Thesis Guidelines
MMSS Senior Thesis Requirements
All MMSS students are required to write an acceptable senior thesis as a graduation requirement. During the senior year, students must register for at least two quarters of the senior thesis seminar MMSS 398 (MMSS 398-1,2,3 are offered, respectively, in fall, winter and spring). Students are encouraged to register for all three quarters. The Senior Thesis Coordinator (Professor Gaston Illanes) evaluates each thesis submission and seminar participation and assigns a grade for MMSS 398 based on this evaluation.
Thesis Expectations
The senior thesis must be an original contribution to social science analysis and must consist substantially of independent research performed by the candidate. A paper that only summarizes a body of literature will not be acceptable unless it provides a provocative synthesis of ideas. The mere collection of data without analysis and interpretation will also not qualify as an honors thesis.
Any of the following approaches are acceptable and may result in a successful thesis:
- Develop a specific hypothesis concerning social behavior and test it using appropriate data.
- Analyze and describe the social behavior implicit in an existing data set or construct and analyze the implications of new data for social behavior.
- Construct and study a formal model or class of models using mathematical and/or simulation methods.
- Apply economic and social reasoning to arrive at new insights about issues of social policy.
- Develop new methods or refine existing methods of mathematical or statistical analysis.
- Design and analyze a social experiment.
- Students may choose an alternative approach if acceptable to the advisor and the Honors Seminar Coordinator.
Thesis Format
Careful preparation of the final thesis is essential. The thesis must include the following:
- a title page
- acknowledgments
- a one-page summary
- an introduction
- body text, arranged in major sections and subsections, as appropriate
- a concluding section
- endnotes or footnotes where appropriate references
- the document must be typed, carefully proofread and submitted as a PDF.
Selecting a Thesis Advisor
Each student must secure a thesis advisor from Northwestern University's social science faculty whose expertise aligns with the proposed topic. Advisers may be chosen from other schools or institutions with the permission of the Honors Seminar Coordinator.
Most students select a topic related to their social science major. Students who are still identifying a topic are urged to discuss possible topics with the instructor of a course they especially enjoyed. Students with a topic but no advisor are usually directed to the undergraduate adviser for their major department for a suggested thesis adviser. In the rare case of a student without a thesis topic, the instructor of the honors seminar course helps the student find a topic and suitable adviser.
Advisor Evaluation
In addition to advising the student, the adviser will be responsible for evaluating the completed thesis. The advisor must submit a written evaluation letter to the MMSS Senior Thesis Coordinator that :
- Describes the thesis's original contribution of work
- Assess its strengths and weaknesses
- Recommends whether the thesis merits consideration for MMSS Honors (see Honors Guidelines)