Honors

Senior Honors Thesis

 

An Honors project can be very exciting. It is your chance to do independent work. This project will span two semesters on a topic to be determined by you and your faculty advisor and a second reader. Honors in American Studies will enhance your application to graduate and professional schools. Those who undertake and complete independent honors work will be able to include a sample of your best written work in your applications.

A candidate must have a 3.0 overall GPA and a 3.4 GPA in the major. Working toward Honors means registering for 050:495 fall semester and 050:496 in the spring semester-- doing an Independent Study of superior caliber. One faculty member serves as your advisor, and another as your reader. Senior Honors thesis writers will meet a few times in the fall semester as a writing group. At the end of the project, all candidates for honors present work to the entire American Studies faculty. The faculty as a group determines which projects will be awarded honors.

Please note that all senior majors must take a senior seminar. Before registering for classes for the fall, feel free to discuss Honors with any of the American Studies faculty. Your faculty adviser will work with you from the inception of the project to its end, serving as a kind of coach to help you produce your best work. In order to assist you before approaching an advisor, please fill out this document form .

Read more: Senior Honors Thesis

American Studies Honors Society

Criteria

  • Students eligible for induction will be identified by the respective AMST program director of each university located within the region.
  • Eligibility will be restricted to undergraduate American Studies majors who have completed 6 courses or 18 credits in AMST or related courses.
  • An inductee must have a minimum overall GPA of 3.0, and a minimum GPA of 3.4 in all AMST or related courses.
  • Inductees should exhibit active participation in and service to the AMST student association sponsored by the student’s home department or program. 
  • Inductees must submit a research paper, project, film, or cultural/performative artifact assessed as “excellent quality” by an induction committee, consisting of three AMST professors (or professors from related disciplines) from the inductee’s home campus.
  • Once the induction committee has confirmed that the student has met all criteria, it should submit the student’s name to John Haddad by January 15,  of  a given year.
  • After submitting a small fee ($30), inductees will receive both an official certificate and a red, white, and blue honors cord to be worn at graduation. 
  • For any given year, inductees will also enjoy the option of being inducted into the Society at the annual EASA conference.
  • Please contact John Haddad (jrh36@psu.edu) with any questions.