Procedural Requirements and Deadlines
Version of 7 September 2009, and subject to change
This document describes the changes in the senior capstone requirements in environmental studies (A.B. and Sc.B. degrees) at Brown University, which will be implemented from Sept. 1, 2009 to June 2011. After describing the learning objectives for these degrees (part I), the new set of options for the senior capstone in environmental studies are described (part II), along with the requirements for Honors in Environmental Studies and the plan for evaluating the efficacy of this new set of requirements. Comments and questions should be directed to the Director of Environmental Studies, Professor J. Timmons Roberts.
I. LEARNING OBJECTIVES
We acknowledge the diversity of student career goals and the value of diverse experiences by which students integrate their Brown education. Given that over ninety percent of CES undergraduates pursue post-graduate education and/or employment in the area of the environment, the Center should provide the following to Environmental Studies undergraduate concentrators and other students we teach:
1. KEY CONTENT: educate students about the context of environmental issues. Learning this content will provide students the opportunity to address the following learning objectives:
- Understanding the complexity and interdisciplinarity of environmental issues
- Critical thinking
- Research and relevant analytical skills
- Writing and communication
2. PRACTICE: expose students to environmental problem solving, emphasizing:
- Critical thinking
- Research and relevant analytical skills
- Evidence of independent thought
- Independent effort and team work
- Writing and communication
- Engagement with environmental organizations, agencies, and affected communities
3. DEMONSTRATION: require students to engage with environmental professionals and practitioners, to require them to practice:
- Critical thinking skills
- Research and relevant analytical skills
- Writing and communication
- Experience with problem-solving
- Team work
The capstone experience should address most of these, but others will be developed in other courses and concentration experiences. The capstone should provide an opportunity to integrate these earlier experiences and allow students to demonstrate and improve their mastery of environmental research and problem-solving.
II. OPTIONS FOR THE SENIOR CAPSTONE IN ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
All seniors will choose among these options:
1. Honor's Thesis, reverting to an individual year-long senior thesis if it is deemed not up to the high standards required.
2. Year-long thesis, which can revert to a one-semester capstone research experience based on the advisor’s discussions with the student about his/her progress during the first semester of independent study.
3. One-semester capstone research experience
Year-long theses and One-semester capstone research experiences can be:
a. Individual
b.[Pre-approved] Team Projects
c.[Pre-screened and pre-approved] Internship experience and written work supervised by a faculty person--resulting in a white paper, research paper, published article, draft legislation, architectural mock-up, etc. Internship/paper must be approved before the work takes place, to incorporate research question(s) and methods of information collection.
Normally the one-semester capstone research experience will be completed in the fall, but we will allow spring projects only on the conditions that the student meet all the preparatory deadlines and requirements for the fall, and if their project is approved by the Undergraduate Committee--only if they have a curricular reason or special project needs to delay it to Spring semester.
Approval for Team Projects: The Undergraduate Committee must approve proposals (either one-semester research experiences or two-semester theses) for Team Projects, which will be approved only in cases where it is obvious what multiple members of the team bring that are unique and complementary to each other. The quantity and quality of the work is expected to far exceed what one person might reasonably accomplish in a similar defined period of time.
Deadlines
In addition to individual advising meetings, all students will meet at least three times per semester with their thesis advisor’s group of seniors.
One semester Senior capstone research experience option deadlines:
| End of Exam Period, Junior Year | Proposal for Honors |
| Sep. 25 | Draft 1-page proposal (with draft outline and topic statement and 5-20 good sources), presented to a meeting with all of the concentrators due [including presentation to other students and faculty and posted on web and on bulletin board in the CES] |
| Oct. 15 | Revised and expanded proposal due and posted |
| Oct. 30 | Introduction and literature review draft |
| (If the advisor wants to read chapter drafts, intermediate deadlines should be established) | |
| Monday after Thanksgiving | Complete draft of one-semester capstone project due |
| Final two weeks of classes | Presentation to CES |
| Exam period | Final draft due: consult with advisor about date |
For full year Senior thesis, deadlines are:
| End of Exam Period, Junior Year | Proposal for Honors |
| Sep. 30 | Draft proposal (with draft outline and topic statement and 10-20 good sources), presented to whole group due [including presentation to other students and faculty and posted on web and on CES bulletin board] |
| Oct. 30 | Revised proposal due and posted |
| Reading period, Dec. | Introduction and literature review draft due |
| (If the advisor wants to read chapter drafts, intermediate deadlines should be established) | |
| Monday after Spring Recess | Full draft due |
| Final two weeks of classes | Presentation to CES |
| Exam Week | Final draft due–consult with advisor about the date |
Advising
Students are encouraged to seek advising and advice from experts beyond the CES faculty--across Brown and the local, national and even international community of environmental academics and practitioners. The Undergraduate Committee must approve the selection of advisors who are not on the CES faculty (defined as all faculty with Environmental Studies in their title – core, non-core, adjunct, visiting). Normally, core faculty members in the CES are expected to be primary advisor for 3-5 total M.A. and senior theses per year. Non-core CES faculty are expected to advise at least one student every other year. For this reason, students may have to seek alternative advisors as first readers—others may serve as resource people on their areas of expertise.
