HON 491
Honors Senior Thesis II
Fall 2014
Dr. Tamara Valentine
Honors Program/112, Jot Travis
tvalenti@unr.edu
784-1455
Office hours: M,W,F 4 pm or by appointment
Purpose of Course: The Senior Honors Thesis/Project is the development of an independent, original
scholarly or creative topic of interest to the student in the major. This course offers guidance in doing
research for students writing senior honors theses. The course serves three purposes: to prepare the
student for the completion of a written Honors thesis fully and properly documented, and an oral
defense; to provide structure to the thesis-writing process by giving students the opportunity to discuss
their work and receive feedback; and to provide students the opportunity to meet together as a group
and benefit from each other's insights.
To be eligible for registration in HON 491, students must have completed HON 490.
HON 491 satisfies the standards for Core Objective 14. Upon completion of HON 491, the student will
have an integrative experience by completing an internship, and the student will be able to apply
knowledge in both focused and broad interdisciplinary contexts.
Student Learning Outcomes:
Through research, students should learn to be able to
1. identify an original research question within the disciplinary academic framework and
formulate a hypothesis
2. identify and demonstrate appropriate research methodologies
3. use the library and other search tools to search for existing body of research relevant to the
topic
4. evaluate and synthesize the existing body of research relevant to the topic
5. productively and responsibly collaborate with a faculty member and relevant professional
community or engage in networking with the academic and professional communities
6. engage in the thesis/project development independently and effectively
7. identify and practice research ethics and responsible conduct in research
8. reflect on feedback as part of the peer review process and incorporate into the research
process
9. demonstrate proficiency (command of academic writing as appropriate for the discipline) in
professional quality written, oral, reading, presentational, and graphic skills: oral defense,
written thesis, scholarly article review
10. effectively explain the research to others in the field and to broader audiences
11. demonstrate an understanding of the scholarly research process: proposal, prospectus, final
thesis
12. reflect constructively on the research experience in making decisions about academic and
professional future
Requirements: Students must
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attend all Honors senior thesis meetings: no exceptions
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set up regular meeting times with faculty mentor
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complete and submit a progress report or thesis chapter with faculty mentor signature
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complete an oral defense and submit a bound thesis
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attend two fall lectures by faculty researchers in the Great Presentations (GP) series (** below)
participate in one other Honors event
if graduating in December, attend Honors cording ceremony on Wednesday, December 3, 2014
2:30 p.m., JCSU Ballroom A (Mark your calendars and inform your mentors now!)
Suggested Readings (available in the Honors Program library):
Booth, Wayne C., Gregory G. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams. The Craft of Research, 2nd ed.
Chicago: UCP, 2003.
Cone, John D. and Sharon L. Foster. Dissertations and Theses From Start to Finish. 2nd Ed. American
Psychological Association: Washington, DC, 2006.
Evans, David and Paul Gruba. How to Write a Better Thesis. 2nd Ed. Melbourne University Press, 2007.
Lipson, Charles. How to Write a B A Thesis. A Practical Guide from Your First Ideas to Your Finished
Paper. The University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 2005.
Honors Senior Thesis Handbook, available on WebCampus and the Honors Program website
MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 7th ed.
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th ed.
Meeting Times and Due Dates
Wed, Sept 10, 8:00 am: Meeting #1: Graduation requirements; Discuss progress of Honors Senior
Thesis/Project; Review prospectus; Schedule oral defenses; SafeAssign
** (GP, H) Wednesday, September 17th, 4:00 – 5:00 PM: Great Presentations: Dr. Lee Dyer, Professor of
Biology: The Future of Biodiversity LLC 141
Wednesday, October 1: Sign up for your oral defense on WebCampus by this date. Confirm with
mentor.
Wed, Sept 30, 8 am: Meeting #2: Submit either a progress report (consult Progress Report in Honors
Senior Thesis Handbook) or a written thesis chapter with in-text citations. Include a bibliography
following APA or MLA style. In addition, submit the title page and signature page of the thesis
following the template on the Honors Program website: documents and forms. Faculty must approve
and sign whatever you submit to me. Bring in guidelines of proper documentation style of discipline.
