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Senior Writing Requirement
Majors are required to complete a senior writing project based either on field or library research. Your project may take the form of an honors thesis, a senior essay, or an extended paper.
If you are contemplating an honors thesis, we strongly recommend that in the spring semester of your junior year, you either enroll in an individual tutorial (ANTH402), in which you would begin library research on your area of interest, or else take a course that is relevant to your research concerns. Departmental approval is required for the pursuit of honors. For thesis projects involving field research, proposals are due on the last day of classes; these projects are also eligible for partial funding through the Department. If you wish to compete for these funds, you should include a budget in your proposal. Proposals for library based theses may also be submitted in the spring, or up to the second week of classes in the following fall semester.
In the fall semester of your senior year, all students pursuing honors take ANTH400 Cultural Analysis, a research seminar in which students pursue individual research project in a group context. In the spring semester, honors candidates enroll in an individual thesis tutorial (ANTH410).
A senior essay involves fewer requirements but also represents a serious research commitment. If you choose to do an essay, you have two options. You may (and are strongly encouraged to) enroll in ANTH400, Cultural Analysis, the research seminar described above. In this case, you would complete a draft of your essay in the fall semester for final submission in February. Alternately, if your project is one that a particular faculty member is especially qualified (and willing) to supervise, you may take an individual tutorial (ANTH402) with that person in either the fall or the spring semester of your senior year. Please note that if you intend to do a spring semester tutorial, you must make the arrangements with your advisor before the end of fall semester.
An extended paper is a revised and extended version of a term research paper. No additional course credit is earned. Ordinarily, the first version is written in an anthropology seminar taken in your junior year or in the fall semester of your senior year. The revised version is completed during your senior year, in consultation with an appropriate faculty member. Extended papers are due on the last day of spring semester classes and should be submitted to the Department Chair.