Identify a Thesis Committee Chair and Faculty Reader

Once a student has identified a general area of research interest, we encourage students to consider carefully the expertise and research focus of faculty who may be willing to serve as chair of their thesis committee. Often, students are familiar with faculty from whom they have taken one or more courses and have begun to foster a working relationship. Other times, students have worked on research projects or in a lab with a faculty member. Honors Coordinators know the faculty in their discipline and their general research interests, and often refer students to possible mentors and field experts. Department web sites and faculty directories can also provide research profiles that may facilitate a student's search. We encourage students and faculty to focus on a good mentoring relationship first, and a specific thesis topic second.  It is problematic if students identify too narrow of a thesis topic on their own and subsequently find there are no faculty with the requisite interest or expertise to support their research. Students should consult with potential committee members individually prior to extending official invitations through the Honors Thesis Tracker.

Honors Policy Note: Honors thesis committee chairs must be BYU full-time, tenure-track faculty.  Honors Coordinators are, by nature of their assignment, also full-time faculty.  Whenever possible, faculty readers should also be full-time BYU faculty; however, the faculty reader(s) may be visiting/part-time/adjunct if their expertise is important to the thesis research. Outside experts (non-BYU personnel) may be included as a fourth member of a committee. Students should clearly articulate an adjunct’s role, their qualifications, and importance to the thesis project in their prospectus. All members of the committee should be available through the complete thesis process, including the final defense, so students should avoid including committee members who do not plan to remain at BYU. (Adopted March 2017)