Honors

The Honors Program in Latina/o/x Studies provides a wonderful opportunity for students to explore an area of interest to them in depth. Students work closely with their advisor and two readers to produce a substantial piece of scholarship or another form of presentation (e.g., video, art, theater) in the interdisciplinary field of Latina/o/x Studies. The thesis program provides students with the maximum flexibility to pursue their interests, including a component of original research, interpretations, and/or creative dimensions, while assuring the rigorous standards of excellence required to receive Honors at the successful completion of their project. The final project, completed over one semester and winter study, may be a research thesis of forty to sixty pages, or another form of presentation, or a combination of writing and another medium.

Eligibility:

• Declared Latina/o/x Studies concentrator
• Sufficient Latina/o/x Studies courses, and a grade point average, generally, of 3.3 or
higher in LATS courses
• Approval of project proposal by the Latinx Studies faculty in the spring of Junior year
• The honors course and winter study are in addition to the five courses required for the concentration

Application:

• Juniors must submit a thesis proposal to the current chairperson, Professor Carmen Whalen, on Wednesday, April 24, 2024 by 4:00 pm EDT.
• Students should meet with their potential advisor(s) to discuss a draft of their proposal no later than a week prior to the proposal due date.
• The proposal should include the project’s aims and methodology, demonstrating what you already know, what you hope to learn, and why it is important. We encourage projects that build on the Latinx Studies seminars or other courses. Your proposal should also include evidence of competence in any relevant media, and indicate which faculty member(s) you have discussed your proposal with and whether you are planning to do your thesis in the fall or spring semester.
• The proposal should be no longer than 5 pages plus a bibliography.

Process and Timeline:

• After your proposal is approved and your advisor assigned, the student should meet with their advisor to discuss your research plan for the summer. You will begin your project over the summer.
• During the first two weeks of the fall semester, all thesis students will submit to the Chair of the Latinx Studies program and to their advisor a 5-8 page summer research report plus an annotated bibliography that reflects the scope of their thesis project.
• For a thesis during the fall semester, a draft of approximately half of the written thesis or equivalent is due to your advisor and readers no later than the beginning of Thanksgiving break.
• For a thesis during the spring semester, a draft of approximately half of the written thesis or equivalent is due to your advisor and readers no later than the second week of the spring semester.
• Additional deadlines are set by your advisor, and your readers may request to see additional work from you.
• The final thesis is due to your advisor and readers at least one full week prior to your oral presentation, the date for which is set early in the semester.
• Acceptance into the Honors program does not mean that a student will receive Honors; this is not automatic. On-going communication with the advisor and readers and meeting all set deadlines is critical. Whether or not to award honors, as well as semester and winter study grades, are determined by the Latina/o/x Studies Program faculty, and includes the advisor and the two readers. A project that does not meet the requirements for Honors is converted into an Independent Study and graded accordingly.
• Students are responsible for meeting the College deadlines and procedures for the submission of your thesis—these are on the Library web page.