School of Psychology
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Honors Thesis Information

Introduction

The Honors Thesis (PSY4511) is required of students in the Psychology Honors Program. Students will normally take the 3-credit class twice for a total of 6 credits, but in some cases the course may be taken three times for 9 credits. Three credits of PSY4511 will replace the Internship and the remaining credits will either substitute for Psychology electives or Free Electives, depending on the student's concentration. A thesis is normally performed during the Senior year spanning the Fall and Spring semesters.

Senior Thesis (PSY4415,6) may be taken by students who enrolled in FIT on or before Fall 2005 without being accepted to the Psychology Honors Program. Permission of the department is required.

Abstracts of recent undergraduate theses

Purpose

The Honors Thesis provides Honors Program students the opportunity to conduct original research approaching the level of quality of a Master's degree thesis under the supervision of a faculty member. This experience greatly enhances your ability to enter research-oriented graduate programs and is highly recommended for such individuals.

Requirements

Students who perform an Honors Thesis will normally enroll in PSY4511 in successive semesters. Summer is not normally a good time to enroll in these courses. Generally, the following activities will be performed during these semesters:

First semester:

• Choose a faculty Supervisor
• Form a committee (Supervisor, one additional Psychologist, one faculty member outside of Psychology) (see form)
• Negotiate a specific research topic with the Supervisor
• Perform library research on the topic
• Write a research proposal that includes the Introduction and Method sections of the final thesis
• Discuss the proposal with the committee in a group meeting
• Pilot test research procedures

Second semester:

• Collect the data
• Analyze the data with the help of the faculty supervisor
• Write the Results and Discussion sections of the thesis
• Defend the thesis to the research supervisor and thesis committee in an oral exam

Procedure

If you plan to perform an Honors Thesis you should take Advanced Research Methods (PSY3511) during your Junior year so that you can devote 2 semesters to the thesis. You should discuss the thesis option with the director of the Undergraduate Psychology Program or your advisor prior to the semester in which you will begin the thesis and arrange for a research supervisor.

Committee

The thesis committee will consist of a supervisor, one qualified faculty member from within the School of Psychology and one qualified faculty member from an other department on campus.

Format of Document

Honors Theses follow the same written format as the Master's Thesis, except a hard-bound volume is not required. A style manual for theses is available in the bookstore.

Oral Exams

A proposal meeting and a final oral defense are required.

Grading

Each of the two 3-credit-hour courses that comprise the Honors Thesis are graded A,B,C,D,F on the basis of the activities required for that portion of the project.

For additional information contact Dr. Gabrenya: gabrenya@fit.edu