Guidelines for Senior Thesis
Overview
The senior thesis program in mathematics has three main objectives for the student:
- Acquisition of in-depth familiarity with some area of mathematics. (This is essential.)
- Production of some original mathematical research. (While highly desirable, this may not always happen.)
- Presentation of ones work in both written and oral form, which meets professional standards (This also is essential.)
In summary, a thesis student, guided by the faculty advisor, should experience a taste of the life of a professional research mathematician.
Senior thesis students normally enroll in Math 197 in both the fall and spring semesters of the senior year. Students are responsible for fulfilling the following requirements:
- Submit a thesis proposal that meets departmental approval.
- Meet regularly with the faculty advisor, and make consistent progress on the thesis throughout the school year.
- Attend and participate fully in the senior thesis seminar, Math 197.
- Thoroughly review the scientific literature germane to the research project.
- Keep a notebook recording the student's progress on the research.
- Submit draft and final versions of the thesis, in accordance with the deadlines in the attached Calendar.
- Make oral and poster presentations as laid out in the Calendar and present the work during HMC Presentations Days.
- Maintain a webpage which contains a description of the project, and link to the page an electronic version of the thesis upon its completion.
While completing a Senior Thesis is demanding, it can also be a rewarding preview of a career as a research mathematician.
Senior Thesis in the Undergraduate Curriculum
A full year of either Mathematics Clinic (Math 193) or Senior Thesis (Math 197) is required for the mathematics major. Students who take a year of Clinic may also take one or two semesters of Senior Thesis. See the Math Thesis Coordinator for details.
In the spring of the junior year, each student chooses a thesis committee of at least two members: the thesis advisor and a second reader. At least one of these must be a member of the HMC Mathematics Department; the other could be from a different department or college. The student must submit a proposal (see Calendar for deadlines) for a thesis topic to the department, and must obtain departmental approval before being allow to undertake thesis research.
Students are encouraged to look over some theses from previous years, to get an idea of what is expected. Previous years' theses are archived in the mathematics department, and can be found physically in the Mathematics Library (Olin B161) or on the web.
Students are strongly encouraged to write up their thesis work and submit it for publication in a mathematical journal; the advisor can assist with the choice of journal. The HMC student journal Interface may be an appropriate publication for interdisciplinary theses; work published in Interface may also be submitted to other journals. Students are also encouraged to give additional presentations on their thesis work. One possible venue is the regional Mathematical Association of America (MAA) meetings in the fall (student talks) or spring (poster session).
