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CA 797, CA 798, CA 799 Thesis Guidelines Updates: http://onlineacademics.org/CA797/ Dr. Joan E. Aitken: 816-584-6785 joan.aitken@park.edu
Table of Contents Term 1 Schedule & Due Dates - Term 2 Schedule & Due Dates Forms ____ Textbook ____ Thesis Organization ____ Web Resources ____ Dr. Aitken's Tutorials: APA Style Requirements - Course Expectations - IRB - Library Database Tutorial
Dr. Aitken has expertise in Communication Studies, including research in interpersonal, educational, organizational, public, Internet, and intercultural communication. Leadership studies can be a broad field that fits into this area. Only research clearly relevant to human communication will be acceptable. If you are interested in studying Mass Communication and Media Studies, Speech and Rhetorical Studies, or Telecommunication Studies, you will need a different advisor.
Dr. Aitken's Forms: http://onlineacademics.org/CA797/Forms/ Course Syllabus: http://www.park.edu/syllabus/list.aspx Research on Human Subjects Tutorial: http://onlineacademics.org/IRB Online Database Tutorial for Review of Literature: http://onlineacademics.org/LibraryTutorial/ Writing in APA Style: http://onlineacademics.org/APA.html
Please contact the College of Graduate and Professional Studies at (816) 842-6182 ext. 5525 or by e-mail gradschool@park.edu, if you have any questions.
------------------------------ Copyright Management Center at Indiana University United States Copyright Office
YOU WILL WANT TO COLLECT DATA AND WRITE THE THESIS BETWEEN CA 797 and CA 798. The thesis must be COMPLETE WEEK 2 of your last term. The 8-week sessions move very quickly. Thus, the thesis needs to be completed before you enroll in CA 798 for the last 3 credit hours. The process of defending, revising, and submitting to the thesis to the graduate school will take the whole final 8 weeks.
See Department Guidelines for Thesis Requirements.
DEPT. & PARK RULES. The student has the responsibility of finding out and following departmental and Park University rules. You will find those in the graduate catalog. Your advisor cannot over-ride departmental or university rules. The department and university requirements supersede faculty requirements.
GRADUATE RECORD EXAM (GRE). Park University requires that you complete the GRE and submit your scores to the Graduate School. You cannot graduate from the program without completing this step. See http://www.ets.org/
COMPREHENSIVE EXAMS. The department or university requires separate comprehensive exams of graduates. This exam is in addition to the Graduate Record Exam (GRE). TComps need to be PASSED at least 8 weeks prior to graduation. Ask three faculty--probably your committee--to submit questions to Dr. Cohn. When you are ready to take the exam, you contact Dr. Cohn to schedule the test. Exact requirements are up to the faculty involved. Typically, you will receive the questions via email, and you will have 24 hours to write and return the exam. Typically the comps are not proctored, so you can use any books or materials, but you canNOT use help from any person. Here is Dr. Aitken's information about comps http://onlineacademics.org/comps/
APPLICATION FOR
GRADUATION. Go to the Park website, find and complete the
online form (Application for Graduation), and pay fees for
graduation.
August Completion or
December Commencement Deadline: April 1
May Commencement Deadline: November 1
THESIS OR PROJECT? The thesis should be original research that makes a contribution to the learning in the field. The thesis will be bound and made available to the general public through the library.
TOPIC. Select a topic you love, which you have been studying in the program so far. The topic must relate to human communication or leadership.
COMMITTEE. You will present your thesis and defend your work, perhaps with other enrolled students during a meeting set up by the department. This meeting can be conducted by teleconferencing for distance students.
Your thesis needs to be completed and your committee needs to be on-board .
