What is a Thesis Prospectus?
Thesis Prospectus is a very fancy term for what is essentially your thesis research proposal and outline. It will contain an explanation of your topic, a list of the resources you will use to support your research, and your research timeline. Below is a breakdown of the different aspects of your prospectus.
Prospectuses will vary depending on major(s), advisor’s requirements, and project type. Yet all prospectuses should share some form of the following aspects, Some advisors may waive portions of this list, but may also add things that don’t appear here:
- Length appropriate to project and discipline: typically, a prospectus is not shorter than 5 pages, or longer than 15–18.
- Description of topic and scope: This is where you detail what your project is about and why you are researching this particular topic. It's essentially a written out project outline - you start with your research question and then describe the ways you intend on answering it! What preliminary arguments or ideas, if appropriate, can you share now? What area(s) will the project cover? What are the boundaries of the project? If the project will be divided into chapters, what do you expect will be covered in each one?
- Review of relevant scholarship (Annotated Bibliography): A good project is informed by work that has come before it. This section should show that you have some familiarity with the field, and point to scholarship that is in conversation with your own ideas. This step applies to creative work too: all art responds to other works (even, or perhaps especially, when it’s claiming not to), so a creative prospectus should discuss relevant works of art, written commentaries, or other materials important for the project’s development.
- Description of methods and required training: your advisor can help you understand what methods and approaches are valid in your field. If your project will involve human subjects, you should discuss your plans for the IRB process, and any requisite training, here.
- Description of required materials and resources: For STEM, this may mean a discussion of what you’ll need in your lab. For humanities and social science projects, you might define a project archive (a set of authors or texts; the results of interviews or surveys, etc.) and/or discuss specific library resources you’ll want to access (e.g. papers at the American Antiquarian Society). CHP can fund up to $100 per project other funding is available through various offices on campus. If you have a prospective budget, include it here.
- Project plan: do your best to sketch out a timeline for your work. Will you do anything over the summer? What will you accomplish in the fall semester? What will happen in the spring?
- Bibliography: please include a formal bibliography of primary and secondary sources, composed in the citation style you’ll use for the full project.
