literature review for honours thesis

HNRS 3500: Writing Your Honors Thesis

• Literature Review
• Annotated Bibliography
• Find Articles
• Citing Sources This link opens in a new window
• Project Examples
• Zotero This link opens in a new window

What is a Literature Review?

A literature review is a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of the principal research about the topic being studied.

The aim of a literature review is to show "that the writer has studied existing work in the field with insight" (Haywood and Wragg, 1982). It is not enough merely to show what others in your field have discovered. You need to view the work of others with insight to review critically. An effective review analyses and synthesizes material, and it should meet the following requirements: (Caulley, 1992)

• Compare and contrast different authors' views on an issue
• Group authors who draw similar conclusions,
• Criticise aspects of methodology,
• Note areas in which authors are in disagreement,
• Highlight exemplary studies,
• Identify patterns or trends in the literature
• Highlight gaps in and omissions in previous research or questions left unanswered
• Show how your study relates to previous studies,
• Show how your study relates to the literature in general,
• Conclude by summarising what the literature says.

A literature review has a number of purposes. It enables you to:

• Set the background on what has been researched on a topic.
• Show why a topic is significant to a subject area.
• Discover relationships between ideas.
• Identify major themes & concepts.
• Identify critical gaps & points of disagreement.
• Help the researcher turn a network of articles into a coherent view of the literature.

Source: University of Melbourne's Literature Review Libguide

Planning your Literature Review

While planning your review, in addition to finding and analyzing the reviews in dissertations, you might ask yourself questions such as the following:

What is my central question or issue that the literature can help define?

What is already known about the topic?

Is the scope of the literature being reviewed wide or narrow enough?

Is there a conflict or debate in the literature?

What connections can be made between the texts being reviewed?

What sort of literature should be reviewed? Historical? Theoretical? Methodological? Quantitative? Qualitative?

What criteria should be used to evaluate the literature being reviewed?

How will reviewing the literature justify the topic I plan to investigate?

From: Writing the successful thesis and dissertation: entering the conversation, by Irene L. Clark

source: Kent State University's Literature Reviews Libguide

Organizing the Review

Categorizing the Literature

When categorizing the writings in the review, the researcher might consider

• the methodology employed;
• the quality of the findings or conclusions;
• the document’s major strengths and weaknesses;
• any other pivotal information.

He/She might consider such questions as:

• what beliefs are expressed?
• Is there an ideological stance?
• What is being described? Is it comprehensive or narrow?
• Are the results generalizable?

Remember that you are relating other studies to your study. How do the studies in your lit. review relate to your thesis? How are the other studies related to each other?

From http://libguides.redlands.edu/content.php?pid=32380&sid=239161

Literature Review Samples

• Otterbein's Institutional Repository You can browse by collection and then department and student scholarship. Look up samples of literature reviews in theses and dissertations.
• OhioLink's ETD Browse by institution and look up samples of literature review in the students' theses and dissertations

Literature Review -Created by North Carolina State University Libraries

Watch this video for more information about writing a literature review.

• Writing a Literature Review
• << Previous: Annotated Bibliography
• Next: Find Books >>
• Last Updated: Feb 23, 2024 1:54 PM
• URL: https://otterbein.libguides.com/hnrs3500

Honors thesis guidelines

• Why write an honors thesis?
• How to begin
• Signature page
• Acknowledgements
• Table of contents
• List of tables or figures
• Introduction

Literature review

• Methodology
• References/Works cited
• How to submit thesis

A literature review is a section of your thesis where you summarize and synthesize significant research conducted by others related to your topic. This is an essential component that establishes the context and foundation for your thesis, ensuring your research is well-informed, credible, and contributes to the existing body of knowledge. The purpose of a literature review is to establish what's already known and what areas require further investigation. However, it's important to note that it's not merely a collection of source summaries. Instead, it's a discussion that connects and integrates these sources to provide a complete understanding of the topic. This process involves synthesizing, which means weaving the summarized sources together into a cohesive narrative.

In certain fields like Social Sciences and the Humanities, it is common to incorporate a theoretical framework within the literature review section of your research thesis. A theoretical framework is a set of theories, concepts, and models that serve as an intellectual base for your research. This section is important because it provides you with a well-structured perspective to guide the interpretation of findings, and it helps the reader understand where the study stands in relation to current literature and other theoretical viewpoints. 

The way in which you organize your literature review will depend on your research goals and the specific characteristics of your topic. To write a strong literature review, ask yourself what aspects are most pertinent to your thesis's objectives. Consider organizing by themes, chronology, methodology, or other relevant factors that you might find in the process.

• << Previous: Introduction
• Next: Methodology >>
• Last Updated: Aug 20, 2024 10:38 AM
• URL: https://wiu.libguides.com/honorsthesisguidelines

Honours thesis in psychology/Developing a literature review

Guidelines and tips for developing a 4th year Honours thesis in psychology literature review.

• 1 What is a literature review?
• 2.1 Topic development
• 2.2 Guided reading
• 2.4 1st draft
• 2.5 2nd draft
• 2.6 3rd draft
• 2.7 4th draft
• 2.8 Tables and figures
• 3 Marking criteria
• 4 File management
• 5 Word processing
• 6 Citation management
• 7 Relationship to the research article

What is a literature review?

A literature review identifies a unique topic, establishes its importance, and summarises, reviews, and critiques key theory and research. The literature review also weighs the strengths and limitations of the existing literature and recommends future directions.

The task is to present an APA style manuscript which critically reviews key theoretical and research literature about a specific topic/problem and which is ready for submission to a journal for publication.

The literature review should contribute a unique, useful review of theory and research about a particular issue/gap/problem.

Good example literature reviews can be found, among other places, in the Annual Review of Psychology (e.g., [1] ).

Drafting process

Here is a suggested stage-by-stage drafting process:

Topic development

• Brainstorm (cast the net widely initially).
• The literature review may have a broader, narrower, similar, or different focus to a subsequent original research article. Do not necessarily assume that the literature review and research article are going to be about exactly the same topic. Often the literature review has a somewhat broader focus. For more info, see relationship to the research article .
• Sort through, merge, discard, and prioritise the brainstormed ideas.
• Whittle down
• research question
• working title

Guided reading

• Searching and reading can go on forever, so it is important to be strategic.
• Clearly establish the review's scope (i.e., What is relevant? What is not?) so that search terms are well targeted and the relevance of sources can be quickly assessed.
• Develop a bibliography of key references about the topic.
• Major literature reviews (especially recent systematic and meta-analytic reviews).
• Highly cited, peer reviewed, published articles which address relevant psychological theory and major studies.
• Access these references regardless of the difficulties in doing so - e.g., may require inter-library loan/document delivery requests.
• Read these sources, making notes about key points relevant to the literature review topic.