Presentations of Theses
Alltheses will be presented at two 90-minute lunch brownbags at the end of the semesters. Each will be limited to 10 minutes for presentations, 5 minutes for questions and transitions. That gives spaces for 24 students doing theses per year. Times will be extended as numbers shift. Group theses will be given 20 minutes total.
III. HONORS IN ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES AT BROWN
Expectations for Honors
There are three distinctions between the standard and Honors thesis. The Honors thesis has significantly higher performance expectations than the standard senior thesis for methodological, analytical and writing quality, and for original contribution of the work. Honors theses should aspire to be of potentially publishable quality, in academic or trade journals, or as a detailed and publishable report for environmental practitioners. (Some additional sections may be required of Honors theses that would not appear in an academic article or report, such as detailed methodology and literature reviews, or more speculative thoughts on policy implications, in the case of scientific articles.) More attention will be paid in Honors theses to the integrity of data collection techniques and data analysis; therefore, Honors candidates relying on quantitative data usually will need to demonstrate or acquire familiarity with appropriate statistics.If students are doing senior or Honors theses as part of an ongoing faculty research project ("working in someone's lab"), they must do significant work formulating an original and related thesis question and ways to answer it. The unique contribution of ES theses is their inclusion of policy or human environmental interaction elements in their research, beyond a single disciplinary approach.
Second, a minimum grade point average of 3.3 in concentration courses generally is required for Honors, but exceptions may be made if there are extenuating circumstances and if the student has shown the ability to work independently and has a well-formulated topic to study and plan to develop the research. Juniors wishing to be considered for Honors must submit a plan for their Honors thesis by the end of exams of the spring semester, and research may begin the summer before senior year. Finally, a senior Honors candidate must have two readers in addition to her/his primary faculty supervisor (who may or may not have a faculty appointment in the Center). One reader or advisor outside the CES program is strongly recommended. In contrast, if a student chooses to write a standard senior thesis, they will typically have one ES faculty or CES adjunct faculty member as their sole reader or advisor. The Honors thesis requires a formal defense, described below.
Deadlines for Honors
| Exam Period, Junior Year | Draft proposal for Honors. |
| Summer before Senior Year | Research should begin |
| Sep. 30 | Second draft proposal (with draft outline and topic statement and 20-30 good sources), presented to whole group DUE [including presentation to other students and faculty and posted on web and on bulletin board] |
| Oct. 30 | Final proposal DUE and posted |
| Reading period, Dec. | Introduction and literature review draft DUE |
| (Intermediate deadlines should be established with committee for chapter drafts, typically in Feb and March) | |
| Monday after Spring Recess | Full draft DUE |
| Final two weeks of classes | Presentation to CES |
| Reading Period | Final draft –consult with advisor for day |
| Exam Week | Defense and Final Revisions DUE in time for review and transmission of results to Registrar’s for graduation |
Honors Readers:
To be awarded Honors, three readers will review the manuscript. When requesting to be considered for departmental Honors, students should suggest additional readers, and get the preliminary agreement of these individuals to act in this capacity. The student will propose a three person committee to the Undergraduate Committee, and set up a meeting with all three by October 15th to agree on expectations for the work. During the year, a CES faculty member will act as the primary advisor, guiding the student through the process. A second meeting will be held by February 15th with the entire committee to be sure there is progress and that it is likely to result in a defensible thesis. The second and third readers will normally attend these two meetings and review materials in preparation for them, and review the full "review draft" (due April 1st). External readers (such as agency personnel) are expected to review progress in the same way--meetings can be attended by speakerphone or Skype if necessary. The final defense draft is due April 15th; defenses will be held the first week in May. For deadlines earlier in the year, readers must return comments and requests for edits to students in two calendar weeks; students must build these intervals into their timelines. For the final draft, comments must be returned to students in 7-10 calendar days. Grades and Honors theses marks must be submitted in ample time for the Registrar's deadlines (Thursday before grades are due, which is a week before graduation). Students must meet all the deadlines and requirements contained in "Patti's Must Do List."
The Honors Defense
Normally, Honors is decided at the end of the defense, if the committee decides it merits this level of distinction. Normally, Honors thesis defenses will include an open portion, where there is a (20 minute) presentation of the work (what were the core questions, what was attempted, what was accomplished, what future research is needed). Visitors will depart before a closed rounds of questions from the committee. The student will then be sent out of the room for private deliberations by the reviewers, then a decision will be reached on whether the thesis merits Honors or the normal year-long Senior Thesis designation. The student will be brought back in and told the committee's decision.
In the case of community-based Honors theses, a public presentation(s) may be held to communicate the findings to audiences outside the university, and evaluation by the committee may occur separately from that presentation. The committee will evaluate both written thesis and the public presentations in considering the designation of the thesis as Honors.
IV. EVALUATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES CAPSTONE REQUIREMENTS
In two years, this revised set of options and requirements will be evaluated by the CES faculty, considering the number of theses of each type attempted and completed, the qualitative comments collected by survey from students at the end of their thesis work, and based on responses from advising faculty and expert community members about the value of the process in light of CES learning objectives and the quality of the work. A provisional review will take place in January, 2011 to advise rising Seniors of expectations; a full review will take place in June, 2011 to consider whether to continue the new system or whether to revise it.