Deadlines
2018/2019 Benchmarks for Honors Thesis Completion
Fall Semester
| Deadline | Benchmarks |
|---|---|
| Contact faculty member (1st week of classes) |
You should be narrowing in on a research question with your prospective advisor about a topic. |
| Meeting 1: Orientation (1st week of September) |
We will meet as a group and discuss the expectations, requirements, standards, and schedule for writing a thesis. |
| Thesis Agreement (September 27) |
You should submit the thesis agreement signed by you and the honors director. |
| Outline signed (October 18) | You should work with your advisor to develop a basic research plan for your project (including sources). Please have your advisor sign a copy of this outline/research plan and submit it to the honors director. |
| Chapter draft submitted (Before Thanksgiving) | You should turn in a draft of a chapter to your advisor. |
| Develop a winter break agenda (Week after Thanksgiving) |
You should speak with your advisor and come up with a game plan for the winter break. What can you get done? What is your game plan for the spring semester? |
Spring Semester
| Deadline | Benchmark |
|---|---|
| Chapters write-up (Jan.-March) | You should be writing steadily at this point. As you complete draft chapters, submit them to your advisor for feedback. |
| Progress report (February 13) | The honors director will check in with your advisor to find out how you are doing. |
| Drop deadline (February 28) | Last day to drop the thesis. |
| First thesis draft (March 28) | You should turn in a 1st draft of the entire thesis to your advisor. This is a great opportunity for feedback. At this time, you should also discuss with your advisor who might serve on your defense committee. Once you have a list of names, reach out to these professors. |
|
Feedback on draft (April 10) |
Your advisor should return your draft with comments and suggestions for improvement. At this time, you should have members for your defense committee lined up. |
|
Final thesis draft (April 24) |
Turn in your revised final draft!! You'll deliver a copy of your thesis to each member of your committee. Then, celebrate! |
|
Thesis defense (April 29 - May 4) |
Your oral defense will be scheduled by the politics department for sometime during this week. |
|
Graduation (May 19) |
You graduate today! Congratulations! |