Develop an outline of the chapter and discuss with the thesis supervisor:

• clarify the focus of the review
• ensure a balanced review which fits into the overall word count
• "chunk" the drafting process into smaller sections
• Title (working)
• Abstract and keywords (as headings)
• ~2-3 pages or 300-500 words
• Introduce and describe the topic/problem/question, establish its importance, familiarise the reader with key terminology/concepts, show familiarity with the key literature, and orient the reader to the structure and direction of the review.
• Include major citations
• By the end of this section a reader should be clear about the purpose, need for, and focus of the review.
• Headings (likely to cover critical review of key theory and research): Aim for approx. 3 to 7 main headings. Sub-headings are optional (each main heading should have 0 or 2 to 5 sub-headings)
• Conclusion (includes future directions/recommendations)
• Word-count: Allocate an estimated word count to each of the major sections and overall. Note that the literature review is worth 40% of the 10,000 to 12,000 word thesis; so, on a proportional basis, aim for approximately 4,000 to 4,800 words, but often the literature review may be longer, up to perhaps ~6,500 words.
• Questions about the plan which you'd like to flag for discussion.
• It can be helpful to model the literature review on a favourite article (or thesis) - have a close look at the heading structure of some example literature reviews.
• Consider using the " writing funnel " in which the review starts broadly and gradually narrows down to focus on a specific problem.
• Seek feedback about the plan from the thesis supervisor, discuss, and revise the plan.
• Turn the plan into a first draft by fleshing out the dot points into sentences and paragraphs.
• Aim roughly for a "Pass" standard.
• Sometimes people get "stuck" producing a first draft because they try to produce top-quality work. Quality can be addressed later. The goal for a first draft is to get a rough draft out for early feedback.
• Include any specific comments or questions for the supervisor.
• Seek feedback from the supervisor (including in-text Comments, Tracked Changes/Suggestions, and verbal discussion).
• Turn the 1st draft into a 2nd draft by rewriting to address supervisor feedback.
• Often the second draft involves greater integration of concepts; it may also involve some re-organisation of the structure.
• Work on linking between sections as well as tying together the key themes through the general introduction and conclusion.
• Aim for a "Credit" standard.
• Seek supervisor feedback (including via in-text Comments, Tracked Changes/Suggestions, and discussion).
• Turn the 2nd draft into a 3rd draft by rewriting, addressing supervisor feedback.
• Aim for a "Distinction" standard.
• Seek peer/stakeholder/other feedback (e.g., much can be learnt from reading and commenting on each other's work).
• Turn the 3rd draft into a 4th draft by rewriting, addressing peer/other feedback.
• Aim for a "High Distinction" standard.
• This draft (or a subsequent draft) might be best completed after leaving the 3rd draft for a while and completing the 1st draft of the research article.

Tables and figures

Tables and figures can be a powerful way to communicate theories or conceptual ideas (e.g., see Figure 3).

Marking criteria

Consider the draft against the marking criteria:

• Clear and appropriate title
• Abstract - fluent explanation and summary of the content and purpose
• Importance of topic area and LR is established with definitions of important constructs
• Overview of theoretical or conceptual framework and literature to be used
• Clear explanation of content and direction of LR
• Explanation of appropriate theoretical or conceptual framework
• Integration of theoretical or conceptual framework throughout review
• Appropriate range of current, major, original (not reviews) sources used
• Thorough and detailed descriptions and synthesis of all aspects about the the research literature
• Critical interpretation of the research and its implications
• Synthesis and links within the material that reaches original and thoughtful conclusions
• Integration of diverse viewpoints
• Clear and thoughtful summary of ideas/topics within the review
• Quality of written expression, spelling, punctuation, and grammar

File management

• Smart word-processing techniques from the outset will pay off down the track.
• 00 Proposal
• 10 Literature review
• 11 Research article
• 20 Appendices
• 30 Final version
• Literature review 1.docx or Literature review_2022_03_21
• Literature review 2.docx or Literature review_2022_04_04 etc.
• Make sure a regular, reliable back-up system is in place (e.g., use automated cloud-based backup storage or manually email your latest versions to peers and/or supervisor). Electronic data corruption, loss of files etc. is insufficient grounds for extension.

Word processing

• Using Heading 1, 2, 3 etc. styles that match APA style. This will facilitate consistent styling and allow auto-generation of Tables of Contents.
• Style-based captions for Tables and Figures can also be used.

Citation management

• Citations and reference lists can be managed manually or by using citation management software (such as EndNote, Zotero, RefWorks etc.).
• Regardless of approach, be organised and systematic from the outset in collecting, storing, citing, and referencing key sources.

Relationship to the research article

• The literature review provides a critical review of theory and research about a specific topic and makes recommendations about future directions.
• The research article identifies a gap in the literature and reports about an original study designed to address this gap.
• The literature review will be longer than the introduction to the research article.
• The literature review may be broader in scope than the introduction to the research article.
• The introduction to the research article should state specific research question(s) and/or hypotheses to guide the study.
• Avoid presenting duplicate sentences in the literature review and introduction to the research article (self-plagiarism).
• Literature review

• Honours thesis in psychology

Navigation menu

Honors Research

• Online Research
• Finding Articles
• Annotated Bibliography

What is a Literature Review?

Components of a lit review, video resources, additional resources.

• Art Inquiry
• Music Inquiry
• Citation Resources
• Evaluating Websites
• Evaluating Articles
• Evaluating Books

VIDEO: The Information Cycle

• The Information Cycle (LibGuide containing multiple videos)

Atkins Library Quick Links

• Library Homepage
• Library Hours
• Library Databases
• Research Guides
• Citing Your Sources
• Reserve a Study Room
• My Library Account
• My Interlibrary Loan Account

30 Tips for Success

• 30 Tips for Success in Academic Writing

A Literature Review Is Not:

• just a summary of sources
• a grouping of broad, unrelated sources
• a compilation of  everything  that has been written on a particular topic
• literature criticism (think English) or a book review

So, what is it then?

A literature review is an integrated analysis-- not just a summary-- of scholarly writings that are related directly to your research question.  That is, it represents the literature that provides background information on your topic and shows a correspondence between those writings and your research question.

A literature review may be a stand alone work or the introduction to a larger research paper, depending on the assignment.  Rely heavily on the guidelines your instructor has given you.

Why is it important?

A literature review is important because it:

• Explains the background of research on a topic.
• Demonstrates why a topic is significant to a subject area.
• Discovers relationships between research studies/ideas.
• Identifies major themes, concepts, and researchers on a topic.
• Identifies critical gaps and points of disagreement.
• Discusses further research questions that logically come out of the previous studies.

1. Introduction

Not to be confused with a book review, a  literature review  surveys scholarly articles, books and other sources (e.g. dissertations, conference proceedings) relevant to a particular issue, area of research, or theory, providing a description, summary, and critical evaluation of each work. The purpose is to offer an overview of significant literature published on a topic.

