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1.
What is the difference between the University Honors Program and the
Psychology Department’s Senior Thesis Program?
These are two different programs. Students may participate in both
(as long as they meet the separate and different requirements of each),
but are not required to do so. The thesis requirement is similar for
both programs, although there are different deadlines and different
formatting requirements for the final thesis. The same piece of research
may be used to satisfy the thesis requirements of both the University
Honors Program and the Psychology Department Senior Thesis program.
The
University Honors Program requires a 3.5 GPA and consists of two
years of special Honors sections of courses, plus an Honors thesis.
Successful completion of the University Honors Program, including
the thesis, will result in the “graduation with honors”
designation on your transcript. Please see their web site, www.honors.utah.edu,
for a description of the Honors Program at the University of Utah.
The Psychology Department advisor for psychology majors in the University
Honors Program is Dr. Donna Gelfand.
In contrast to the University Honors Program, the Psychology Department
Senior Thesis Program is a 3-course sequence (Psychology 4900, 4901,
and 4902) in which students complete a research project under the
direction of a faculty advisor, write a senior thesis, and present
their research to the department at the annual Departmental Poster
Session in the Spring Semester of their senior year. Students are
not required to complete the University Honors Program requirements
to apply to the Departmental Senior Thesis Program. Students apply
to the departmental program in the Fall Semester of their junior
year (see “How and when Do I Apply?”), and if they are
accepted to the program, they enroll in Psych 4900 in the Spring
Semester of the junior year.
Completion of the departmental program provides a valuable learning
experience, one-on-one contact with a faculty advisor, and an opportunity
to demonstrate your ability to do research and write it up. However,
completing the departmental thesis will not put an official notation
on your transcript or diploma. In our experience, successful completion
of the departmental program is an asset in applying to graduate
and professional school, as it shows that you have been able to
sustain work on a three-semester long project and complete a thesis
written to professional standards. Participation in the departmental
program also means that you will have worked closely with at least
one faculty member who usually provides a strong letter of recommendation
based on your work in the program.
2. What kinds of projects do psychology honors thesis students
do?
Honors projects are as varied and diverse as the full span of research
conducted by psychology faculty. Some projects involve the design
and conduct of experiments; others involve surveys and interviews;
and still others involve developing projects from data that have
already been collected as part of a faculty member’s ongoing
program of research.
The PAC Office maintains a set of completed honors theses so that
you can see what a successful final thesis look like.
3. How and when do I apply?
Application forms are available
on this web site and from the PAC
office, fifth floor, Behavioral Science Bldg. To apply, you should
have at least a 2.8 GPA. Two letters from people who are able to
speak about your research ability, and preferably have supervised
you in research or research courses, are also required. Applications
are due by October 15, and decisions are made on applications by
November 15.
4. How many students are accepted each year?
In a typical year, we are able to accept 10-12 students to the departmental
thesis program.
5. Do I have to be an honors thesis student to do research
with a faculty member?
No. All students are encouraged to participate in faculty research
as research assistants. The PAC
office maintains a list of research opportunities for students.
6. What if I’m already a senior?
In a few cases, students have been accepted to the honors program
in their senior year. These students have then remained in the area
for the year following their graduation to complete the senior thesis
program. If you are currently a senior, you should consult with
the current director of the senior thesis program and also consider
other ways of being involved in research.
7. What if I don’t know what I want to study for my
honors thesis?
Not to worry. It is not expected that students accepted to the honors
program already have a specific project or even a specific topic
area in mind. In Psych 4900, you will see presentations by several
faculty members who are willing to work with senior honors thesis
students. These presentations may pique your interest. You may also
visit other faculty members in office hours or read about them online
to learn more about their research. The project you develop should
be one that both you and your faculty advisor find mutually interesting.
8. What if I already know what I want to study for my honors
thesis?
Sometimes students start the honors program with a strong sense
of the kind of research they want to do. Often, this idea represents
a continuation of research they have been doing in a faculty advisor’s
lab. This is fine, as long as a faculty member agrees to supervise
the project. In other cases, students have not been working with
faculty members on research, but still have well-defined interests.
As long as a faculty member is willing to supervise your project,
this is fine, too. Ideally, the project will be one that is of mutual
interest to both the student and the advisor.
9. Can I have an advisor who is not a member of the psychology
faculty?
If you are interested in the psychology-related research of a faculty
member outside the department, you must also secure an advisor who
is a member of the regular Psychology Department Faculty. Otherwise,
you might consider the honors program of your potential advisor’s
home department instead of the psychology senior thesis program.
You should consult the current director of the departmental thesis
program for advice in this situation.
10. What is the best way to find out about research being
done by faculty?
Most faculty members maintain a web page with current information
about research interests, publications, classes taught, and other
useful information. Often, there is also a special page that describes
the research activities of a particular lab group. Click here for
faculty web pages
You may also visit faculty members in office hours.
Finally, the department brochure provides a description of our major
programs and a brief description of each faculty member's research
interests and references to two representative publications. The
main office also has copies of the brochure.
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