SENIOR THESIS AND SENIOR EXPERIENCE

 

Students may satisfy the Senior Experience requirement within the philosophy department or within some other department.  There are two ways to meet the Senior Experience requirement within the philosophy department:

1.   THESIS:  During the Fall semester of your senior year,  you may take PHIL 4001 (Senior Experience) and PHIL 4395 (Senior Thesis) simultaneously.  (PHIL 4001 is a no credit, pass/fail course, used to keep track of who has completed the Senior Experience.)

2.   ESSAY:  Alternatively, you may write an essay that reflects an intensive study of the best scholarship on a philosophical topic, under the supervision (and with the permission) of a faculty advisor, during the Fall or Spring semesters of your senior year, while enrolled simultaneously in PHIL 4001 and any upper-division philosophy course.  You must complete the requirements of this upper-division course, but your essay will replace the final paper or exam.

By April 1 of your junior year, you must notify the department chair of how you intend to satisfy the Senior Experience requirement:  either outside the department, or by taking PHIL 4395 and PHIL 4001 concurrently, or by taking PHIL 4001 and an upper-division course concurrently.

 

ABOUT THE THESIS OPTION (PHIL 4001 AND PHIL 4395)

1.   Enrollment

The thesis course is offered only during the Fall semester.  Therefore, if you intend to write a thesis, you will need to sign up for it during spring registration in your junior year, after your thesis proposal has been accepted.  You may enroll in PHIL 4395 only if you propose a thesis that is acceptable to the department.  Your proposal must be received by the department chair no later than April 1.

2.   Preparing the Proposal

During the Spring semester of your Junior year you should write a proposal with the assistance of a faculty member.  This faculty member or some other (depending on teaching responsibilities) will be your thesis director, who will be your principal advisor and supervisor. The instructor of PHIL 4395 will monitor deadlines and provide feedback on drafts. You are also encouraged to discuss your thesis work with other faculty members, particularly those with expertise in the area in which you are working. 

3.   Contents of the Proposal

A thesis proposal should include the following:

• A previous essay:  a thesis will normally refine an essay previously submitted in a philosophy class, with the approval of the instructor to whom the work was submitted.  In exceptional cases students may submit an essay which they did not write for course credit.

• A thesis statement:  what position will you defend?  Will you defend your previous position, or modify it?

• An argumentative strategy:  how will you defend your thesis?  What new arguments will you construct, and which old arguments will you bolster?

• An annotated reading list:  what materials germane to your topic have you already read?  What else will you read?  You will be expected to master a range of cutting-edge scholarship on your topic.

4.   Outline

Your thesis should conform to the following outline:

I.    Introduction.  State the thesis you will defend, and outline the argument you will give.

II.   Literature Review.  Survey the recent literature on your topic, explaining the main positions on the issue and situating your own position with respect to them.  Clarify key terminology.

III. Argument.  Develop the argument for your thesis.

IV. Objections and Responses.  State potential criticisms of your thesis, and show why these criticisms fail.

V.  Summary.  Review the argument you have given for your thesis.

5.   Defense

You will be required to give an oral defense of your thesis before the faculty of the philosophy department during reading days. The faculty will determine the grade of your thesis based on the thesis itself and your defense of it.

6.   Timetable

April 1 of Junior Year:  thesis proposal due to department chair.  (Students should work on proposal starting in the beginning of the Spring semester of their Junior Years.)

Weeks 1-3 Work with thesis director; prepare first partial draft. 

Week 4      First partial draft due (a partial draft is a section or substantial stretch of exegesis and argument, approximately 8 pages long)

Week 7      Second partial draft due

Week 7      Discuss second partial draft

Week 11    Complete rough draft due

Week 11    Discuss rough draft

Week 13    Final version due

Reading Days:  Oral Defense

 

ABOUT THE ESSAY OPTION (PHIL 4001 AND UPPER DIVISION COURSE)

The essay option requires that you find a faculty member who is teaching an upper-division course and willing to supervise your essay.  Your essay grade will count for half of your final grade in the upper-division course.  The grade you receive for the rest of the work in the course will count for the other half.  Your essay must be at least 12 pages, double-spaced, with one-inch margins.

1.   Enrollment

By April 1 of your Junior Year, notify the chair that you intend to complete senior experience by writing an essay.  Enroll in BOTH PHIL 4001 AND the upper-division class in which you will write your essay.

2.   Preparing the Proposal

After notifying the chair that you intend to write an essay, secure permission from the instructor of the upper division course in which you wish to write your essay.  With the assistance of this faculty member, prepare your proposal during the first few weeks of the semester.

3.   Contents of the Proposal

An essay proposal should include the following:

• A position statement:  What position will you defend?

• An argumentative strategy:  How will you defend your position? 

• An annotated reading list:  What materials germane to your topic have you already read?  What else will you read?  You will be expected to master a range of cutting-edge scholarship on your topic.

4.   Outline

Your essay should conform to the following outline:

I.    Introduction.  State the thesis you will defend, and outline the argument you will give.

II.   Literature Review.  Survey the recent literature on your topic, explaining the main positions on the issue and situating your own position with respect to them.  Clarify key terminology.

III. Argument.  Develop the argument for your thesis.

IV. Objections and Responses.  State potential criticisms of your thesis, and show why these criticisms fail.

V.  Summary.  Review the argument you have given for your thesis.

5.   Defense

You will be required to give an oral defense of your thesis before the faculty of the philosophy department during reading days. The faculty will determine the grade of your thesis based on the thesis itself and your defense of it.

6.   Timetable

April 1 of Junior Year:  notify chair you intend to write an essay to complete Senior Experience requirement.

Weeks 1-3 Work with instructor; prepare essay proposal.

Weeks 4-5 Work with instructor on first partial draft.

Week 6      First partial draft due (a partial draft is a section or substantial stretch of exegesis and argument, approximately 8 pages long)

Week 6      Discuss first partial draft

Week 8      Second partial draft due

Week 8      Discuss second partial draft

Week 11    Complete rough draft due

Week 11    Discuss rough draft

Week 13    Final version due

Reading Days:  Oral Defense

 

Revised Fall 2009

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