GUIDELINES FOR THE PREPARATION OF A BIOLOGY HONORS THESIS

These guidelines may also be used for undergraduates writing a senior thesis outside of the Honors Program.

I. PROCEDURES

Please note: the deadline dates vary somewhat from year to year. Specific deadlines for each year are published in the January/February Honors Newsletter or can be obtained from the Honors office, Rm. 419 CUE.

A. An abstract of your thesis must be submitted to the Honors Office (Rm. 419, CUE) by the specified deadline. The deadline is usually sometime in the second or third week of February.

B. You are required to submit a copy of your thesis to your thesis advisor and your Honors advisor by the specified deadline (usually the beginning of the third week in April). The copy you submit must follow the guidelines below.

C. You are required to submit the revised version of your thesis to the Honors office by the specified deadline (usually the beginning of the fourth week of April). This copy must contain an Approval page with ORIGINAL signatures of your thesis advisor and your Honors academic advisor and any other thesis advisors as appropriate.

II. THESIS SPECIFICATIONS

A. Format

Your thesis should include the following pages and sections, presented in the order given below. (Copies of the Honors theses of all previous Biology students are filed in the Honors office in CUE if you would like to see examples of theses prepared by students in past years.)

1. Approval or title page - (see sample below). The approval page should include the title of your thesis, your full name, signature lines for your Honors thesis advisor, your Honors academic advisor, and any other thesis advisors as appropriate, the specific biology department (Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Molecular & Cell Biology, Physiology & Neurobiology etc.) in which your thesis was conducted, and the date. If your thesis advisor is also your Honors advisor, it is recommended that you have a second faculty member read your thesis.

2. Abstract. This should be on a separate page.

3. Acknowledgments. This should be on a separate page.

4. Table of contents. This should be on a separate page.

5. List of Tables (if any). This should be on a separate page but is not required if you have no tables.

6. List of Figures (if any). This should be on a separate page but is not required if you have no figures.

7. Introduction

8. Materials and Methods

9. Results

10. Discussion

11. Literature Cited. The format of the citations in this section should follow that used in a Scientific Journal in your field. One of the more common formats for literature citations is shown below:

Thomason, A. J. and T. R. McMurdow. 1996. Tail coloration in brown minnows and its effect on male energy budgets. Journal of Behavioral Ecology. 24: 342-344.

12. All tables and figures should be included following Literature Cited section.

B. Paper quality

Use 8.5 by 11 inch white bond paper. Onionskin and correctable paper are not acceptable. Your thesis should have no borders, running headers or punched holes. Use only one side of the paper for typing, figures, etc.

C. Spacing, margins, & page numbering

All aspects of the thesis with text should be doubled spaced. The margins should be 1.5 inches on the left and at least 1 inch on the top, bottom, and right sides of the pages including the figures, tables, charts, etc. Page numbers should be placed in the upper right corner or the top center of center of each page. Page numbers may extend into the margins. Pages should be numbered consecutively beginning with the approval page.

D. Printing

Clean, accurate, professional quality type is required. Use a clear font no smaller than 10 point and no larger than 14 point. Use black ink.

E. Figures

Photocopies of the figures are acceptable providing that they are clear. If original figures are included they should be mounted with a permanent glue such as Elmer’s glue. Other methods of non permanent mounting, including tape, rubber cement, etc. are not acceptable.

Sample Approval Page (word doc)