2. Components

Similar to primary research, development of the literature review requires four stages:

• Problem formulation—which topic or field is being examined and what are its component issues?
• Literature search—finding materials relevant to the subject being explored
• Data evaluation—determining which literature makes a significant contribution to the understanding of the topic
• Analysis and interpretation—discussing the findings and conclusions of pertinent literature

Literature reviews should comprise the following elements:

• An overview of the subject, issue or theory under consideration, along with the objectives of the literature review
• Division of works under review into categories (e.g. those in support of a particular position, those against, and those offering alternative theses entirely)
• Explanation of how each work is similar to and how it varies from the others
• Conclusions as to which pieces are best considered in their argument, are most convincing of their opinions, and make the greatest contribution to the understanding and development of their area of research

In assessing each piece, consideration should be given to:

• Provenance—What are the author's credentials? Are the author's arguments supported by evidence (e.g. primary historical material, case studies, narratives, statistics, recent scientific findings)?
• Objectivity—Is the author's perspective even-handed or prejudicial? Is contrary data considered or is certain pertinent information ignored to prove the author's point?
• Persuasiveness—Which of the author's theses are most/least convincing?
• Value—Are the author's arguments and conclusions convincing? Does the work ultimately contribute in any significant way to an understanding of the subject?

3. Definition and Use/Purpose

A literature review may constitute an essential chapter of a thesis or dissertation, or may be a self-contained review of writings on a subject. In either case, its purpose is to:

• Place each work in the context of its contribution to the understanding of the subject under review
• Describe the relationship of each work to the others under consideration
• Identify new ways to interpret, and shed light on any gaps in, previous research
• Resolve conflicts amongst seemingly contradictory previous studies
• Identify areas of prior scholarship to prevent duplication of effort
• Point the way forward for further research
• Place one's original work (in the case of theses or dissertations) in the context of existing literature

The literature review itself, however, does not present new  primary  scholarship.

• << Previous: Annotated Bibliography
• Next: Art Inquiry >>
• Last Updated: Jul 19, 2024 2:59 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.charlotte.edu/honorsresearch

Honors Theses

What this handout is about.

Writing a senior honors thesis, or any major research essay, can seem daunting at first. A thesis requires a reflective, multi-stage writing process. This handout will walk you through those stages. It is targeted at students in the humanities and social sciences, since their theses tend to involve more writing than projects in the hard sciences. Yet all thesis writers may find the organizational strategies helpful.

Introduction

What is an honors thesis.

That depends quite a bit on your field of study. However, all honors theses have at least two things in common:

• They are based on students’ original research.
• They take the form of a written manuscript, which presents the findings of that research. In the humanities, theses average 50-75 pages in length and consist of two or more chapters. In the social sciences, the manuscript may be shorter, depending on whether the project involves more quantitative than qualitative research. In the hard sciences, the manuscript may be shorter still, often taking the form of a sophisticated laboratory report.

Who can write an honors thesis?

In general, students who are at the end of their junior year, have an overall 3.2 GPA, and meet their departmental requirements can write a senior thesis. For information about your eligibility, contact:

• UNC Honors Program
• Your departmental administrators of undergraduate studies/honors

Why write an honors thesis?

Satisfy your intellectual curiosity This is the most compelling reason to write a thesis. Whether it’s the short stories of Flannery O’Connor or the challenges of urban poverty, you’ve studied topics in college that really piqued your interest. Now’s your chance to follow your passions, explore further, and contribute some original ideas and research in your field.

Develop transferable skills Whether you choose to stay in your field of study or not, the process of developing and crafting a feasible research project will hone skills that will serve you well in almost any future job. After all, most jobs require some form of problem solving and oral and written communication. Writing an honors thesis requires that you:

• ask smart questions
• acquire the investigative instincts needed to find answers
• navigate libraries, laboratories, archives, databases, and other research venues
• develop the flexibility to redirect your research if your initial plan flops
• master the art of time management
• hone your argumentation skills
• organize a lengthy piece of writing
• polish your oral communication skills by presenting and defending your project to faculty and peers

Work closely with faculty mentors At large research universities like Carolina, you’ve likely taken classes where you barely got to know your instructor. Writing a thesis offers the opportunity to work one-on-one with a with faculty adviser. Such mentors can enrich your intellectual development and later serve as invaluable references for graduate school and employment.

Open windows into future professions An honors thesis will give you a taste of what it’s like to do research in your field. Even if you’re a sociology major, you may not really know what it’s like to be a sociologist. Writing a sociology thesis would open a window into that world. It also might help you decide whether to pursue that field in graduate school or in your future career.

How do you write an honors thesis?

Get an idea of what’s expected.

It’s a good idea to review some of the honors theses other students have submitted to get a sense of what an honors thesis might look like and what kinds of things might be appropriate topics. Look for examples from the previous year in the Carolina Digital Repository. You may also be able to find past theses collected in your major department or at the North Carolina Collection in Wilson Library. Pay special attention to theses written by students who share your major.

Choose a topic

Ideally, you should start thinking about topics early in your junior year, so you can begin your research and writing quickly during your senior year. (Many departments require that you submit a proposal for an honors thesis project during the spring of your junior year.)

How should you choose a topic?

• Read widely in the fields that interest you. Make a habit of browsing professional journals to survey the “hot” areas of research and to familiarize yourself with your field’s stylistic conventions. (You’ll find the most recent issues of the major professional journals in the periodicals reading room on the first floor of Davis Library).
• Set up appointments to talk with faculty in your field. This is a good idea, since you’ll eventually need to select an advisor and a second reader. Faculty also can help you start narrowing down potential topics.
• Look at honors theses from the past. The North Carolina Collection in Wilson Library holds UNC honors theses. To get a sense of the typical scope of a thesis, take a look at a sampling from your field.

What makes a good topic?

• It’s fascinating. Above all, choose something that grips your imagination. If you don’t, the chances are good that you’ll struggle to finish.
• It’s doable. Even if a topic interests you, it won’t work out unless you have access to the materials you need to research it. Also be sure that your topic is narrow enough. Let’s take an example: Say you’re interested in the efforts to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s and early 1980s. That’s a big topic that probably can’t be adequately covered in a single thesis. You need to find a case study within that larger topic. For example, maybe you’re particularly interested in the states that did not ratify the ERA. Of those states, perhaps you’ll select North Carolina, since you’ll have ready access to local research materials. And maybe you want to focus primarily on the ERA’s opponents. Beyond that, maybe you’re particularly interested in female opponents of the ERA. Now you’ve got a much more manageable topic: Women in North Carolina Who Opposed the ERA in the 1970s and 1980s.
• It contains a question. There’s a big difference between having a topic and having a guiding research question. Taking the above topic, perhaps your main question is: Why did some women in North Carolina oppose the ERA? You will, of course, generate other questions: Who were the most outspoken opponents? White women? Middle-class women? How did they oppose the ERA? Public protests? Legislative petitions? etc. etc. Yet it’s good to start with a guiding question that will focus your research.

