Honors in Philosophy

Candidacy for Honors in philosophy requires satisfaction of the following requirements:

A. The College requires that a candidate for departmental honors satisfy the following conditions:

1. Overall grad-point average of at least 2.8

2. Departmental grade-point average of at least 3.6

3. A sum of grade-point averages which equals at least 6.8

B. The philosophy department requires an honors thesis.

Thesis

The philosophy department offers majors the option of undertaking a Thesis for Honors in Philosophy. This thesis is part of the candidacy for earning honors in philosophy and does not automatically entail honors. Honors is earned as a result of both exceptional effort and exceptional results in philosophy. The purpose of the Honors Thesis is to provide students with the opportunity to hone their philosophical skills and understanding through a focused research project resulting in a thesis of the highest quality. The honor's thesis is not a requirement for the major, but is an option available for those students who committed to work beyond requirements.

The work on this thesis will occur during the course of the senior year, but should ideally be initiated towards the end of the junior year. The work for the thesis is substantial philosophical research issuing in a written paper (on the order of 20-25 pages).

Procedure:

1. Topic and Adviser Selection (Week 1 of Fall-12 Senior year)

2. Reading List/Project Outline (Week 4/5 of Fall-12)

3. Formal Topic Proposal (Week 12 of Fall-12)

4. Draft of paper to advisor (Week 1 of Spring-12)

5. Complete Draft to Adviser for Approval (Friday after spring break)

6. Submission of Final Draft (Friday, Week 12 of Spring-12)

7. Oral Exam (during Spring-3)

8. Revisions and Formal Submission (1 week after oral exam)

Expectations:

The Honors Thesis is generally taken as a 1 credit Independent Study in the Fall of the Senior Year (481) and for 2 credits in the spring (48x). We expect that the student would devote the equivalent of 3 credits of work towards this project. You need not take 3 credits worth of courses however. Meeting all of the relevant deadlines is crucial. Time for the announcement of the oral exam, for revisions of the final version, and adequate time for us to read your work is necessary. Final versions of the paper must be

submitted on time for honors to be awarded. These final deadlines are not simply departmental but reflect administrative schedules.

1. As soon as you know that you want to attempt departmental honors you should consult with one of us (Alpern, Anderson, Braver) about your possible topic and ultimately ask one of us to advise the project. At latest this should be done at the very beginning of the fall semester.

2. The next step is to compile a reading list of relevant sources and determine which one's will be necessary for completing the project. This should be done in consultation with your adviser.

3. The topic of the project must be formally proposed and approved by the department. The proposal should take the form of a 4-5 page paper describing a focused topic and thesis, indicating the significance of the topic, the relevant positions that are taken on the topic (in the history of philosophy or in contemporary secondary literature), and including an annotated bibliography of the relevant important sources.

4. A complete draft of the paper must be submitted to the adviser for approval. You should be submitting drafts throughout the process of writing the paper in order that any significant problems can be identified and avoided.

5. The paper will be revised twice before final submission. Once prior to departmental submission, and once after the Oral exam.

6. The final draft must conform to relevant stylistic conventions. Hard copies must be turned in.

7. The "Oral exam" will be held on Campus-wide "Honors Celebration Day" and lasts 45 minutes to an hour. It involves a 15-20 minute presentation of the paper with the remaining time for questions from faculty and peers.

8. The final paper must be submitted as both a hard copy and electronic.

2006-2007 Schedule:

September 1: Advisor and Topic Selection

September 29: Reading List and Focused Topic

November 17: Submission of Topic

January 12: First draft to Adviser

March 9: Complete Draft to Adviser

April 6: Final Draft of Paper 5 pm

Oral Exam Day will be fixed by Administration (during the 3 week)

May 5: Final Version with revisions from exam submitted by 5:00 PM