What does it take to write a senior thesis (Econ 480)?
Students researching and writing a senior thesis will work independently under two faculty members, one of whom serves as the student’s first, or primary, reader, the other as the second reader. Thesis students are expected to meet weekly with their first reader, less frequently with their second reader. Honors theses will require two semesters of work. Regular senior theses are completed in one semester. Although faculty members will be happy to help thesis students arrive at a topic, the primary responsibility is theirs. The faculty will not approve a topic unless the student has had the appropriate background courses. Senior thesis students are required to present their thesis orally to the members of the economics department and to the other seniors in the department. The maximum length of a regular senior thesis is 50 double-spaced pages; for an honors thesis the maximum length is 100 pages. Appendices, tables, and graphs are not counted in this limitation. Together, the first and