Goal-setting and time management

The senior year is an exceptionally busy time for college students. In addition to the usual load of courses and jobs, seniors have the daunting task of applying for jobs and/or graduate school. These demands are angst producing and time consuming If that scenario sounds familiar, don’t panic! Do start strategizing about how to make a time for your thesis. You may need to take a lighter course load or eliminate extracurricular activities. Even if the thesis is the only thing on your plate, you still need to make a systematic schedule for yourself. Most departments require that you take a class that guides you through the honors project, so deadlines likely will be set for you. Still, you should set your own goals for meeting those deadlines. Here are a few suggestions for goal setting and time management:

Start early. Keep in mind that many departments will require that you turn in your thesis sometime in early April, so don’t count on having the entire spring semester to finish your work. Ideally, you’ll start the research process the semester or summer before your senior year so that the writing process can begin early in the fall. Some goal-setting will be done for you if you are taking a required class that guides you through the honors project. But any substantive research project requires a clear timetable.

Set clear goals in making a timetable. Find out the final deadline for turning in your project to your department. Working backwards from that deadline, figure out how much time you can allow for the various stages of production.

Here is a sample timetable. Use it, however, with two caveats in mind:

• The timetable for your thesis might look very different depending on your departmental requirements.
• You may not wish to proceed through these stages in a linear fashion. You may want to revise chapter one before you write chapter two. Or you might want to write your introduction last, not first. This sample is designed simply to help you start thinking about how to customize your own schedule.

Sample timetable

Avoid falling into the trap of procrastination. Once you’ve set goals for yourself, stick to them! For some tips on how to do this, see our handout on procrastination .

Consistent production

It’s a good idea to try to squeeze in a bit of thesis work every day—even if it’s just fifteen minutes of journaling or brainstorming about your topic. Or maybe you’ll spend that fifteen minutes taking notes on a book. The important thing is to accomplish a bit of active production (i.e., putting words on paper) for your thesis every day. That way, you develop good writing habits that will help you keep your project moving forward.

Make yourself accountable to someone other than yourself

Since most of you will be taking a required thesis seminar, you will have deadlines. Yet you might want to form a writing group or enlist a peer reader, some person or people who can help you stick to your goals. Moreover, if your advisor encourages you to work mostly independently, don’t be afraid to ask them to set up periodic meetings at which you’ll turn in installments of your project.

Brainstorming and freewriting

One of the biggest challenges of a lengthy writing project is keeping the creative juices flowing. Here’s where freewriting can help. Try keeping a small notebook handy where you jot down stray ideas that pop into your head. Or schedule time to freewrite. You may find that such exercises “free” you up to articulate your argument and generate new ideas. Here are some questions to stimulate freewriting.

Questions for basic brainstorming at the beginning of your project:

• What do I already know about this topic?
• Why do I care about this topic?
• Why is this topic important to people other than myself
• What more do I want to learn about this topic?
• What is the main question that I am trying to answer?
• Where can I look for additional information?
• Who is my audience and how can I reach them?
• How will my work inform my larger field of study?
• What’s the main goal of my research project?

Questions for reflection throughout your project:

• What’s my main argument? How has it changed since I began the project?
• What’s the most important evidence that I have in support of my “big point”?
• What questions do my sources not answer?
• How does my case study inform or challenge my field writ large?
• Does my project reinforce or contradict noted scholars in my field? How?
• What is the most surprising finding of my research?
• What is the most frustrating part of this project?
• What is the most rewarding part of this project?
• What will be my work’s most important contribution?

Research and note-taking

In conducting research, you will need to find both primary sources (“firsthand” sources that come directly from the period/events/people you are studying) and secondary sources (“secondhand” sources that are filtered through the interpretations of experts in your field.) The nature of your research will vary tremendously, depending on what field you’re in. For some general suggestions on finding sources, consult the UNC Libraries tutorials . Whatever the exact nature of the research you’re conducting, you’ll be taking lots of notes and should reflect critically on how you do that. Too often it’s assumed that the research phase of a project involves very little substantive writing (i.e., writing that involves thinking). We sit down with our research materials and plunder them for basic facts and useful quotations. That mechanical type of information-recording is important. But a more thoughtful type of writing and analytical thinking is also essential at this stage. Some general guidelines for note-taking:

First of all, develop a research system. There are lots of ways to take and organize your notes. Whether you choose to use note cards, computer databases, or notebooks, follow two cardinal rules:

• Make careful distinctions between direct quotations and your paraphrasing! This is critical if you want to be sure to avoid accidentally plagiarizing someone else’s work. For more on this, see our handout on plagiarism .
• Record full citations for each source. Don’t get lazy here! It will be far more difficult to find the proper citation later than to write it down now.

Keeping those rules in mind, here’s a template for the types of information that your note cards/legal pad sheets/computer files should include for each of your sources:

Abbreviated subject heading: Include two or three words to remind you of what this sources is about (this shorthand categorization is essential for the later sorting of your sources).

Complete bibliographic citation:

• author, title, publisher, copyright date, and page numbers for published works
• box and folder numbers and document descriptions for archival sources
• complete web page title, author, address, and date accessed for online sources

Notes on facts, quotations, and arguments: Depending on the type of source you’re using, the content of your notes will vary. If, for example, you’re using US Census data, then you’ll mainly be writing down statistics and numbers. If you’re looking at someone else’s diary, you might jot down a number of quotations that illustrate the subject’s feelings and perspectives. If you’re looking at a secondary source, you’ll want to make note not just of factual information provided by the author but also of their key arguments.

Your interpretation of the source: This is the most important part of note-taking. Don’t just record facts. Go ahead and take a stab at interpreting them. As historians Jacques Barzun and Henry F. Graff insist, “A note is a thought.” So what do these thoughts entail? Ask yourself questions about the context and significance of each source.

Interpreting the context of a source:

• Who wrote/created the source?
• When, and under what circumstances, was it written/created?
• Why was it written/created? What was the agenda behind the source?
• How was it written/created?
• If using a secondary source: How does it speak to other scholarship in the field?

Interpreting the significance of a source:

• How does this source answer (or complicate) my guiding research questions?
• Does it pose new questions for my project? What are they?
• Does it challenge my fundamental argument? If so, how?
• Given the source’s context, how reliable is it?

You don’t need to answer all of these questions for each source, but you should set a goal of engaging in at least one or two sentences of thoughtful, interpretative writing for each source. If you do so, you’ll make much easier the next task that awaits you: drafting.

