Thesis

The Honors Thesis is the final step towards earning a University Honors designation from the University of Northern Iowa.  The thesis gives honors students the opportunity to explore a scholarly area of interest with the guidance of a faculty member.  It is intended to serve as the culmination of the honors experience.

The Honors Thesis is a 3 credit hour project but the work is divided between two semesters.  This allows ample time to develop a topic and write a thesis proposal during Semester One, and to complete the research and writing during Semester Two.  Students typically register for 1 credit hour in the fall (for Credit/No Credit) and 2 credits in the spring of the senior year (for graded credit).  However, this timeline can be adjusted for those graduating early or planning to be off campus for study abroad or student teaching.

The first step in the thesis process is to familiarize yourself with the Thesis Guidelines.  Students are encouraged to attend senior thesis presentations early in their honors career.  By the junior year students should start thinking about possible research topics and advisors.  Thesis informational meetings are held at the beginning of the spring semester for those planning to begin the thesis in the following academic year. 

 

Research Funding

Nadyne Scholarship for Honors Research - This scholarship provides funding to students in the University Honors Program who are completing the Honors Thesis/Project.  Funding is awarded to offset costs related to the Thesis/Project, such as supplies, specialized software, photocopying, printing, mailing, photography, and travel to research sites. 

Students are encouraged to seek additional funding sources that support undergraduate research.  Possible resources include:

CBA Undergraduate Research Program 

CHAS Student Opportunities for Academic Research (SOAR) Awards

CSBS Undergraduate Research Award

 

Intercollegiate Academics Fund 

 

Examples of Past Thesis Topics: 

Leslie Aboud (Music) - Playing Like a Girl: An Analysis of the Role of Gender in Trumpet Performance 

Sarah Brandt (Sociology) - Myth and Reality of Prom: A Qualitative Examination of the Am erican High School Prom Experience

Emily Burney (English) - Savannah: A Short Story Cycle in the Tradition of American Li terary Craft

Adam Campbell (Geography: Environmental) - Spatial, Geologic and Land Use Characteristics of Sinkholes in a Karst Landscape: Waverly, Iowa

Rachel Dengler (Elementary Education) - The Use of Productive Questions in the Early Childhood Classroom

Michelle Formanek (Biology: Biomedical) - The Effect of Homocysteine on Development of Contractions and β-Catenin Expression in Chick Embryo Precardiac Mesoderm

Ali Horsted (Communication) - In the Ali Way

Darcy Lane (Political Science) - School Finance Reform in Iowa: Where to Turn for Improvements in Equity?

Kelly Mateas (Movement and Exercise Science) - Burnout in Scholarship & Non-Scholarship Female College Swimmers

Stacy McMullen (Economics) - Who Should Own the Air? A Closer Look at Smoking Bans

Erin Powell (Biology) - The Effects of Atrazine on Human Liver Cells

Emily Prinsen (Management) - Implications of Physical Attractiveness on Time Allocations from Salesperson to Customer

Natalie Turner (Sociology) - Wandering Socially: Technology and the Modern American Hobo Community

For full-text examples visit Rod Library's Digital Collection