Graduate School Checklist for Thesis Students Proposal defense Date ____________________ Thesis Defense Date:______________________ Thesis submitted to Graduate School for approval: _______ (Yes) ________ (no) Four Copies of thesis submitted on good quality bond paper_______ (Yes) _______ (No) Additional copy submitted if copyright is requested _____ (Yes) _______ (No) Copyright application form completed _______ (Yes) ______ (No) Copyright fee paid _________ (Yes) ________ (No) Fee for binding of the thesis paid ________ (Yes) ______ (No)
Hardcopies with a cover memo of your timeline of the completed and revised thesis must be submitted to all committee members no later than six weeks prior to the date of commencement. That gives your committee only two weeks to read your thesis and for you to defend it. Obviously, that probably won't work. Make sure you warn the committee of your deadlines in advance, and you will want to send materials as you go along so there is less for them to read and respond to at the end. If you wait too long, you may not be able to graduate. During summer, you may not be able to have a committee meeting at all, so make sure the faculty you need will be available.
Please be sure to send an electronic copy to each chapter to each committee member as soon as it is done.
August Completion or December Commencement: April 1
May Commencement: November 1
Consult the Graduate Catalog and Graduate School Procedures Manual for additional information on thesis procedures. A minimum of 36 hours is required under this option, including five to six hours of CA797 Thesis design and research.
The writing of a thesis is a highly valued academic exercise and has been traditionally regarded as the culminating activity in a master’s degree program. Students may earn up to six hours of graduate credit for writing a thesis, by enrolling in 700 and 701 courses, sequentially. Continuous enrollment for an additional 1 hour is possible, with the approval of the Committee Chair. Due to the demanding nature of research and writing, all theses hours will be offered only in the traditional 16-week format.
Students should carefully plan their activities, in order to ensure that they develop a workable proposal, conduct the research, write the thesis, and get it approved by the Committee, in a timely manner. A copy of the completed thesis should be submitted to the major advisor no later than six weeks prior to the date of commencement. The Graduate School should receive a copy for final approval no later than three weeks prior to the day on which the degree is to be conferred.
Thesis Committee Candidates should consult their major advisor in forming a Committee and clarifying the role of the Committee members in the research and writing process. The primary responsibility for directing the thesis resides with the major advisor. The Committee should consist of a minimum of three approved graduate faculty, including the major advisor in the discipline area. It is advisable to include additional faculty member(s) from outside the discipline, because faculty external to the discipline can bring fresh perspectives or provide valuable assistance in the conduct of research.
Enrollment in XX 700 (3 credit hours) The candidate must register for a 700-level course in order to begin the process of developing a thesis proposal. The registration allows the student to receive advice from a member of the faculty and to utilize University facilities in preparation for the thesis. While enrolled for this course, the student is expected to be actively working on developing a formal proposal related to an area of research interest, under the direction of a faculty member who will be the major advisor or the Committee Chair. At minimum, the research proposal should identify the problem, clarify the thesis statement, select an appropriate research methodology (including the data gathering instruments and data analysis techniques) and provide an effective overview of the scholarly literature. The following general outline may be helpful in developing a proposal.
· Key concepts and definition of the project. Concisely and clearly state what the project intends to accomplish. What are the basic questions to be explored?
· Significance of the study. Why should the scientific community be interested in this study? What contribution will it make to the discipline, the profession and the society? · Review of relevant literature. How does your research relate to the work of others? Where are the gaps in literature? What do you hope to add to the literature?
· Methodology. How do you plan to approach the subject? What is your methodology and what instruments or procedures will you use to gather the data/information that you would need to address the questions? What is the justification for the use of this methodology? Do you have the resources to conduct the study, such as access to people, data, archives, collections, time, etc.?
· Plan of work and timetable. Present a realistic timetable including specific dates by which you plan to complete specific facets of the research. It would help you and the Committee to decide if you can realistically complete the project.
· Bibliography. Present a working bibliography that includes scholarly books and articles. Naturally, you will revise and expand this bibliography as you continue with your project.
Proposal Defense and Submitting the proposal to the Graduate School When the proposal is ready for defense, the student must work with the Chair in setting a date for the proposal defense. The defense must be conducted at least a semester prior to graduation and the proposal must be submitted to the Graduate School once it is approved by the Chair and all members of the Committee.
Submitting the Proposal to the Graduate School The student must work with the Chair in submitting the proposal to the Committee members for their approval. Once approved by the Committee, the Chair will forward the proposal to the Graduate School office at least a semester prior to the semester in which the student is expected to graduate.