Assign SafeAssign.
Wed, October 21, 8 am: Meeting #3: Discuss progress. Bring in all written work, including bibliography.
Prepare for oral defense and submission of written thesis. Consult Completing the Honors Thesis in the
Honors Senior Thesis Handbook.
** (GP, H) Wednesday, October 8th, 4:00 – 5:00 PM: Great Presentations: Evaluating the Implementation of a
Nationwide Health Information Exchange one State at a Time Dr. Dana Edberg, Professor of Information
Systems, LLC 141
(GP, H) Wednesday, October 22nd, 4:00 – 5:00 PM: Great Presentations: Dr. Alan Stavitsky, Dean and
Fred W. Smith Chair, Donald W. Reynolds School of Journalism “A Ragtag Journalistic Fleet":
Hegemonic Challenge to Public Broadcasting LLC 141
November: Oral Defenses. Refer to Rubric for evaluation. Final draft due to faculty mentor and Honors
Program a minimum of 10 days before the oral defense. Invitation to attend any classmate’s defense.
Wed., Oct 29, 8:00 am: Meeting #4: Preparing for oral defense and final submission.
** (GP, H) Wednesday, November 12th, 4:00 – 5:00 PM: Great Presentations: Dr. David Sanders, Professor
of Civil and Environmental Engineering: Mitigating Earthquake Damage in Highway Structures EEL 200
Complete Honors Exit Survey (online).
A week before the Honors Graduation Ceremony, complete and submit biographical information.
REQUIREMENT of all December grads: Wed, DECEMBER 3, 2:30 pm: Honors Graduation Ceremony:
JCSU Ballroom A. Regalia required. Honors seniors, faculty mentors, and guests invited. RSVP.
December 6: Undergraduate Commencement
Final submission of bound thesis due by December 10.
Grading Criteria: If a student does not complete the oral defense or does not submit a final bound thesis
to the Honors Program, the student fails the class. The oral defense and final written thesis are
evaluated using a rubric.
Progress Report/Chapter: 10%
Oral Defense: 30%
Final Submission of Bound Thesis: 35%
Class Attendance and Participation: 10%
3 Honors events: 15%
95-100 A
90-94 A87-89: B+
84-86: B
80-83: B-
Once the final thesis is submitted, the Honors Program faculty in consultation with the faculty mentor
will submit a letter grade for HON 491.
Academic Dishonesty: Academic dishonesty is a serious offense. All work that you submit in this class
must be your own. Each student is responsible for being familiar with UNR’s policies on academic
dishonesty. Any student engaging in academic dishonesty in this course will receive an F. The case
may be turned over for prosecution by the proper university authorities.
The Honors Program supports providing equal access for students with disabilities. I am available to
discuss appropriate academic accommodations that students may require. Please meet with me at your
earliest convenience.
Surreptitious or covert video-taping of class or unauthorized audio recording of class is prohibited by
law and by Board of Regents policy. This class may be videotaped or audio recorded only with the
written permission of the instructor. In order to accommodate students with disabilities, some students
may be given permission to record class lectures and discussions. Therefore, students should
understand that their comments during class may be recorded.
**Only in the event that the student has a scheduled university class can he/she request a
substitution for a Great Presentation.
The general criteria to allow for substitute Great Presentations are
• The event must be held on campus, and free and open to the campus, i.e. no private functions or
those charging admission;
• The speaker must be an appropriately-credentialed scholar (tenured or tenure-track professor or
otherwise equally-qualified expert in his/her field, or performing artist);
• The event must showcase the scholar's research or creative activity, i.e. not a workshop,
job/application skills event, partisan rally, movie screening or art exhibit without artist or
director present and discussing, etc.;
• The student must not be attending the event for credit for another class;
• The area of research should be outside the student’s major; and
• The event must be approved by me in writing (e-mail) prior to attending the event.
• Events such as scholarly panel discussions or speakers sponsored solely by ASUN or student
organizations, no matter how qualified the participants, will be approved only in rare cases.