Honors Independent Study if an appropriate site meshes with a data collection phase of the project. Consultation early on with the honors faculty committee member in culinary Arts in the process is essential in this planning.
6. Students must submit a written manuscript of their Independent Study. Students will follow the format guidelines for any formal written and scholarly research paper and may use the style typical of the following professional publications: The Journal of Food Science, Animal Behaviour Journal, or Food Chemistry Journal. The important point is to be consistent and professional with writing, format, and citation styles.
7. It is highly recommended that students submit periodic timelines of the research in progress to their project committee consistent with the requirements of the HO 401 and HO 402 guidelines throughout this process.
8. Students are expected to present a final oral presentation of their original research upon completion of the Independent Study. The final grade for the project will be determined by the project committee and will be based upon the written manuscript as well as oral presentation.
Education Project Guidelines
Honors Education students are expected to conduct research in which an original research question/hypothesis is addressed. Students must complete a comprehensive review of relevant literature that focuses on empirical evidence-based research as well as significant theories. The research question or hypothesis must be fully addressed through a qualitative or quantitative research design. Sample qualitative designs would be case studies or interviews. Quantitative research designs could be, but are not limited to, experiments or simple statistical procedures using numerical data such as ANOVA.
The average length of the proposal is 5-10 pages and includes a cover page, an abstract, a brief literature review, methodology, justification of the research, a reference list of 15 references, and other attachments.
The average length of the final paper is 10-20 pages and should include a cover page, abstract, comprehensive literature review, methodology, data collection, data analysis, limitations, implications, references, appendices, and other attachments. The final paper should include 20 of the most current relevant references that are documented within the text of the paper and in a reference list. Students must use American Psychological Association 5th edition to reference in-text citations and the reference list. The final paper should be in a format conducive to submit to a journal for publication review.
Honors advisors for individual student research projects will be selected from the Education and Human Sciences faculty. Students are expected to meet with their advisors weekly. Students are expected to organize and participate in two committee meetings: one to discuss their proposal (during the HO 401 semester) and one to discuss their progress on the project (during the HO 402 semester).
These are general guidelines for the Honors Education Research project. Students should follow committee recommendations as well as published Honors College guidelines. The Honors College Director, Honors Faculty Committee, and student’s honors project committee will be responsible for making final recommendations regarding any modification of these general guidelines for individual students.
Health & Kinesiology Project Guidelines
Health and Kinesiology students should use the following guidelines when preparing an honors project. A project within the Health and Kinesiology Division should be either:
1. an original research project in which data are collected, analyzed, interpreted and discussed or
2. a review project in which the selected topic is extensively reviewed, summarized, and discussed.
The honors project should conform to the following guidelines:
1. Selection of committee:
A. The student should select an advisor at least one semester prior to the submission of the project proposal.
B. Under the guidance of the student’s advisor and the honors program director, the student will select his/her committee members.
2. Selection of a topic:
The student should obtain approval of his/her selected topic from the student’s advisor and committee.
3. Proposal:
A. The student will research the selected topic and submit a written proposal to the student advisor. The proposal should consist of the following items:
1. A brief introduction based on the literature review.
2. Statement of the purpose.
3. Methodology for data collection and analyses.
4. References.
B. After the student’s advisor approves the proposal, the student should submit the proposal to the committee for approval.
C. After the committee approves the proposal, the strident will submit the appropriate documents to the Use of Human Subjects committee. From this point until the completion of the project, the student should continue to review relevant literature.
D. After approval by the Use of Human Subjects committee and any other organization or committee, then the student can begin collecting data.
E. Once all of the data have been collected, the student should analyze the data and interpret the results of the analysis under the supervision of the advisor. At this point the student will complete the results and discussion sections of the project.
F. Upon completion of the discussion section, the student will submit the project to his/her advisor. The student will make recommended changes as suggested by his/her advisor.