Human Subjects Protection and IRB review In preparing the thesis proposal, students must be aware that any research which involves human subjects must be approved by the Institutional Review Board of the University in order to assure compliance with applicable federal regulations and University policies. The proposal must be reviewed and approved by the IRB according to the University procedure. Failure to gain the IRB approval will result in denial of the proposal. It is a violation of the procedures to contact human subjects prior to the IRB approval of the proposal. It is highly recommended that the IRB approval be received prior to the submission of the proposal. Additional information related to the IRB may be found at: http://captain.park.edu/irb/index.aspx.
Enrollment in XX 701 (3 credit hours) Following the approval of the thesis proposal, students may enroll in 701 and begin data gathering. Data may be collected using qualitative, quantitative, participatory, documentary, or action research methodologies, as may be appropriate. The writing of the thesis may then begin, with the guidance of the Committee Chair. Students are encouraged to consult the Chair regularly, to ensure that they receive timely and useful feedback throughout the research and writing process.
Thesis Defense An oral defense of the thesis must be satisfactorily completed and approved by the Committee, and the result of the defense must be submitted to the Graduate School, three weeks prior to graduation. Thesis defense is open to the University community.
Enrollment in XX 799 (1 credit hour) When additional time is needed to complete the thesis work, enrollment in XX 799 is permitted, in consultation with the Chair. For additional information on the thesis procedure, please consult the Director of your graduate program, or the Executive Director for the Graduate School.
APA (2001). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association. 5th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
The Master’s Thesis will address an appropriately phrased research question of interest to the student. The student may seek to answer a question through one of the following.
1. A strategy for
solving a specific communication problem
The subject of study may come from two general sources: 1. The communication environment, with which the student has first-hand experience. 2. A traditional research investigation of a particular aspect of corporate or organizational communication or leadership. In some cases, the subject may be a combination of the two sources.
Enroll in CA 798 only if your thesis draft is finished, and you are ready to graduate. Otherwise, you will find yourself paying extra tuition for continuous enrollment (CA799)!
Heffner, (2003). Research methods. All Psych Online. There are few areas in education that are covered on the Internet as well as research, so you may find this choice most helpful. Many of the test questions come from Heffner, which is totally available online. http://allpsych.com/researchmethods/researchcontents.html
Good Questions /
Better Answers: A Formative Research Handbook for California HIV
Prevention Programs
[guide to relevant research methods]
Introduction to Data
Collection and Analysis
[SC101: Deakin University]
Grading: The thesis will be pass/fail, if the department uses that approach.
Term 1: 100% of the thesis grade is based on the
advisor's evaluation of the proposal/project submitted by week 6 and
revised by Monday of week 8.
Term 2: 100% of the project/thesis grade is based on the
advisor and committee decision on the quality of the final proposal submitted to the department/graduate school week 5
of term 2.
Please use the
discussion/post area of eCollege/eCompanion
to submit your weekly progress
reports and brainstorm with other
people in the course.
Aitken's Homepage
http://onlineacademics.org/
Guidelines for Students
http://onlineacademics.org/Guidelines.html
Late Work
http://onlineacademics.org/Guidelines.html#BE_ON_TIME
Office Hours
http://onlineacademics.org/Guidelines.html#OFFICE
Teaching Philosophy
http://onlineacademics.org/Guidelines.html#PHILOSOPHY
1.
Introduction
Refining the scholar’s
analytical and problem-solving
skills as a prelude to a life of
further study and independent
research is a primary goal of
graduate study, and the process
of producing a Thesis is
intended to help the degree
candidate achieve that goal. The
procedure a graduate student
must go through in getting his
or her Thesis approved
simulates, in many respects, the
“real world” process of
submitting a scholarly
manuscript for publication. For
example, scholarly work outside
the university is subject to
intensive scrutiny by peers in
the author's discipline.
Similarly, the Thesis is
reviewed for content and rigor
of methodology and relevance to
the field by the degree
candidate's faculty advisers.
