Students who wish to complete an original research project and write an undergraduate thesis have the opportunity to apply for the STS Honors program. Students may use research that they are conducting with faculty on campus, or they may develop their own original questions and research projects with the supervision of a faculty advisor. STS Honors theses address a wide range of important issues. For example, students have examined questions around gender affirming care for trans youth; the implications of artificial intelligence for copyright law; and the ways that new technologies change practices and conceptions surrounding “fairness” in athletics. The Honors program is an exciting opportunity to pursue an original research question around an issue of interest to the student.
Program Requirements
Once admitted to the program, all honors students must meet four program requirements to achieve honors: 1) Regular communication with honors committee; 2) completing two semesters of honors project research (STS 4991 and 4992); 3) formulating ideas, developing the proposal, conducting the research, writing a suitable thesis and submitting the thesis to the STS major; 4) defending the thesis near the end of the senior year. Each of these requirements is outlined further below.
Forming a Committee
The student has primary responsibility for forming and communicating with a committee of three faculty members, as follows.
- The Project Supervisor should be an expert in the topic and willing to serve as the primary advisor.
- The Project Advisor offers supplementary advising and may be an expert in a minor field covered in the research and thesis.
Note: Either the project supervisor or the project advisor must be an STS faculty member. Students are encouraged to reach out to STS faculty whose courses they have taken, or whose research seems relevant to the student’s work.
- The Project Reader has minimal involvement in the honors thesis and is only involved near its conclusion, when the student provides them with the final draft of the honors thesis. The Project Reader is expected to attend the defense, and should be sent the thesis at least two weeks before the defense date. In the second semester of the senior year, the Director of Undergraduate Studies will appoint a Project Reader for the completed honors thesis. The Project Reader is usually the honors student’s faculty advisor. If the faculty advisor is already serving on the honors committee as either the Project Supervisor, or the Project Advisor, then the Director of Undergraduate Studies will serve as the Project Reader, unless another suitable faculty member has been identified.
Completing the Honors Course
Students must register for the total credits (8) for the whole year, 4 each semester in STS 4991 and 4992, The Honors Project I and II. At the end of the first semester, the student will receive a grade of "R" for satisfactory progress. The grade recorded at the end of the second term evaluates the student's performance in the course for the entire year.
If, after admission to the honors program, a student fails to maintain a high scholastic average, or for any other reason is considered unsuited for honors work, the student reverts to candidacy for the regular Bachelor's degree. The student who does not continue in the honors program must change the first semester course STS 4991 to an Independent Study in order to receive a grade and credits.
Students should note that honors credit may not be used to fulfill any major requirements.
The student and the Project Supervisor must reach clear agreement at the outset as to what sort of work will need to be completed during the first semester. At the end of the first semester, a grade of "R" will be assigned to note satisfactory progress. The Advisors, in consultation with the Director of Undergraduate Studies, will evaluate whether or not the student should continue working on an honors project. The student who does not continue in the honors program must change the first semester to Independent Study in order to receive a grade and credits. The grade recorded at the end of the second term of the honors project evaluates the student's performance in the course for the entire year.
Students should meet regularly with the Project Supervisor during the period of research and writing for the honors thesis. The responsibility for scheduling these meetings, and for carrying out the research in timely fashion, rests with the student. The project must include substantial research and the completed work should be of wider scope and greater originality than is normal for an upper-level course. A preliminary paper and bibliography on the student's project is due by the end of the first semester.
Advisors are expected to make themselves available for discussion and to offer advice on the plan of research, as well as provide critical and constructive comments on the written work as it is completed. They are not expected, however, to pursue students to ensure that the research and writing are being done on schedule.
Completing the Honors Thesis
There is no prescribed length for a thesis, since different topics may require longer or shorter treatment, but the thesis should be a substantial body of work. We have found that a social science/humanities thesis is normally in the range of 70 - 100 double-spaced typed pages. The thesis must be completed in a form satisfactory for purposes of evaluation and submitted by April 15* to the Project Supervisor and Project Advisor. A copy of the thesis should be submitted to the Project Reader at least a week ahead of the scheduled defense.
After the defense, one digital copy of the completed and defended thesis in pdf format must be submitted to the Undergraduate Coordinator and Director of Undergraduate Studies via the sts-bsoc-dus@cornell.edu email by May 13. Optionally, a physical copy of the thesis bound in a plastic or hard-backed cover can be submitted to the Undergraduate Coordinator in 303B Morrill Hall to be added to other honors theses in Science & Technology Studies Library.
* Other copies may be required by the Project Supervisor or Advising Coordinator in each College.
Students may choose to publish their thesis to eCommons: Cornell’s Digital Repository
Thesis Defense
The candidate must meet with their committee (Project Supervisor, Project Advisor and Project Reader) for a formal defense of the thesis between April 30-May 10. The student is responsible for identifying a suitable date that committee members can attend. At the defense, students typically deliver a short (15-20 minute) presentation to summarize their research questions and findings. The remainder of the time is open to discussion with the committee. While a formal presentation is expected, students should not be intimidated by the “defense”; these conversations are typically friendly rather than adversarial. They are an exciting time to share findings and explore additional questions for further consideration.
Following the formal thesis defense, the Project Supervisor will submit to the Director of Undergraduate Studies a recommendation to include: 1) the evaluation of the honors thesis by the committee; 2) an evaluation of the student's academic record in the Science & Technology Studies major; and 3) a recommendation for or against awarding honors, as well as a recommendation for the level of honors.
As the Director of Undergraduate Studies may have little knowledge of the subject area of the thesis, recommendations should be carefully prepared to help ensure consistency within the Honors Program. If there is a disagreement among the committee, the Director of Undergraduate Studies will make the final decision after consultation with the interested parties.
Summary of Important Dates
- September 8*: a 1000-word thesis proposal with preliminary bibliography submitted to Project Supervisor and STS DUS.
- End of first semester: students meet with Project Supervisor to decide whether to move forward with project.
- March 7*: First draft of thesis submitted to Project Supervisor
- April 15*: Thesis completed in a form satisfactory for evaluation and submitted to the members of the Honors Committee.
- April 30-May 10*: Defense of Honors Thesis
- May 13*: Completed and defended thesis submitted to the STS DUS and Undergraduate Coordinator in pdf format sent to sts-bsoc-dus@cornell.edu. (Physical copy and eCommons publishing optional, as noted above.)
**If these dates fall on a weekend, the due date will be the previous Friday. **
Honors Program Resources
Science & Technology Studies Faculty
Format Requirements for Honors Thesis
Binding Requirements for Honors Thesis
Honors Defense FAQ
Guidelines for Evaluating Honors Thesis
Honors Program Application Requirements
- Formation of Honors Committee: Two Cornell Faculty members to act as Project Supervisor and Project Advisor, one of which must be a STS faculty member
- Project Description: ~300 words
- Minimum GPA: 3.3 at time of applying and maintained through duration of program
- Outstanding Major Requirements: Honors Program applicants must have 4 or fewer outstanding major requirements to complete during their senior year.
Science & Technology Studies Honors Program Application
Contacts
Director of Undergraduate Studies:
Associate Professor, Rebecca Slayton (sts-bsoc-dus@cornell.edu)
Undergraduate Coordinator:
David Ryan (dwr28@cornell.edu)