The dread of drafting

Why do we often dread drafting? We dread drafting because it requires synthesis, one of the more difficult forms of thinking and interpretation. If you’ve been free-writing and taking thoughtful notes during the research phase of your project, then the drafting should be far less painful. Here are some tips on how to get started:

Sort your “evidence” or research into analytical categories:

• Some people file note cards into categories.
• The technologically-oriented among us take notes using computer database programs that have built-in sorting mechanisms.
• Others cut and paste evidence into detailed outlines on their computer.
• Still others stack books, notes, and photocopies into topically-arranged piles.There is not a single right way, but this step—in some form or fashion—is essential!

If you’ve been forcing yourself to put subject headings on your notes as you go along, you’ll have generated a number of important analytical categories. Now, you need to refine those categories and sort your evidence. Everyone has a different “sorting style.”

Formulate working arguments for your entire thesis and individual chapters. Once you’ve sorted your evidence, you need to spend some time thinking about your project’s “big picture.” You need to be able to answer two questions in specific terms:

• What is the overall argument of my thesis?
• What are the sub-arguments of each chapter and how do they relate to my main argument?

Keep in mind that “working arguments” may change after you start writing. But a senior thesis is big and potentially unwieldy. If you leave this business of argument to chance, you may end up with a tangle of ideas. See our handout on arguments and handout on thesis statements for some general advice on formulating arguments.

Divide your thesis into manageable chunks. The surest road to frustration at this stage is getting obsessed with the big picture. What? Didn’t we just say that you needed to focus on the big picture? Yes, by all means, yes. You do need to focus on the big picture in order to get a conceptual handle on your project, but you also need to break your thesis down into manageable chunks of writing. For example, take a small stack of note cards and flesh them out on paper. Or write through one point on a chapter outline. Those small bits of prose will add up quickly.

Just start! Even if it’s not at the beginning. Are you having trouble writing those first few pages of your chapter? Sometimes the introduction is the toughest place to start. You should have a rough idea of your overall argument before you begin writing one of the main chapters, but you might find it easier to start writing in the middle of a chapter of somewhere other than word one. Grab hold where you evidence is strongest and your ideas are clearest.

Keep up the momentum! Assuming the first draft won’t be your last draft, try to get your thoughts on paper without spending too much time fussing over minor stylistic concerns. At the drafting stage, it’s all about getting those ideas on paper. Once that task is done, you can turn your attention to revising.

Peter Elbow, in Writing With Power, suggests that writing is difficult because it requires two conflicting tasks: creating and criticizing. While these two tasks are intimately intertwined, the drafting stage focuses on creating, while revising requires criticizing. If you leave your revising to the last minute, then you’ve left out a crucial stage of the writing process. See our handout for some general tips on revising . The challenges of revising an honors thesis may include:

Juggling feedback from multiple readers

A senior thesis may mark the first time that you have had to juggle feedback from a wide range of readers:

• your adviser
• a second (and sometimes third) faculty reader
• the professor and students in your honors thesis seminar

You may feel overwhelmed by the prospect of incorporating all this advice. Keep in mind that some advice is better than others. You will probably want to take most seriously the advice of your adviser since they carry the most weight in giving your project a stamp of approval. But sometimes your adviser may give you more advice than you can digest. If so, don’t be afraid to approach them—in a polite and cooperative spirit, of course—and ask for some help in prioritizing that advice. See our handout for some tips on getting and receiving feedback .

Refining your argument

It’s especially easy in writing a lengthy work to lose sight of your main ideas. So spend some time after you’ve drafted to go back and clarify your overall argument and the individual chapter arguments and make sure they match the evidence you present.

Organizing and reorganizing

Again, in writing a 50-75 page thesis, things can get jumbled. You may find it particularly helpful to make a “reverse outline” of each of your chapters. That will help you to see the big sections in your work and move things around so there’s a logical flow of ideas. See our handout on  organization  for more organizational suggestions and tips on making a reverse outline

Plugging in holes in your evidence

It’s unlikely that you anticipated everything you needed to look up before you drafted your thesis. Save some time at the revising stage to plug in the holes in your research. Make sure that you have both primary and secondary evidence to support and contextualize your main ideas.

Saving time for the small stuff

Even though your argument, evidence, and organization are most important, leave plenty of time to polish your prose. At this point, you’ve spent a very long time on your thesis. Don’t let minor blemishes (misspellings and incorrect grammar) distract your readers!

Formatting and final touches

You’re almost done! You’ve researched, drafted, and revised your thesis; now you need to take care of those pesky little formatting matters. An honors thesis should replicate—on a smaller scale—the appearance of a dissertation or master’s thesis. So, you need to include the “trappings” of a formal piece of academic work. For specific questions on formatting matters, check with your department to see if it has a style guide that you should use. For general formatting guidelines, consult the Graduate School’s Guide to Dissertations and Theses . Keeping in mind the caveat that you should always check with your department first about its stylistic guidelines, here’s a brief overview of the final “finishing touches” that you’ll need to put on your honors thesis:

• Honors Thesis
• Name of Department
• University of North Carolina
• These parts of the thesis will vary in format depending on whether your discipline uses MLA, APA, CBE, or Chicago (also known in its shortened version as Turabian) style. Whichever style you’re using, stick to the rules and be consistent. It might be helpful to buy an appropriate style guide. Or consult the UNC LibrariesYear Citations/footnotes and works cited/reference pages  citation tutorial
• In addition, in the bottom left corner, you need to leave space for your adviser and faculty readers to sign their names. For example:

Approved by: _____________________

Adviser: Prof. Jane Doe

• This is not a required component of an honors thesis. However, if you want to thank particular librarians, archivists, interviewees, and advisers, here’s the place to do it. You should include an acknowledgments page if you received a grant from the university or an outside agency that supported your research. It’s a good idea to acknowledge folks who helped you with a major project, but do not feel the need to go overboard with copious and flowery expressions of gratitude. You can—and should—always write additional thank-you notes to people who gave you assistance.
• Formatted much like the table of contents.
• You’ll need to save this until the end, because it needs to reflect your final pagination. Once you’ve made all changes to the body of the thesis, then type up your table of contents with the titles of each section aligned on the left and the page numbers on which those sections begin flush right.
• Each page of your thesis needs a number, although not all page numbers are displayed. All pages that precede the first page of the main text (i.e., your introduction or chapter one) are numbered with small roman numerals (i, ii, iii, iv, v, etc.). All pages thereafter use Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, etc.).
• Your text should be double spaced (except, in some cases, long excerpts of quoted material), in a 12 point font and a standard font style (e.g., Times New Roman). An honors thesis isn’t the place to experiment with funky fonts—they won’t enhance your work, they’ll only distract your readers.
• In general, leave a one-inch inch margin on all sides. However, for the copy of your thesis that will be bound by the library, you need to leave a 1.25-inch margin on the left.