Prior to being accepted for
publication in scholarly
journals, manuscripts are not
only reviewed for validity of
content by other scholars who
serve on editorial review
boards, but they are also
examined for conformance to
specific format style
guidelines. Failure to meet the
appropriate standards in the
disciplines will result in
rejection of the work.
Correctly formatting the THESIS
is a tedious endeavor; however,
if the degree candidate reads
the guide carefully and
incorporates the formatting
standards
throughout the writing
stage, the approval process will
be much less onerous.
The completion of the graduate
Thesis represents the
culmination of the degree
program. It is the apex of the
candidate's achievement in the
university, and it
reflects the author's research
methodology, subject knowledge,
insights and thinking as a
scholar. Printed copies of the
THESIS will be bound, cataloged,
and shelved in the Park library. Master’s theses will also be
published on microfilm through
the University Microfilms
International (hereinafter
referred to as UMI)
Information Service and made
available to researchers
throughout the world.
Steps in the Approval Process
Approval of the THESIS begins
with the candidate's supervisory
committee. The candidate works
closely with his or her research
advisers while writing the
various sections of the
manuscript. For all degree
candidates, when the committee
members feel the work is
complete and ready for final
defense by the candidate, each
committee member will complete
notify the
committee chair. The committee
chair will then determine a
final defense date and announce
that date with two weeks notice.
The candidate
will print the two required
deposit copies on archival
quality, acid-free paper. These
two, unbound copies are then
deposited with the appropriate
University Library by the
deadline noted for the current term.
One
of the deposit copies must
include the approval page with
the original faculty
signatures as well as the
abstract with the original
signature of their committee chair.
At the time of this printing,
UMI's
microfilming fee is $70
$60 - $100 for theses; however, UMI periodically changes the
required fee. When the is ready
for deposit, the candidate
should check with the Reference
Librarian to
confirm the current
amount of this fee. The
Libraries will only accept a
cashiers' check or money order,
made payable to ProQuest
Information & Learning Co., for
both the
microfilming fee and the
optional copyright fee ($45).
This may be two separate
cashiers' checks or money
orders, both made out to
ProQuest Information & Learning
Co.; it may also be one
cashiers' check or money
order made out to ProQuest
Information & Learning Co., in
the total amount of more than
$100 for theses.
2. Producing the Thesis
A THESIS may be produced with a
typewriter, word processor, or
computer using word
processing software. The
author is responsible for:
Ethical research.
Collection of data.
Writing content.
The correct presentation of the
content, references, and
illustrative materials of the
manuscript. Making sure the format of the
finished
document meets
university standards.
The appropriate arrangement of
the parts of the manuscript as
specified
in this guide. Sentence
structure, paragraphing,
punctuation, spelling, accuracy
and citation of
Correct
quotations, with exact page
numbers. Proofreading the manuscript. Seeing that the bibliographic
citations conform to the
appropriate standard.
Contacting the School of
Graduate Studies Thesis Research
Assistant to check the
manuscript's format.
Being aware of, and meeting, all
departmental and School of
Graduate Studies' deadlines
for submission of Thesis for
approval. Getting copyright permission for
any copyrighted material
included in the manuscript.
If someone other than the
author, such as a professional
typist, types the manuscript, he
or she is only responsible for
producing accurate, neat,
legible copy that conforms to a
specified format. Typists
usually do not make editing
decisions, spelling corrections,
or changes in grammar or syntax.
The author, not the typist, is
responsible for the work.
If your advisor
provides writing help or a
template, you still need to read
all cited works and rework the
information into your own words.
Formatting Standards Print
Quality and Size
Print must be black, with a
sharp, dark image. [The print
must be letter quality. No
dot-matrix printing unless type
runs 12 pins per matrix (more
than 200 dots per inch)].
Standard type size of 10-12
characters per inch is required.
[If using word processing
software with point-style
fonts, the font size must be at
least 12 points.]
Use standard type faces only;
script, italicized or slanted
type faces for the body of the
thesis. Use italics
instead of underlining.
Use a uniform type face and size
of type throughout the THESIS.
