Independent Study and Honors in Religion

Procedures for Honors

Students who have demonstrated exemplary skill and discipline in their coursework are encouraged to undertake an honors project. Such students must think carefully about their commitment to completing an intensive research project during their senior year. In addition, they must be able to articulate a particular question to research as well as contextualize their question within broader conversations in the discipline of religious studies. Students are expected to draw theoretical resources and methodological insights from Religion 3390 and to produce their own scholarly work. The faculty recommends that religion majors begin thinking about and discussing with a member of the department a possible project as early as their junior year so as to take advantage of summer research funding. 

To embark on research for an honors project in religion, students enroll  in an honors project in the fall semester of their senior year with a specific department member who has agreed to supervise the project. Students must also complete the online Independent Study/Honors Project Request Form. Please submit the request form well in advance of the deadline so the faculty member has time to review and respond. Further details on how to enroll in an honors project are available at the Office of the Registrar’s website.

**If the student and faculty members decide at a later date that the completion of the honors project is not tenable, the honors enrollment credit will transform into independent study credit, for one or two semesters.**

Once the fall semester begins, students consult with their advisor to determine a meeting and work schedule. This will generally include weekly check-in meetings that are shaped around reading, research, and writing assignments. Generally, the fall semester is devoted mostly to reading and research, while the spring semester is focused on writing. However, students may determine a schedule that works for them in consultation with their advisor, and in some cases (particularly undertaking ethnographic research or accessing archives) arrangements for research may begin in advance of the fall semester.

There are a series of deadlines observed for honors projects, meant to give students ongoing feedback and direction from their supervisor and the honors committee. First, students must submit a copy of their 1-2 page preliminary proposal to each thesis committee member (generally, every member of the department not on leave that year) by September 15. The committee members will discuss the proposal and the advisor will report back to the student. Based on feedback received, students submit to each member of the department a copy of a formal prospectus of 6-8 pages with an attached bibliography by November 1. A full chapter draft is due to the advisor at the start of reading week of the fall semester. 

Proposing an Honors Project

Faculty members and students are at liberty to determine a writing schedule for the honors project; however, they are urged to adhere to the following guidelines: a second installment by the start of February; a third installment by the start of March and an entire first draft completed by the start of April. After students receive committee feedback on their full draft (within two weeks of its submission), a revised full draft is submitted in early May. The final thesis is due in mid-May, with the exact date determined by the Office of the Registrar each year.

Deadlines for successive writing submissions to honors advisors after the approval of the prospectus:

• Draft of one chapter by the end of the fall semester
• A second installment (typically a second chapter) by the start of February
• A third installment by the start of March
• An entire first draft is completed by the start of April
• Feedback for these installments will be delivered in written form and in meetings with one’s advisor.
• A final version of the thesis is submitted to the entire committee at the start of May
• Committee feedback will be returned to the candidate within two weeks of the submission date
• Any remaining concerns will be discussed between the candidate and their advisor, and must be addressed in the final honors thesis before its formal submission to the Library 

Presentations

Toward the end of the spring semester, generally during the last week of classes, honors candidates will offer a presentation of their research to the religion faculty, as well as majors, minors, and other interested students. This is an opportunity for candidates to articulate the various components of their project, to anticipate possible limitations of their approach, and to consider questions and implications pertaining to their research. The department also regards it as an opportunity to showcase possibilities for honors projects to prospective majors and minors. 

Oral Examination

An oral examination will be scheduled during reading period at the conclusion of the spring semester. Conducted by all members of the honors committee, the examination will last for roughly one hour. At the outset, the candidate will summarize their thesis and research findings and then conversations will ensue on issues pertaining to the research paper and its wider implications for the study of religion. The oral examination provides an important opportunity for students to showcase the work they have completed and to clarify any points raised by faculty in relation to their written work.

Evaluation

On the basis of the research paper, the oral examination, and the student’s work throughout the year, the departmental faculty will determine whether or not the student is to be granted: (a) no honors; (b) honors; (c) high honors.* Candidates will be notified of their evaluation after all have completed their oral examinations.

*Criteria for Honors

• Thesis is clear and does not duplicate existing literature
• Argument is well-structured and persuasive
• Sure grasp of relevant literature
• Supplies rationales for method
• Well prepared for oral exam 

*Criteria for High Honors

In addition to above:

• Articulates a significant contribution to the study of religion
• Evidences a clear understanding of the implications of the argument
• Mastery of relevant literature
• Strong performance in the oral exam
• Displays exceptional skill and accomplishment in research (e.g., extensive ethnographic work, archival work internationally and/or in multiple languages)

Students should be aware that high honors is rarely awarded. It celebrates a student’s clear and consistent demonstration of going above and beyond both with respect to the process and the final product. 

Library

The final version of one’s honors thesis is to be uploaded to the Bowdoin Library’s Digital Commons website no later than 5:00 p.m. on the date given by the Registrar's Office. Ensure that you follow the guidelines given for the specified form and accompanying materials, which are distributed to candidates in the weeks prior, and submit your paper well before this hard deadline.