G. After the project is approved by the student’s advisor, the student will then submit the complete project to his/her committee. The student will make changes recommended by the committee until final approval is obtained.
4. Final project:
The final project will consist of the following components:
A. Cover Sheet (see APA Manual)
Title
Student
B. Abstract
150 to 250 word summary of the project
C. Introduction
Brief overview of literature
Importance or significance of the study
Hypotheses and/or predictions
Limitations (if Necessary)
D. Literature Review
Comprehensive summary of the literature relevant to the topic of the study
Evidence of the significance and originality of the study
In depth rationale for the hypotheses and/or predictions
E. Methodology
Participants (number and descriptive information)
Detailed description of the experimental design
Detailed description of the task(s)/training
Detailed description of the instrumentation
Data collection
F. Results
Data analyses
Summary of data (tables and figures are necessary)
Summary of analyses
Statistical support or lack of support for the hypotheses and/or predictions
G. Discussion
The results of the study will be interpreted and discussed with respect to the previous research as discussed in the review of the literature
H. References
Include all of the references cited in the text
Follow APA format
I. Tables (if appropriate)
Include only if the information is not reported in the text
Follow APA format
J. Figures (if appropriate)
Include only if the information is not reported in the text
Follow APA format
K. Appendices
Include consent forms, questionnaires, and other form(s) used in the study
Tables of the results of the analyses
Follow APA format
History Project Guidelines
Standards
The honors thesis in history should demonstrate the student’s command of technique in historical research, both in primary and secondary materials and historical argument. Thus, the thesis must clearly define the questions which will be answered — on the basis of the student’s own analysis of primary sources — and clarify the significance of those answers in relation to the secondary literature. It is expected that theses will make an original, although generally small, addition to the understanding of the past either by changing historians’ account of the past, adding to it, clarifying it, or bringing new evidence to buttress the conclusions of other historians.
Poster
The poster should present information from the proposal clearly and thoroughly, with an emphasis on visual presentation. Write out the research question and hypotheses in a way that non-historians would understand what you are studying. Provide other information and even pictures to assist viewers in recognizing the details and context of your research.
Proposal
Proposals, like the theses in which they culminate, should include full citations and a preliminary bibliography of primary and secondary works to be consulted. It will not be unusual for the committee to receive a proposal six pages in length (double-spaced), accompanied by a bibliography of two pages (single-spaced). Proposals will also conform to the general guidelines which cover honors theses in all disciplines.
Thesis
It is, of course, essential that students provide evidence to support their conclusions, and that this evidence be handled carefully and precisely. In the realm of mechanics, this requires proper citation according to the conventions of the discipline, in the form of end notes or foot notes. Students who need model citations may consult Kate Turabian, The Chicago Manual of Style (any edition) or their advisors. Theses should also include a bibliography of sources cited. If necessary for a general audience, a glossary of technical terms should also be included. It is expected that most honors theses will be about 25-30 double-spaced pages long. Naturally, theses will be grammatical, clearly-written, and carefully proof-read.
A summary of the thesis (with emphasis on the research question, the evidence, and the methodology) should be the basis of your presentation given to the Honors College at the end of the year.
Languages & Literature Project Guidelines
Honors projects in the general area of languages and literature should make an original contribution, however small, to the field. Honors majors in languages and literature are urged to read extensively in journals related to their specific area of interest in order to discover what kind of research is typically published in this field. Moreover, the published articles of scholars should serve as models for the honors thesis not only in matters of content but also in such matters as format and style.
General Types of Studies Suitable for Honors Projects
1. Analysis of a literary work that contributes to or expands understanding of the author or work and that includes a careful examination of scholars’ opinions on the subject.
2. Studies of the background of or influences on a literary work that connect matters outside the work to elements within it and that contribute to or expand understanding of the author or work.
3. Annotated editions of unpublished works with an introduction detailing background, method, research, and the like and with critical textual notes.