This includes preliminary
matter; text; reference list;
within tables; for all headings,
sub-headings, table headings,
and figure legends; on title
pages; for all page numbers; and
for the text of all footnotes.
Print only on one side of each
page.
Spacing
Double-space the body of the
thesis .
Do not put an extra
double-space between paragraphs.
Triple-space, leaving two blank
lines, between chapter headings
and either the
subheading or first line of text that follows (this usually requires that
the soft-ware used be
capable of single and
double-spacing).*
Triple-space before subheadings
that are preceded by text. If,
however, a subheading is
preceded by another subheading
rather than text, double-space
between the two subheadings.
Quadruple-space, leaving three
blank lines, before and/or after
tables and figures that are
inserted on the same page as
text.
Lengthy quotations (more than 40
words or four typed lines)
should be set as a block,
indented from the left margin,
and single-spaced.
Footnotes must be single-spaced,
but, if there are multiple
footnotes on the same page,
there must be a blank line
between footnotes.
The items listed in the
Table of Contents
may be single-spaced within the
item, but must have a
blank line between items.
Indent the first word of each
paragraph 6-8 spaces
(approximately 1/2 inch) from
the lefthand margin. Be
consistent throughout the
manuscript with the number of
spaces used for indentation
(e.g. do not use 6 spaces for
paragraph indentations in one
place and 7 or 8 spaces in
others).
*Hint for triple spacing in
Microsoft Word - Keep all text
double spaced, even
between chapter numbers, chapter titles, and headings. THEN, use the
"Spacing" Before & After"
feature to set triple spacing
where you need it as follows:
Click on the title or heading
around which you need triple
spacing.
Select Format/Paragraph.
Under Spacing/Before--After,
add 12 pts (equal to one
single-spaced line) before [By
adding 12 points, or 1 line, to
a double space...you get triple
space!]
Margins
The following are minimum
margin requirements for all
pages of the manuscript. Margins
may be larger, but not less,
than these minimums. Material in
the appendices must also meet
these margin requirements. For
some materials, this may require
photo-reducing the page and then
adding a page number on the
photo-copy.
Left: Must
be no less than 1-1/4 inches
from
left edge of paper.
Right: Must
be no less than 1 inch
from the right edge of paper.
Top:
The
first
line of text must be at least
1-1/4 inches from the top edge
of the page.
Bottom: Must be
no less than one inch.
The bottom of the page number
must be above the one inch
margin.
The margin is determined by the
last letter or character in the
longest line on the page. Some
copiers enlarge the original
about one percent. Therefore,
production of an original with
margins larger than the
acceptable minimum is
recommended if the deposit
copies will be photocopied.
Allowing an extra 1/8" on each
side is advisable.
Page Numbering
-
All pages must be
numbered, with the exception of
the title page, the copyright or
blank page, the Approval page,
pages with
figure
legends only,
and part-title and/or
appendix title-pages.
-
All pages are
counted in the numbering
system, even if not numbered,
except the copyright or blank
page and the dedication page (if
used).
-
Preliminary pages
(e.g., abstract, table of
contents, acknowledgments, etc.)
that
precede the main text are
numbered separately from the
rest of the work, using lower
case Roman numerals, beginning
with the numeral "ii" on the
first page of the
Abstract. On these preliminary
pages, the number is placed in
the center at least one inch
above the bottom of the page.
-
The text, starting
with Chapter 1, is numbered
consecutively, beginning with
Arabic numeral 1. All pages may
be numbered at the bottom
center, at least one inch above
the bottom edge of the page.
-
No portion of the
page number may extend into the
margin areas noted in the
previous section.
-
The word "page" is
not used before the numerals.
-
To keep their
location and size uniform
throughout, page numbers are
added
after reducing tables,
figures, or over-size
appendix materials to
fit within the margin
guidelines.
-
On photo-copied
materials in the appendices, the
page number is enclosed in
brackets to indicate it was not
part of the original material.
-
The font type and
size of the page numbers must be
the same as the text in the body
of the THESIS.
Corrections
Handwritten corrections will not
be accepted. The use of
correction fluid, correction
tape, pencil, ballpoint, or felt
tip markers is not allowed in
the final copy. Corrections must
be made so that the final copy
is clear and clean.
