Write a Thesis Prospectus
After a faculty member has agreed to serve as chair of the thesis committee, the student should meet with them to narrow the topic or research question to a manageable scope and identify an appropriate hypothesis or thesis question. Both student and faculty chair may need to be flexible and willing to explore options before settling on a specific area of research; however, it is up to the faculty chair (not the student) to determine if a topic shows sufficient depth and promise for an Honors thesis based on Honors Program guidelines and discipline-specific standards. The student then works with their committee chair to write a thesis prospectus; this may require multiple drafts before the chair and student agree it is ready for review by the other thesis committee members. Committee members will offer comments and suggestions about prospectus content and parameters. Multiple drafts may be required and students should expect to revise the prospectus based on committee feedback. Students and committee members should refer to the Honors Thesis Prospectus Guidelines for prospectus requirements. Sample thesis prospectuses are also available on the Honors website.
Institutional Review Board (IRB)
The faculty chair and other committee members should determine whether Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval is required for the project and submit the appropriate application on behalf of the student. If a project warrants IRB review, approval must be obtained and the IRB number recorded in Honors Thesis Tracker before the prospectus is submitted to the Honors Program for final review and approval. Students and faculty chairs must comply with all university IRB guidelines and policies, including requisite CITI training. Refer to the university IRB website for training, application, and additional resources (http://irb.byu.edu). If students plan to conduct surveys as part of the research process, they must also comply with BYU Survey Policy.
AA/LLM Policy for Honors Theses
Generative AI use must be approved in advance and in writing by the student’s committee and disclosed in the final product, including an explanation of their use, the tool(s) used, full text of prompts, and full texts of responses. The following guidelines apply:
a. If you copy language verbatim from a Generative AI tool, you must use quotation marks and provide a citation note to indicate that the words used were not your own that includes the prompt.
b. If you paraphrase output from a Generative AI tool, you must provide a citation note indicating that the idea, format, and syntax were not originally your own.
c. Failure to provide proper attribution and citations violates the academic honesty policies and will result in a student being subject to disciplinary measures.
Academic Freedom Policy
Honors theses and their authors are subject to the BYU Academic Freedom Policy. Individual freedom of expression is broad, presumptive, and essentially unrestrained except for matters that seriously and adversely affect the University mission or the Church. Every university places some limitations on academic freedom, and at BYU reasonable limitations are in place for behavior or expression that:
- contradicts or opposes, rather than analyzes or discusses, fundamental Church doctrine or policy;
- deliberately attacks or derides the Church or its general leaders; or
- violates the Honors Code because the expression is dishonest, illegal, unchaste, profane, or unduly disrespectful of others.
Submit Prospectus
Once all thesis committee members have reviewed the prospectus and the student has completed any required revisions, committee members approve the prospectus in the Honors Thesis Tracker. The prospectus then moves to Honors Program personnel for Executive Committee review and approval. Do not wait to submit a prospectus after completing a project or major portion of it. The prospectus must be submitted beforehand. The Honors Program will notify the student and thesis committee with approval – typically within two weeks of submission.