Senior Seminar and Senior Thesis

The purpose of this course is to provide students with the experience of researching and writing a substantial, original scholarly paper in history. Students will produce an essay of approximately 25 pages in length (excluding reference materials) employing both primary and secondary sources in order to support a thesis which your paper will attempt to demonstrate. The paper should be professional and scholarly in its presentation and you should produce a work that you will be proud to have other members of the University community read. In addition, students will present their research to the University community at the student research colloquia at the end of the spring semester. Students will meet on a weekly basis with their advisor and peers in order to discuss issues in course readings and writing assignments.

Requirements:

1. The major requirement for the course is the final paper. Students are expected to spend four to eight hours per week researching and writing the paper. Every week or two weeks (at the discretion of the senior seminar advisor) the students will meet, report on their progress, and present materials to the instructor. It is essential in a project of this scope to continue researching and writing each week.

The following requirements and deadlines for the paper are a general guideline only. Each student and senior seminar advisor will agree on a schedule and requirements that meets the needs of each student.

Week 1   Paper topic meeting.
     
Week 3   Turn in a two-page proposal and a bibliography.
     
Week 5   Turn in an outline of paper.
     
Week 8   Turn in 10 pages of draft.
     
Week 11   Turn in complete draft.
     
Week 12   Peer review of draft.
     
Week 13   Seminar presentations, final draft due.
     
Week 14   Final paper due, presentations to the University community.


2. In addition, the senior seminar may contain short readings and writing assignments which are designed to address theoretical and historiographical issues as well as background readings relevant to the students' chosen topics. These additional requirements are at the discretion of the senior project advisor.

Students should consult Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 6th ed. on all questions regarding writing mechanics, format, and citation style. In citing sources, students should use footnotes or endnotes.    
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