4. Creative work, such as a short story or a series of poems, based on research and prefaced with an introduction detailing background, method, and research and connecting this work with others works of the same type.
5. Linguistic studies of slang, dialects, semantics, novel grammatical structures, and the like based on original research but firmly grounded in research in the field of linguistics and prefaced with an introduction detailing background, method, and research.
6. Studies of teaching methodology related to literature, language, or writing and based on original research as well as research in the field of teaching methods.
Average Length: 15-25 pages, excluding bibliographies and attachments
Style manual for documentation and format: the latest edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers
Proposal:
Average Length: 8-15 pages, excluding bibliographies and attachments
Style manual for documentation and format: the latest edition of the MLA Handbook
Contents: Though no outline or description will cover all situations, these elements are included in most proposals:
1. Introduction. Describe briefly and generally what you propose to do, and explain why this needs to be done (e.g., has never been done before; has been done improperly; will contribute something).
2. Review of Research. Discuss who has said what about the subject of your project. This review should include all publications read as general background research as well as studies (articles and books) similar or related to the proposed subject.
3. Procedure. Explain how you plan to accomplish what you propose to do. This explanation should include the scope or limits of the project.
4. List of Works Cited cited in the proposal.. On a separate page list the works actually Make sure that the form used for each item listed is correct according to the MLA Handbook and that the information given in each item is accurate.
5. Bibliography. On a separate page list any works you have read or plan to read on the subject of your paper, excluding those cited in the proposal itself. Check each item listed for accuracy and correctness of form.
6. Appendix. If a questionnaire is to be used, include a copy of it in an appendix. Any other illustrative or supporting documents may also be included in an appendix, though these are not usually necessary.
Nursing Project Guidelines
The BSN honors student will develop an independent research proposal and project that adds to the body of knowledge related to the art and science of nursing. Requirements for HO 401 and HO 402: Independent Study will follow the MUW Honors College guidelines. The BSN honors student’s research proposal and project must be unique and independent of any BSN NU 425/449 group research proposal and project. However, the student may use the same target population.
During HO 401, fall semester, the nursing student, while developing the research proposal and conducting preliminary research, will also follow the research guidelines from NU 425: Theory and Research I:
Chapter I (Introduction)
Chapter II (Review of the Literature)
Chapter III (Research Design and Methodology)
During HO 402, spring semester, the nursing student, while conducting research, completing the formal paper, and delivering the oral presentation, will also follow the research guidelines from NU 449: Theory and Research II.
Chapter IV (Results of the Study)
Chapter V (Summary, Conclusions, and Recommendations)
Abstract
Guidelines for Presentation of Community Research Study
The BSN Honors student must complete proposal and project assignments according to the HO 401 and 402 syllabi, and these assignments may or may not coincide with BSN NU 425/449 syllabi. All completed assignments should be submitted to the Honors Director and to the BSN Honors Committee.
Political Science Project Guidelines
Political science honors theses should make an original contribution, however small, to any subfield of the discipline. The project should focus on analysis of a problem or development in politics/government. Description of the issue is necessary but is not the heart of the project. Scholars are expected to be objective in their analysis—this is not an opinion-guided project.
Students pursuing the thesis should be well-read and aware of their topic’s importance both to political scientists and to the political world at large. Such preparation will not only inform the student of which research path to take but will also prevent her/him from conducting research that merely replicates what has been done before. The Honors thesis will take most of the senior year to complete, so during the junior year each student must ask herself/himself:
Political science honors theses should make an original contribution, however small, to any subfield of the discipline. The project should focus on analysis of a problem or development in politics/government. Description of the issue is necessary but is not the heart of the project. Scholars are expected to be objective in their analysis—this is not an opinion-guided project.
Students pursuing the thesis should be well-read and aware of their topic’s importance both to political scientists and to the political world at large. Such preparation will not only inform the student of which research path to take but will also prevent her/him from conducting research that merely replicates what has been done before. The Honors thesis will take most of the senior year to complete, so during the junior year each student must ask herself/himself:
1. In the POL classes I have taken thus far, have I read enough analytical research in my favored subfield to pose a viable research question of my own?