How do I defend my honors thesis?

Graciously, enthusiastically, and confidently. The term defense is scary and misleading—it conjures up images of a military exercise or an athletic maneuver. An academic defense ideally shouldn’t be a combative scene but a congenial conversation about the work’s merits and weaknesses. That said, the defense probably won’t be like the average conversation that you have with your friends. You’ll be the center of attention. And you may get some challenging questions. Thus, it’s a good idea to spend some time preparing yourself. First of all, you’ll want to prepare 5-10 minutes of opening comments. Here’s a good time to preempt some criticisms by frankly acknowledging what you think your work’s greatest strengths and weaknesses are. Then you may be asked some typical questions:

• What is the main argument of your thesis?
• How does it fit in with the work of Ms. Famous Scholar?
• Have you read the work of Mr. Important Author?

NOTE: Don’t get too flustered if you haven’t! Most scholars have their favorite authors and books and may bring one or more of them up, even if the person or book is only tangentially related to the topic at hand. Should you get this question, answer honestly and simply jot down the title or the author’s name for future reference. No one expects you to have read everything that’s out there.

• Why did you choose this particular case study to explore your topic?
• If you were to expand this project in graduate school, how would you do so?

Should you get some biting criticism of your work, try not to get defensive. Yes, this is a defense, but you’ll probably only fan the flames if you lose your cool. Keep in mind that all academic work has flaws or weaknesses, and you can be sure that your professors have received criticisms of their own work. It’s part of the academic enterprise. Accept criticism graciously and learn from it. If you receive criticism that is unfair, stand up for yourself confidently, but in a good spirit. Above all, try to have fun! A defense is a rare opportunity to have eminent scholars in your field focus on YOU and your ideas and work. And the defense marks the end of a long and arduous journey. You have every right to be proud of your accomplishments!

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Atchity, Kenneth. 1986. A Writer’s Time: A Guide to the Creative Process from Vision Through Revision . New York: W.W. Norton.

Barzun, Jacques, and Henry F. Graff. 2012. The Modern Researcher , 6th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

Elbow, Peter. 1998. Writing With Power: Techniques for Mastering the Writing Process . New York: Oxford University Press.

Graff, Gerald, and Cathy Birkenstein. 2014. “They Say/I Say”: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing , 3rd ed. New York: W.W. Norton and Company.

Lamott, Anne. 1994. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life . New York: Pantheon.

Lasch, Christopher. 2002. Plain Style: A Guide to Written English. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.

Turabian, Kate. 2018. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, Dissertations , 9th ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Make a Gift

• Deakin Home
• Student news
• StudentConnect
• Help and contact us

Literature review

This guide is for students who are new to writing literature reviews, for example, as part of an assignment or for an initial investigation for designing your own research topic.

Note: If you are required to write a literature review for a research proposal, you might also want to browse the library guide to  systematic and systemic-like reviews.

What is a literature review?

The purpose of a  literature review is to locate  peer-reviewed sources that inform you of key ideas in your field of study. By ‘literature’ we mean books, academic journal articles and other sources. The information you gather from reading these sources can then be used to identify potential gaps in knowledge or to investigate new issues that may not have been noticed before. A literature review is often used to develop research questions for future research.

As a general rule, your literature review should:

• Explain why your research topic is important.
• Provide a critical analysis of the ideas in the literature rather than just describe the findings.
• Organise ideas into themes rather than by source.
• Identify similarities and differences in opinions, evidence and the findings of sources.
• Identify areas of controversy, or limitations of research methods
• Include citations of sources and a reference list or bibliography (according to your required referencing style).

The number of sources referred to in a literature review may vary. An undergraduate literature review may be a short assessment so you may only need to review a small number of sources. Alternatively, you may be given a set of sources to review, or you may be asked to find your own sources. At an honours or postgraduate level, a literature review will include a larger number of sources. Generally, the higher the word count, the greater the number of sources you are expected to include. As with any assignment or research project, it is important to discuss and determine your topic, word count and referencing style with your lecturer or supervisor before you begin.

Literature review or annotated bibliography?

Don’t confuse a literature review with an annotated bibliography! Although they are two different ways of reviewing the literature, these are two distinct genres of academic writing.

A  literature review has a beginning, middle and end (like an introduction, body paragraphs and a conclusion). It requires you to analyse and evaluate key literature on a given topic - to identify, compare and contrast common themes explored in the literature.

In contrast, an  annotated bibliography is a list of short descriptive summaries of readings on a particular topic or area of research. It does not compare and contrast sources. The sources are ordered in a list format according to the source reference.

Reading and researching

To produce a good literature review, you must show that you have researched and read widely. A wide-ranging review will often include books, journal articles, reports, government documents and credible web resources. The quality of your review will be judged by the quality of your sources. Therefore, it is important to manage your time by selectively reviewing the abstract, table of contents and headings before you start reading to see if the source is relevant to your topic.

Ask yourself the following questions to help you start your literature review:

• What is the purpose of the review?
• Which themes will I focus on?
• What questions do I need to ask about the literature?
• What types of sources are suitable for the questions?
• How much time do I have to research, read, analyse and synthesise the literature?
• Which  referencing style am I required to use (e.g. Harvard, APA etc)?

Selecting and evaluating sources

Use a set of questions, such as those below, to help choose appropriate sources for evaluation and analysis.

• Find out how to  plan your library search and download the library search planner to develop your search plan.
• Access the library’s  finding information tutorials to help you start your literature search.
• Review this guide to  critical thinking, reading and note taking.

Analysing and note taking

Keep critical notes as you read.

It can be useful to keep a daily journal of your personal responses and thinking processes on what you are reading for your literature review. Doing this on a regular basis will also improve your disciplinary vocabulary and help you to write about the literature in your own words.

In your journal:

• Analyse the findings from each source will help you to build a whole picture of the topic you are exploring.
• Consider using a table, matrix or mind map to identify findings, common themes, disagreements and key ideas that are common throughout the papers.

Use this  notetaking matrix for a literature review to help you analyse and synthesise texts you are researching for you literature review.

Try using a brainstorming and mind mapping tool like Xmind to assist with organising your research.

Writing your review

The structure of a review is similar to an essay in that it contains an introduction, a body and a conclusion. However, a literature review will also include - a description of your search methods, paragraphs organised into themes and a concluding summary of key themes and how the review contributes to understanding the topic you are investigating. Writing your literature review can take some time so expect to write a few different drafts before you complete your final copy.

Introduction

Your introduction should help your reader with the context and purpose of your literature review. Tell your reader:

• The aim of your review.
• Why you are writing a review and why the topic is important.
• What aspects will be discussed.
• The scope of your review, e.g.  what points you will include and what methods/limitations you used to find readings.
• An overview of the themes you will discuss.

