Senior Thesis Requirements
In the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, both Latin Honors and Departmental Distinctions require the completion of a senior thesis.
In the spring of their junior year, the student should select a faculty member to guide the generation of this thesis. The student should then enroll in EEPS 499 Honors Research (GPA > 3.65) or EEPS 490 Independent Study (GPA < 3.65) with that faculty member, for the fall of their senior year. At that time the student and faculty advisor should meet and choose the two additional readers for the student's thesis (the thesis committee) and establish a set of goals for the fall semester's work. At this time, the student should fill out the Senior Honors Topic Form.
The student may also (but is not required to) enroll in EEPS 499/490 in the spring semester of their senior year. The faculty adviser will determine, with the student, a date by which a complete draft is to be given to the faculty readers for review, such that the readers have ample time to review the work prior to issuing their evaluations. These drafts will be due no later than the Monday following Spring Break. A final copy containing revisions required by the committee is due by the first day of finals period.
An oral presentation of the senior honors research is expected to be presented to the department, usually late in the senior's last semester. The thesis document must be prepared following the department's formatting guidelines, which are available from the Director of Undergraduate Studies. All theses must be submitted in PDF to Erin Marshall prior to graduation for online archiving.