All Senior proposals must be in the Main Office by the end of the first week of class

Majors in French and Spanish can select from two options for fulfilling the capstone requirement: 1) Completion of a one-credit Independent Senior Thesis Research paper, or 2) Completion of a one-credit Senior Thesis Research paper in the context of a course.

1. Independent Senior Thesis Research. Fall/Spring/Summer. Senior standing required. Open only to majors in French and Spanish. A student may earn up to one credit for all enrollments in this course. An independent study involves conducting an individual research project supervised by a faculty member. Students submit a paper. Students must obtain approval from the Department and from the faculty member who will direct the project. They must also adhere to all Senior Thesis Research Guidelines in completing the requirement, which are on the reverse side.
   
   
2. Capstone Course Option. Fall/Spring/Summer. Senior standing required. Open only to majors in French and Spanish with approval of the Department. Students may fulfill their capstone requirement by completing a supplementary one-credit Senior Thesis Research project within the context of a course. Students who select this option will enroll in both a 400-level Capstone Course and one credit of 492 (Senior Thesis Research) in the appropriate semester and fulfill the capstone requirement by adhering to all Senior Thesis Research Guidelines (on reverse side). Courses designated as “Capstone courses” will include at least one 400-level literature and one 400-level linguistics course per regular term and at least one 400-level literature, culture or linguistics course that may be offered in the summer (either at MSU or on a department overseas study program). Capstone courses in French and Spanish will be taught in the target language. The interdisciplinary paper will be directed by the course instructor.

Senior Thesis Research Guidelines

Description. The Senior Thesis Research project involves the independent researching and writing of a paper of approximately 4,000 words. Completion of this project and its acceptance by the supervising faculty member fulfill the University capstone degree requirement. The Senior Thesis Research project is available to students with senior standing with majors in French and Spanish who obtain departmental approval. These students work under the direction of a language area faculty member on an interdisciplinary project that synthesizes at least two areas of the students’ undergraduate education. Majors in French and Spanish write the capstone paper in the appropriate target language. Students are required to follow acceptable standards of style and format, (MLA Handbook, Chicago Manual of Style), in completing the written paper for this project.

Procedures. In the term prior to beginning the Senior Thesis Research project, students interested in conducting an independent research project should contact the Department to get information on the requirements for the project and to obtain instruction on how to begin.

Schedule

1. Students must consult with their major adviser in their penultimate semester and submit a written proposal (one paragraph minimum) to the Associate Chair to obtain approval for their proposed projects.
2. In the first week of the term in which the project is to be carried out, students will be assigned a thesis advisor. The Department will notify the students by e-mail who the thesis advisors are and when to meet with them to discuss the projects and complete all necessary paper work.
3. In the fourth week, students submit their lists of bibliographic sources for their projects and arrange to meet with thesis advisors to discuss the bibliographies during the following week.
4. In the sixth week, students submit outlines of their papers and arrange to meet with thesis advisors to discuss the outlines during the following week.
5. In the ninth week, students submit the first drafts of their papers and arrange to meet with thesis advisors to discuss the drafts during the following week.
6. In the twelfth week, students submit the final drafts of their papers and arrange to meet with thesis advisors to discuss the projects during the final two weeks of the semester.

Supervision of these projects will be shared by faculty in the discipline not on leave. A professor will normally not direct more than two Senior Thesis Research projects in a given semester nor more than three in an academic year.