Body paragraphs

The body paragraphs of your review will contain your review of the literature relevant to your research topic. To write your body paragraphs, you will need to synthesise your reviewed readings so that there is a clear link between the various sources. You will need to critically analyse each source and show how they contribute to the themes you are researching.

The body might include paragraphs that focus on:

• background and methodologies
• other studies on the topic
• key questions being asked
• conclusions that are being drawn.

In your conclusion, give a summary of:

• The main agreements and disagreements in the literature.
• Any gaps or areas for further research.
• Your perspective on the topic.

Further language tips

Review this  sample literature review for further tips.

Download these student guides:

• Sample literature review and language tips
• Note taking matrix for a literature review

Book an appointment with a language and learning adviser; or First Nations students can book with the First Nations academic support links

• Book an appointment
• First Nations Academic Support bookings
• Email First Nations Academic Support

We use cookies to improve your experience. You consent to the use of our cookies if you proceed. Visit our Privacy policy for more information.

• Assignment structure and writing
• Literature reviews
• Planning your assignment
• Presentations

The literature review 

A literature review analyses and evaluates existing knowledge within a particular domain.

The review, like other forms of academic writing, has an introduction, body and conclusion, well-formed paragraphs, and a logical structure. However, in other kinds of expository writing, you use relevant literature to support the discussion of your thesis; in a literature review, the literature itself is the subject of discussion.

A literature review gives an overview of what has already been said on the topic, who the key writers are, what the prevailing theories and hypotheses are, what questions are being asked, and what methodologies and methods are appropriate and useful.

A critical literature review shows how prevailing ideas fit into your own thesis, and how your thesis agrees or differs from them.

This depends on what the literature review is for, and what stage you are at in your studies. Your supervisor or lecturer should specify a minimum number of references.

Generally speaking, a reasonable number of references in a literature review would be:

• Undergraduate review: 5-20 titles depending on level
• Honours dissertation: 20+ titles
• Masters thesis: 40+ titles
• Doctoral thesis: 50+ titles.

1. Conduct the literature search

Find out what has been written on your subject. Places to start are:

• Bibliographies and references in key textbooks and recent journal articles. Your supervisor or tutor should tell you which are the key texts and relevant journals.
• Library search
• Databases – not all databases can be searched via Library Search. Consider searching subject specific databases individually to ensure you comprehensively conducting your literature review.
• RISE Research Repository – UniSQ's repository of research outputs.
• Google Scholar – can be useful for finding resources, such as conference papers, and research in other universities’ repositories. 

Many abstracting journals and electronic databases are available. Subject support is available for databases and bibliographies relevant to your field. 

2. Note the bibliographical details

Write down the full bibliographical details of each book or article as soon as you find a reference to it. This will save you an enormous amount of time later on. Referencing management software, such as EndNote , can be useful to manage citation information.

3. Read the literature

Take notes as you read the literature. You are reading to find out how each piece of writing approaches the subject of your research, what it has to say about it, and (especially for research students) how it relates to your own thesis.

Questions to consider include:

• Is it a general textbook or does it deal with a specific issue(s)?
• Does it follow a particular school of thought?
• What is its theoretical basis?
• What definitions does it use?
• What is its general methodological approach? What methods are used?
• What kinds of data does it use to back up its argument?
• What conclusions does it come to?

Other questions may be relevant. It depends on the purpose of the review.

4. Write the review

Having gathered the relevant details about the literature, you now need to write the review. The kind of review you write, and the amount of detail, will depend on the level of your studies.

A literature review synthesises many texts in one paragraph. Each paragraph (or section if it is a long thesis) of the literature review should classify and evaluate a common theme you have discovered in your research which is relevant to your thesis.

Like all academic writing, a literature review should have an introduction, body, and conclusion.

The introduction should include:

• the topic of your thesis
• the parameters of the topic (what it includes and excludes)
• why you have selected the literature.

The body paragraphs could include relevant paragraphs on:

• historical background including classic texts
• current mainstream versus alternative theoretical or ideological viewpoints, including differing theoretical assumptions, differing political outlooks, and other conflicts
• possible approaches to the subject (empirical, philosophical, historical, postmodernist, etc.)
• definitions in use
• current research studies
• current discoveries about the topic
• principal questions that are being asked
• general conclusions that are being drawn
• methodologies and methods in use.

The conclusion should include:

• A summary of major agreements and disagreements in the literature
• A summary of general conclusions that are being drawn
• A summary of where your thesis sits in the literature.

Engineering Honours Project

• Handbooks and Standards
• Journals & Databases
• Literature Review
• Professional Associations
• Evaluating sources
• Referencing sources
• Product Catalogues

Engineering Centre of Excellence, Loughborough University: Literature Review

Shared under Creative Commons License 2.0 UK . No modifications have been made to this Slideshare presentation.

Engineering Centre of Excellence, Loughborough University: Literature Review Handouts

The good oil on literature reviews.

• Components of Documents: Literature Review

Manage Your Literature with EndNote

Endnote is a bibliographic citation manager ., what is a bibliographic citation.

A bibliographic citation is any reference to a book, journal article, video or other source that you might use in an academic paper or article. EndNote allows you to manage those citations by saving, organising, and formatting them into a bibliography or reference list in your thesis, publication or assessment. Visit the Endnote Guide  for more information.

What will it do for me?

• Import sets of references found in database searches.
• Provide a place to keep unlimited number of article references' associated pdfs, charts, illustrations etc along with its abstract and research notes.
• Insert references into your thesis or publication and automatically format them in the style you have chosen.

What won't it do?

• It won't teach you how to reference correctly; you need to know how to do that before using any citation manager.
• It won't make a correct reference if you enter incorrect data, or enter it in the wrong place.

Should I use it?

• If you are doing research and handling lots of references, you should be using Endnote!
• Endnote is a computer program and it takes time to learn and gain proficiency, so you should get some training from your librarian before using it.
• It is most likely to be useful to researchers writing a thesis or preparing a publication with a substantial number of references.
• Undergraduate students who want to use a citation manager should consider using  EndnoteOnline as it is web based and you can teach yourself to use it. Students may use Endnote on campus PCs if they wish.
• << Previous: Journals & Databases
• Next: Multimedia >>
• Updated: Aug 20, 2024 12:11 PM
• URL: https://libguides.usc.edu.au/hons
• UniSC Library YouTube

• Jump to menu
• Student Home
• Accept your offer
• How to enrol
• Student ID card
• Set up your IT
• Orientation Week
• Fees & payment
• Academic calendar
• Special consideration
• Transcripts
• The Nucleus: Student Hub
• Referencing
• Essay writing
• Learning abroad & exchange
• Professional development & UNSW Advantage
• Employability
• Financial assistance
• International students
• Equitable learning
• Postgraduate research
• Health Service
• Events & activities
• Emergencies
• Volunteering
• Clubs and societies
• Accommodation
• Health services
• Sport and gym
• Arc student organisation
• Security on campus
• Maps of campus
• Careers portal
• Change password
• Literature Review Exercise