2. Have the POL courses and classes in other fields taught me how to use the library and electronic resources to collect academic scholarship on a focused topic?
3. Have the POL courses and classes in other fields given me experience in writing research papers of ten or more pages?
4. Have I taken POL 350 Social Science Research Methods by the end of my junior year? Note: Taking POL 350 in the senior year is too late for it to do any good.
5. Have I thought about which three professors I would like to have on my thesis committee?
6. Am I ready to meet with my thesis adviser as often as once a week (and with the whole committee less often) during my senior year to discuss progress, review drafts, etc.?
7. Do I know that the thesis is my responsibility—that the committee or anyone else is not responsible for helping me gather library sources, collect and analyze data, or draft the report?
If you answered “no” to any of these questions, please consult with your political science adviser to determine what should be done to get you on track to begin the thesis process. Below is a discussion of requirements for each step of the thesis process.
Proposal
This document should include: a cover page (your name, title of project, committee member names, and any other information required by the Honors College); 5-6 pages of text; bibliography (10 or more academic sources at this stage), and a draft of survey or other data collection instruments attached as appendix. The 5-7 pages of text should be organized as follows:
1. Introduction (1 page): State your research question and discuss the specific issue/development being investigated. Why should we care about this? Briefly, what will you add to what we know? List one or more relevant hypotheses to be tested. Be sure to delineate limits of study: what exactly will be investigated, and how far do you see your findings being generalized across space and time?
2. Literature Review (1-2 pages): Summarize the current state of knowledge about the political process, relationship, or concept you are examining. Identify the dominant definitions and theories used to explain the phenomena you are studying and explain which you will be using. Present the methods generally used in the literature and explain why you will or will not use the same. Persuade the reader that gaps in the literature exist or that previous methods of study have missed something important; then make the case that your project is designed to fill in those missing pieces.
3. Theory (1 page): In the literature review, you identified the relevant theories and indicated which would guide your research. In this section, you provide more information on those theories/the theory you chose. At this stage you are not expected to know all the details of the theory, but you should be able to denote its importance to your project.
4. Method (1-2 pages): Sketch the means by which you will collect and analyze data for the thesis. Present the necessary details of collection (survey/interviews, content analysis of documents, observation, experimentation) with an estimate of how “big” your data set will be (e.g., 40 city budgets analyzed, 100 MUW students interviewed). Specify qualitative or quantitative analysis of data, giving as much detail as you can. For example, a quantitative project may employ regression analysis through SPSS, and a qualitative design may use narrative analysis.
5. Results (1 page): Suggest the analytic outcomes that would lead you to confirm or reject your hypothesis. Explain the significance of either outcome: Will the outcome support or challenge what is already known in the field? Will the outcome be useful for those who are directly confronted with the issue in the “real world”?
Poster
The poster should present information from the proposal clearly and thoroughly, with an emphasis on visual presentation. There is a balancing act here: your poster should be self-explanatory, providing enough information that viewers can get a basic understanding of your project on their own; however, it should also avoid large blocks of text and provide a pleasing and interesting visual. Write out the research question and hypotheses in a way that non-political scientists would understand what you are studying. Provide tables/figures and even pictures to assist viewers in recognizing the details and context of your research. Follow the poster format guidelines established by the Honors College.
Thesis
In its later drafts and final version, the thesis must adhere to the standards below. Students must follow the APA or Chicago Writing Manual for writing style, citations, etc.
A. Cover page: Same as on the proposal, with revisions as necessary.
B. Text: 15-30 pages in length (typed, double-spaced, with 1″ margins and 12pt font).
A limited number of brief tables, graphs, and illustrations may be inserted in the text, but longer items (full regression tables, survey instruments, content analysis units, etc.) should be included at the end of the paper, in appendices. You should use academic articles as a guide and consult your advisor concerning the appropriateness of including items in the text of your paper.
