Does the thesis or Plan B have to conform to a particular format?
A thesis should be a tightly conceived research effort based on primary sources. Successful theses at USU have been as short as 60 pages, but are usually around 100 pages. Plan B papers address historical questions of more limited scope and run around 30 pages. Plan B students must also submit a portfolio of their graduate writing with two separate and distinct pieces of work. Students writing a thesis must get their final work approved by the graduate school. You can pick up a pamphlet that spells out these format requirements. The department also requires that students conform to the footnote and bibliography format of Kate Turabian s A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations.
