Drying squid,
Cheju Island, South Korea
Photograph by Peter Schurmann
Qualified students may complete a senior thesis approximately 50 pages in length under the supervision of the major adviser or other appropriate faculty member. Three units of upper division credit in Asian Studies 196 will be given for completion of the thesis.
The Honors Thesis program provides an opportunity for qualified students to complete original and independent research under the mentorship of a faculty thesis advisor.
The honors thesis program is a year-long program which may begin in either fall or spring semester of the senior year. It consists of completion of Asian Studies H195A-H195B (3 units each), which includes the writing of the honors thesis.
The honors thesis is expected to be a substantial research paper, both in its length and originality. Although there is no specific length requirement, a typical undergraduate Honors Thesis contains 50-100 pages of text, a bibliography, and often illustrations and tables. To get a sense of what is expected, take a look at undergraduate theses on file, please visit the undergraduate advisor in 101 Stephens.
Requirements
Getting Started
The first step is discussing your plans for an honors thesis with the Asian Studies undergraduate advisor. The thesis advisor will provide you with an honors thesis form on which you will secure the signatures of a thesis advisor and a second reader.
Second, settle on a general topic and a potential faculty advisor. If you are unsure about which faculty member to approach, the undergraduate advisor can help you identify faculty members who will be most able to help you with your proposed topic.
The third step is to prepare a brief thesis proposal: a statement of the research question and your plan of action including a discussion of the research methods you will employ.
Fourth, visit your prospective thesis advisor with your proposal in hand and ask if he or she is able to sponsor you. If the response is "yes," then the subsequent process is largely up to you and your thesis advisor. If the answer is "no" (the faculty member may be on leave the coming year, unable to commit the time that you and your project merit, etc.), meet with additional faculty until you find sponsorship.
Fifth, the honors program requires you to have a second faculty sponsor, commonly referred to as the second reader. The second reader is only required to read and comment on a near-final version of the thesis, but may chose to play a greater role. Discuss with your thesis adviser who would make a good reader for your project, and arrange to meet with prospective reader(s). If they agree to work with you and your thesis advisor, you are ready to complete the thesis application. NOTE: It is recommended that the student find out early that both readers agree on the same research methodology and range of required readings, that the project is not too large to be completed in two semesters, and that both readers be available (not on sabbatical or leave) for both semesters.
Sixth, when the application is complete (with signatures of Advisor and Reader), bring it to the Undergraduate Office for a course control number (CCN) for H195A. (H195B — in the second semester — requires a new CCN.) The honor coursework (H195A and H195B) can count as 2 of the 5 elective requirements for the major. NOTE: Asian Studies H195A and H195B are independent study courses; there is no instruction or class time involved. All the work for the thesis and these 2 courses is done independently.
Recommended Application Time Line
February of Junior Year (Fall/Spring thesis); September of Junior/Senior Year (Spring/Fall thesis): Prepare brief thesis proposal and meet with prospective thesis adviser(s). Get consent of a faculty member to serve as your sponsor. Discuss the project, appropriate methodology and research methods, and preparation of sample bibliography with faculty sponsor.
April of Junior Year (F/SP); November (SP/F): The thesis application form,signed by both the faculty adviser and second reader, due to the Undergraduate Advising Office.
Level of Honors
Only work of high caliber will qualify for graduation with Honors on the diploma. The criteria for determination of the level of Honors are the quality and originality of the thesis, as well as the student's performance in coursework. The Honors categories are: Honors, High Honors, or Highest Honors. If the thesis is not of the quality expected a student may receive course credit only. The College will not award Honors on the diploma if the student does not maintain the required 3.5 GPA in the major and 3.3 overall.
China
2007
T. Cheung, Migrant Women Factory Workers in Southern China (Senior Thesis)
2000
J. Kroncke, The Ch'ing-ming Chi and Judicial Decision Making in Sung Dynasty China (Honors)
A. Ng, Refuge in Wine: Infamy of Drunkenness Reversed During the Wei-jin Era (Honors)
1999
D. Tran, Identity, Regionalism & Nationalism: How does the Vu Bang Construct them through Food? (Honors)
1998
J. Phan, The Chinese Cultural Revolution: Family Tragedies and Triumphs (Honors)
1997
K. Chiu, The Twenty Exemplars of Filial Piety as a Vehicle of Indoctrination (Honors)
C. Khong, The Three Gorges Dam: To Build or not to Build: Is that the Question? (Senior Thesis)
N. Atkinson, A Re-interpretation of the Fall of Shanghai (Honors)
1995
H. Dorra, Recreating the Garden: Three Views of the Shizilin (Honors)
L. Fan, And Now the Peasants Rebel: The Consequences of China's Half-Capitalism (Honors)
Japan
2008
C. Jones, Conspicuous Cuisine: Iron Chef and Japan's 1990s (Honors)
V. Wong, The Importance of Geomancy in Heian Gardens: An Analysis of the Sakuteiki, an Eleventh-Century Manual on Garden Construction (Honors)
2005
L. Masia, Long-Term Care Insurance and Reform in Japan and the U.S.
2002
N. Cohn, A Time Frame of Mind: Visual Language And Buddhist Dharma Theory (Honors)
2001
T. Iwaki, Women's World in the Tale of Genji and the Diary of Lady Murasaki, (Senior Thesis)
1996
M. Damian, The Changing Faces of Kannon (Senior Thesis)
1995
D. Nakashima, The Family, Community, Police and Juvenile Delinquency in Japan and the United States (Honors)
1994
D. Langford, Fiery Passions in Kokinshu Poetry: Conceptual Metaphor in the Minds of Heian Courtiers (Honors)
1993
E. Sibbitt, Downsizing the Yakuza, (Honors)
J. May, Korean and Taiwanese Responses to Japanese Colonial Rule (Honors)
J. Mayer, The Vacuous Onslaught: How Japan Failed to Dominate the American Personal Computer Industry (Honors)
M. Levine, Anticommunism in Japanese Propaganda and Foreign Policy (Honors)
Korea
2007
P. Schurman, Contesting Origins: Myth, History and the Construction of Korean Identity (Honors)