Guidelines for Senior Thesis

ENGL 494 Senior Thesis Preparation in Fall Semester, then ENGL 495 Senior Thesis
Completion in Spring semester

The senior thesis allows students the opportunity to pursue a substantive research or creating writing project with a faculty advisor. Students who successfully complete the thesis with an A grade will be eligible to apply for Distinction in Research and Creative Works. Senior thesis students will  present their work at an end-of-the-year departmental forum. Department application, and instructor permission are required for registration. Senior thesis application forms are available in the English department or may be downloaded from this website. Presentations will take place at the end of the Spring semester.

Typical Timeline

The Department encourages students to identify a research or creative topic late in their junior year, seek advice from a sponsoring faculty member, and then register for ENGL 494 (Senior Thesis Preparation) in the Fall and ENGL 495 (Senior Thesis) in the Spring. Students will be evaluated by the supervising faculty at the end of the Fall semester and must receive approval to advance to ENGL 495 in the Spring. Students who do not choose (or are not approved) to advance to the second semester will receive a letter grade for ENGL 494 and terminate further work on the senior thesis.

Students admitted to Rice Undergraduate Scholars Program (RUSP) who wish to concurrently pursue a senior thesis in English may distribute some of their RUSP course credits in each semester toward ENGL 493 (Directed Reading), ENGL 494 (Senior Thesis Preparation), and ENGL 495 (Senior Thesis). This is usually 1 credit for 493 or 494 and 3 credits for 495.

Prerequisites

Eligible undergraduates must have a GPA of 3.8 in prior English classes at time of application and must have completed five courses required for the major including ENGL 200 and 300 or be enrolled in the latter at the time of application. Majors are encouraged to enroll in a English 400 level capstone non-creative writing course a semester before writing their thesis.

Application Requirements

    •    Thesis application form (available in the department) signed by the faculty member who will supervise the research project/senior thesis. Check with English department for application deadline.
    •    Unofficial transcript
    •    A sample critical essay from another English course
    •    A 500 word abstract of your proposed project

Registration Process

If approved, ENGL 494 Senior Thesis Preparation can be added to your schedule (during the add/drop period) via completed/signed special registration form to the Registrar. The DUS will review completed applications; students will be notified of approval within 3 days of submission.  Students will then be able to register for ENGL 494 (Senior Thesis Prep).  Please note that registration for English 494 and 495 requires a special registration form, signed by the sponsoring faculty advisor.

Thesis Length

While no specific page length governs thesis requirements, research projects will typically not be less than fifty pages excluding bibliography. The length of creative projects will be determined by the directing faculty on a case by case basis.

Final Submission and Presentations

Two copies of the final thesis must be submitted by the last day of final examinations for degree candidates. Samples are available for review in the English Department office. Presentations will take place at the end of the Spring semester.

Additional Research Support

Students are encouraged to use the Minter Summer Scholar Program to further research toward a senior thesis.