Text should be organized the following way, adapted to fit your needs. You may use the page number ranges (in parentheses) as rough guides.
1. Introduction: Present the issue and your specific angle. Some history may be helpful here, but you must not burden your project with historical narrative. (1-3)
2. Literature Review: Discuss what has been concluded about this topic in the academic literature and how those conclusions have been reached. Emphasize major theories and how your approach fits in or not. State whether you are expanding or challenging a theory or methodological approach. (3-4)
3. Theory: Identify the paradigm, or theoretical school, guiding your approach to the topic. Describe your theoretical assumptions and the implications of your theory for the phenomenon at hand. How does your theory explain the causal relationship posed among the concepts under study? Given those causal relationships, what are your hypotheses? (3-4)
4. Data and Methods: Explain specifically how you will test the hypotheses implied by your theory. What is the population of relevant cases? How and why did you choose your sample, and what are its characteristics? What are the variables involved? How have you operationalized each, and why are these valid measures? How did you analyze the data collected? (3-4)
5. Test: Analyze your data and explain your findings. How confident are you in your findings? (3-4)
6. Conclusions: Discuss the relevance of your findings (confirmed or rejected hypotheses) to academic research and the “real world.” Discuss expansion/revision of theory or the introduction of a new theory. State further research directions (maybe with new hypotheses to test) for others to pursue. (2-3)
C. Bibliography: A list of 15-30 academic sources (scholarly books and articles), which may be supplemented by other sources (news magazine articles, government documents). Accessing legitimate sources electronically is fine.
D. Appendices: A separate appendix should be created for larger tables or figures as well as for your survey or other data collection instrument. Do not include an appendix unless you make reference to it in the text (e.g., SEE TABLE 4 IN APPENDIX D).
A summary of the thesis (with emphasis on hypothesis testing and conclusions) should be the basis of your presentation given to the Honors College at the end of the year. Make use of visuals (PowerPoint, etc.) as per Honors guidelines.
Psychology & Family Science Project Guidelines
Standards:
Students are expected to develop an original research question based on a thorough review of the relevant academic literature. Students are expected to demonstrate an understanding of the theories and research relevant to their question. Qualitative and quantitative research projects should be designed so that the research question is adequately addressed. The project should allow the student to make a significant, though small, contribution to the existing literature and should thus meet basic criteria for publication.
Students conducting qualitative projects should (a) use theoretical approaches supporting the research purposes, (b) set specific participants’ criteria and number of participants, and plan the recruitment process, (c) develop semi-structured interview questions, (d) use methods of trustworthiness (credibility) for analysis, (e) analyze participants’ narratives for emerging themes, and (f) thoroughly explain how their findings contribute to the existing literature.
Students conducting quantitative research projects should (a) use a sufficiently complex design (e.g., experimental or quasi-experimental design) to investigate their question or questions, (b) include sufficient numbers and groups of participants, (c) acquire (or develop their own) valid and reliable measures of the constructs under investigation, and (d) thoroughly analyze their findings in the context of the existing literature. Secondary data analyses of large, national data sets are also acceptable quantitative studies for PFSC honor’s projects. With respect to statistics, students are encouraged to use the most powerful analyses appropriate to their data.
Style:
Honors projects should be written using the professional writing style of the American Psychological Association (Publication Manual, 7th edition). The proposal and final paper should be written in the format of a journal article. A minimum of 20 relevant references is required.
Advisors and committees:
Honors advisors for individual projects will be agreed upon by the Psychology and Family Science faculty. Students are expected to meet with their advisors weekly. Students are expected to organize and participate in at least two committee meetings: one to discuss their proposal (during the HO 401 semester) and one to discuss their progress on the project (during the HO 402 semester).
