This page includes information on:

Thesis Guidelines
Thesis Proposal Rubric
Thesis FAQ

Thesis Guidelines

Here are some general guidelines to follow when considering your thesis, including the objectives of thesis and your research question.

Objectives

Your ENVS senior thesis represents the culmination of your scholarly career in ENVS at LC, and as such should demonstrate the following characteristics of stellar scholarship:

• Depth. We want your thesis to give you an opportunity to pursue in depth a topic connected with your chosen ENVS concentration. "Depth" implies an advanced level of theory and methodology, and suggests that the outcome represents a genuine scholarly contribution to the subfield represented by your concentration. It's much more than a term paper, though less than would be expected for a graduate thesis.

• Breadth. Depending on what sort of thesis you do, you will either include in the thesis or as an addendum a reflection on how it connects to ENVS more broadly. "Breadth" implies that you know more in ENVS than just your area of concentration; you're also able to see how it connects to the rest of the field.

• Originality. We want you to be an inspirational scholar, not just somebody who follows the rules but a person with exciting ideas. Your creativity should be expressed in each component of your thesis, starting with how you frame your topic and ending with your written, oral, and poster presentations. Significantly, a thesis is different from a term paper in that a thesis generally involves collection and analysis of primary data, i.e. data you gather yourself. This is one reason it's original: no one has done it before!

• Relevance. Ideally, we want every ENVS senior project to be of practical relevance. You may find a company or organization that will benefit from your project, or its relevance may be more broadly applicable to society.

Your Research Question

Your research will focus on a significant, unanswered research question, not just a desired activity. In other words, don't just ask yourself "What do I want to do?" but go further to ask "What do I need to know in order to do this better?" Here are some criteria for a good question:

• It builds on, and potentially contributes to, existing knowledge. What you've been learning in your concentration should help you frame your question in a particular way, and then when you've answered it, you should be able to imagine how it would have an impact on knowledge related to your concentration.

• It is an appropriate scale: not too big, not too small. Really big questions are exciting but potentially unanswerable, especially in one semester! Really small, focused questions are very safe but intellectually boring. You need to find something between these extremes.

• It is inherently interesting, and arouses curiosity within yourself and others. A research question could be interesting because it is relevant, or because it represents a potential intellectual breakthrough, or because it may entail really interesting field research to answer, or for many other reasons. But if your question is not something you are really curious about, then forget it.

• It is mindful of its dependencies on other questions. There are, broadly speaking, four types of questions in environmental studies: descriptive (what), explanatory (why), evaluative (so what), and instrumental (what can we do). Many students are rightly interested in higher-order (evaluative, instrumental) questions, but these depend on lower-order questions: you can't ask the one without requiring adequate knowledge of the other.

A final note: your thesis is more than original research. It is perhaps the largest written text you have ever produced, but this shouldn't be daunting. Many students struggle with writing such a large document, but a few pointers may help. Start writing early and in pieces, not just when your project is completed and you have the whole thing to document. Writing is a part of your research activity; writing is thinking. Writing provokes deeper examination and understanding of your research. Different people have different approaches to writing, and the LC Writing Center can help you find a style that works for you.

Thesis Proposal Rubric

Your ENVS senior thesis proposal should begin with your name, advisor, and ENVS concentration. It should then consist of roughly 1200-1500 words (4-5 pp.) organized according to the following explicitly-labeled sections:

• Title and Summary

Give a provisional title for your project, then summarize the proposed project in a short paragraph. This summary should serve as an abstract of all information presented below.

• Background and Significance

Provide a background to introduce us to your general topic, including references to related literature. Explain why this general topic is of intellectual and practical significance in environmental studies. Why are you personally interested in it?

• Research Question and Hypotheses

List and briefly discuss the primary scholarly question you wish to address in regards to the general topic above. What hypotheses related to this question do you propose to examine or test?

• Procedure

How do you intend to address your research question? What relevant theories or concepts will you draw upon from your concentration? What methodologies or research strategies will you employ? What sort of timetable will you follow?

• Budget

Provide a summary table of financial costs associated with your research, including the anticipated source of funding for each item and a justification for all major potential expenditures.

• Preliminary Outline

Your thesis will culminate, at least in part, in a written report. Provide a preliminary outline of this report, stating all main sections and summarizing the anticipated content of each. You do not need to do a detailed outline at this point: just the main sections and a summary of each will do. If your report is to be filed with an organization or otherwise demands a specific format, we will work with you to craft an addendum to address scholarly dimensions not included in this format.

• References

List all cited references in a format appropriate to your concentration (please confirm with your thesis advisor), or if your advisor does not recommend a specific format, use Chicago author-date style. Click here for a help guide on how to properly cite references.

Thesis FAQ

Your thesis will be prepared and submitted as a part of Senior Seminar, ENVS 400, offered annually spring semester. A detailed schedule for thesis component due dates will be distributed in ENVS 400, but as a general rule the following apply:

• Week 3: Your final thesis proposal due
• Week 9 (prior to Spring Break): Complete draft of your thesis due
• Last week of class: Your final thesis draft and poster summary due

A letter outlining these expectations will be made available to students in ENVS 400 by the second week of class. It is the student's responsibility to forward this letter and communicate expectations clearly to the advisor.

• How do I do an honors thesis?