Engineering & science

• Report writing
• Technical writing
• Writing lab reports
• Introductions
• Writing up results
• Discussions
• Conclusions
• Writing tools
• Case study report in (engineering)
• ^ More support

Term 2, 2024 - Release of Results 29 Aug 2024, 12:00pm

Term 3, 2024 - Drop course enrolment if failed to class register (T3 and T3A) 3 Sep 2024

Hexamester 5: Library 101 Webinar 28 Aug 2024

• Search UNH.edu
• Search Hamel Honors & Scholars College

Commonly Searched Items:

• Hamel Scholars Program
• Honors Program Admission
• Registration & Advising
• Why Honors?
• Honors Admissions
• Scholarships & Awards
• Request Information
• Honors Discovery
• Gateway Experiences
• Cocurricular Learning
• Culminating Experiences
• Designated Honors Courses
• Scholarships For Current Students
• UNH Exchange: University College Utrecht
• Honors Thesis
• Honors in Major
• Interdisciplinary Honors
• Contact Us / Staff
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Honors Faculty
• Honors Community
• Mission and Values
• Honors withdrawal form

Create opportunities for your future with your Honors Thesis.

All honors students end their program with an honors thesis: a sustained, independent research project in a student’s field of study. the thesis is an opportunity to work on unique research under the guidance of a faculty advisor. it often provides a writing sample for graduate school, and is also something you can share with employers to show what kind of work you can do. , what is an honors thesis.

Most of your work in college involves learning information and ideas generated by other people. When you write a thesis, you are engaging with previous work, but also adding new knowledge to your field. That means you have to know what's already been done--what counts as established knowledge; what's the current state of research; what methods and kinds of evidence are acceptable; what debates are going on. (Usually, you'll recount that knowledge in a review of the literature.) Then, you need to form a research question  that you can answer given your available skills, resources, and time  (so, not "What is love?" but "How are ideas about love different between college freshmen and seniors?"). With your advisor, you'll plan the method you will use to answer it, which might involve lab work, field work, surveys, interviews, secondary research, textual analysis, or something else--it will depend upon your question and your field. Once your research is carried out, you'll write a substantial paper (usually 20-50 pages) according to the standards of your field. Your thesis must count for at least 4 credits (some majors require that the thesis be completed over 2 semesters, and some require more than 4 credits).

What do theses look like?

The exact structure will vary by discipline, and your thesis advisor should provide you with an outline. As a rough guideline, we would expect to see something like the following:

1. Introduction 2. Review of the literature 3. Methods 4. Results 5. Analysis 6. Conclusion 7. Bibliography or works cited

In 2012, we began digitally archiving Honors theses. Students are encouraged to peruse the Honors Thesis Repository to see what past students' work has looked like. Use the link below and type your major in the search field on the left to find relevant examples. Older Honors theses are available in the Special Collections & Archives department at Dimond Library. 

Browse Previous Theses

Will my thesis count as my capstone?

Most majors accept an Honors Thesis as fulfilling the Capstone requirement. However, there are exceptions. In some majors, the thesis counts as a major elective, and in a few, it is an elective that does not fulfill major requirements. Your major advisor and your Honors advisor can help you figure out how your thesis will count. Please note that while in many majors the thesis counts as the capstone, the converse does not necessarily apply. There are many capstone experiences that do not take the form of an Honors thesis. 

Can I do a poster and presentation for my thesis?

No. While you do need to present your thesis (see below), a poster and presentation are not a thesis. 

How do I choose my thesis advisor?

The best thesis advisor is an experienced researcher, familiar with disciplinary standards for research and writing, with expertise in your area of interest. You might connect with a thesis advisor during Honors coursework, but   Honors advisors can assist students who are having trouble identifying an advisor. You should approach and confirm your thesis advisor before the semester in which your research will begin.

What if I need funds for my research?

The  Hamel Center for Undergraduate Research  offers research grants, including summer support. During the academic year, students registered in credit-bearing thesis courses may apply for an  Undergraduate Research Award  for up to $600 in research expenses (no stipend).  Students who are not otherwise registered in a credit-bearing course for their thesis research may enroll in  INCO 790: Advanced Research Experience,  which offers up to $200 for research expenses.

What if I need research materials for a lengthy period?

No problem! Honors Students can access Extended Time borrowing privileges at Dimond Library, which are otherwise reserved for faculty and graduate students. Email [email protected] with note requesting "extended borrowing privileges" and we'll work with the Library to extend your privileges.

Can I get support to stay on track?

Absolutely! Thesis-writers have an opportunity to join a support group during the challenging and sometimes isolating period of writing a thesis. Learn more about thesis support  here .

When should I complete my thesis?

Register for a Senior Honors Thesis course (often numbered 799) in the spring and/or fall of your Senior year.

This “course” is an independent study, overseen by your Thesis Advisor. Your advisor sets the standards, due dates, and grades for your project. You must earn at least a B to qualify for Honors.

What happens with my completed thesis?

Present your thesis.

All students must publicly present their research prior to graduation. Many present at the  Undergraduate Research Conference  in April; other departmentally-approved public events are also acceptable.

Publish your thesis:

Honors students are asked to make their thesis papers available on  scholars.unh.edu/honors/ . This creates a resource for future students and other researchers, and also helps students professionalize their online personas.

These theses are publicly available online. If a student or their advisor prefers not to make the work available, they may upload an abstract and/or excerpts from the work instead.

Students may also publish research in  Inquiry , UNH's undergraduate research journal.

Hamel Honors & Scholars College

• Faculty Recognition
• Faculty FAQ
• Faculty List
• Honors Outdoor Orientation Trips (HOOT)

• Sustainability
• Embrace New Hampshire
• University News
• The Future of UNH
• Campus Locations
• Calendars & Events
• Directories
• Facts & Figures
• Academic Advising
• Colleges & Schools
• Degrees & Programs
• Undeclared Students
• Course Search
• Academic Calendar
• Study Abroad
• Career Services
• How to Apply
• Visit Campus
• Undergraduate Admissions
• Costs & Financial Aid
• Net Price Calculator
• Graduate Admissions
• UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law
• Housing & Residential Life
• Clubs & Organizations
• New Student Programs
• Student Support
• Fitness & Recreation
• Student Union
• Health & Wellness
• Student Life Leadership
• Sport Clubs
• UNH Wildcats
• Intramural Sports
• Campus Recreation
• Centers & Institutes
• Undergraduate Research
• Research Office
• Graduate Research
• FindScholars@UNH
• Business Partnerships with UNH
• Professional Development & Continuing Education
• Research and Technology at UNH
• Current Students
• Faculty & Staff
• Alumni & Friends