Sciences & Mathematics Project Guidelines
Typical Length
This is obviously going to vary with the subject matter, but in general the following guidelines should apply. A concisely written and well-focused scientific paper should consist of several sections. The introduction is the background and scope of the subject, including pertinent major literature and the purposes and goals of current work. The length could range from a couple of paragraphs to several pages, depending on the subject. This section should be written last so the writer knows what is being introduced. The materials and methods section needs to be concise and to the point. The student should refer to reference(s) describing standard methodology in more detail. Some students can mistakenly make this part the bulk of the paper. The results section is mainly a description of patterns, trend, irregularities, etc. in data presented in tables, graphs, figures, photographs, ect. Material in this section could potentially be half the length of the paper, especially if graphs or tables take up one page each. Smaller figures or tables can be incorporated in the text of the paper. The discussion should be an explanation and possibly conclusions about the results described in the previous section and an integration of the student’s results in light of previous work, citing and discussing pertinent literature.
A good paper should cite numerous primary references from the professional literature, not just popular review articles or commentaries. A paper on a subject in an active field should have dozens or works whose content can be incorporated in the discussion and introduction sections. Abstracts are common in the science literature and could also serve a useful purpose as concise summaries of student papers. These are probably less than one-half page.
The overall length of a Science/Math paper might thus include at least a page for Introduction (possibly more), three or four (and up to dozens of pages for work with extensive data) for Results, two to five for Discussion, and one or two for Literature Cited. This adds up to a bare minimum of around seven pages for a concise, narrowly-focused paper. Ten to twelve pages or more would be better.
Style Manual
The standard manual for biology is the CBE (Council of Biology Editors) Style Manual, 5th edition, but students could use any quality journal as a standard to follow to keep their work closer to the subject matter of their study. Formats vary from one journal to another, so there is no one format that is standard or best. As long as students present an organized paper with a consistent method of literature citation, there should be no problems.
“Original Research” Expectations
Elements of original research should be a part of any honors paper in science, but because of time limitations, expectations should be minimal. Even with students who do 10-week summer internships in professional labs, there are cases where experiments have not worked out or been finished in the time allotted, or the expected results have not been achieved. Students need to compensate for these deficiencies by doing more literature analysis and summary as part of their paper.
Statistical Information
This will depend on the level of statistical experience of the student and her/his advisor. High expectations are fine but probably unrealistic. Student who have had basic statistics should probably be advised to perform simple statistical tests, as appropriate.
Facilities and Faculty
Science is particularly limited in both. There are currently no facilities in Martin Hall for student research projects where they could have set-ups and on-going work. The Plymouth Bluff center might provide a site for field studies. Our solution for the better students is for them to have summer internships at larger universities and to use that work for their honors projects. usually, these experiences are fully appropriate in providing the requisite experience for the students and satisfying the requirements of the Honors Program.
Mathematics students who would need computer access have a divisional computer lab, the MUW data center, and possible access to the U. Miss. supercomputer. The divisional computer lab has been set up with printers for student work.
Most divisional faculty have teaching overloads already, and some may already have divisional students doing Special Problems projects which parallel the honors program. undoubtedly, there are other faculty who are willing and able to direct honors projects during some semesters. A faculty member with a 12-16 hour teaching load would probably be well advised to have no more that two students doing special problems or honors research.
Speech-Language Pathology Project Guidelines
An honors project in speech-language pathology is a serious commitment. The project is expected to be the student’s independent, original research and of sufficient quality to merit recognition. The faculty expect the project to be a reflection of the student’s very best effort.
Follow the outline below when completing the research project:
Chapter I (Introduction)
Chapter II (Review of the Literature)
Chapter III (Research Design)
Chapter IV (Results of the Study)
Chapter V (Summary, Conclusion(s), and Recommendations)
Abstract
The SLP student must complete proposal and project assigments according to the HO 401 and 402 syllabi as well as meet the requirements specified by their SLP faculty adviser.