Acid-free Cotton Rag Paper Quality
After the Thesis has been
certified for acceptance by the
School of Graduate Studies,
successfully defended, and
approved in writing by the
candidate's supervisory
committee members, two unbound
copies, printed on library
appropriate acid-free paper.
Graphics
Clarity and quality are required
for all illustrative material
(charts, maps, graphs, figures,
tables, music, photographs).
Tables
-
Use APA table
format. Again, the style used
must be consistent throughout
the manuscript.
-
If a table appears
on a text page, three blank
lines should be left above and
below the table.
-
No vertical
rules are allowed at the sides
of a table.
APA does not allow any
vertical rules in tables.
-
Tables
should be placed as close as
possible after the first
reference to the table in the
text.
APA tables are treated the same
way, since this is a final
manuscript, not an article to be
typeset by the journal. See APA
5th Edition, Section 6.03, for
more information.
-
Table numbering.
Tables are numbered
consecutively in whole numbers
throughout the text of the
THESIS. Tables included in an
appendix should be
numbered separately from the
tables in the text, such as A1,
A2, and so on.
Figures
Technical requirements.
Original material should be
rendered with a permanent,
non-water soluble, black ink
(e.g. India ink, waterproof drawing
ink) or produced by high
quality computer line graphics.
The same quality and size of
type required for the text is
required for headings, keys, and
all other identifying
information.
Originals or photocopies of line
drawings, graphs and charts may
be submitted. Count all
illustrated pages, but do not
physically number pages with
legends only.
Legends and numbering.
Legends for figures are
single-spaced and are centered
beneath figures on the same
pages as the figures, if
possible. On full-page figures,
if
adequate space is not available on the same page, center the legend for a
plate or continuous
figure on the facing page and
place the figure on the
following page.
The figure legend begins with
"Figure" (or the abbreviation
"Fig" followed by a period), the
number of the figure, another
period, two spaces and the title
of the figure.
Figures are numbered with
consecutive Arabic numerals
throughout the thesis .
Oversize material. If
graphic material is too large
for the standard page and
format, it may be photo-reduced
to fit within the margins.
However, all graphic material
must be legible and must lend
itself to microfilming. Figure
legends and page numbers
remain standard size;
add them after the graphic
material has been reduced.
If slight reduction of graphic
material is not possible, the
sheet may be folded and mounted
on a blank sheet of acid-free
bond paper. When folded, that
sheet must fall within the
regular margins as measured on
the blank sheet. The blank sheet
is numbered in the usual manner.
If oversize material must be
used, fold it to fit inside a
pocket that will be inserted
into the thesis . It can be
unfolded flat for perusal. Be
sure to fold the
oversize sheet to allow 1-1/4
inches on the binding edge and a
smaller page overall--about 7
X 10-1/2 inches--so the bindery
can trim the three edges of the
Thesis without slicing
into the folds. The trimming may
remove 1/8 inch or more from
each of the three open edges.
Insert the pocket that will hold
the oversize material near where
the text mentions that material.
(The document weight paper
discussed in Mounting Photos
and Other Prints, which
follows, is sufficiently pliable
to be folded in this manner.)
Placement. If figures (or
tables) are too wide to fit
within the margins for the
standard "portrait" orientation
on the page, they may be turned
horizontally on the page with a
"landscape" orientation. The top
of the figure should then be
placed at the book's binding
edge (left margin of paper). On
pages for these "broadside"
figures (or tables), the page
number must remain at the
bottom center of the page.
[This means that the student may
have to run the page through the
printer twice, once as a blank
page with only the page number
in order to put the page number
in the proper place, exactly the
same as on other
pages, and again to properly
place the broadside figure or
table on the page.
Alternatively, the page number
may be manually typed in the
appropriate location.]
Figures inserted within the body
of the THESIS must not precede
the first mention of the figure
in the text. All figures must
be referred to in the text,
by number, before the
figures themselves are inserted
in the THESIS. Place small
figures on a page with some
text, or center them on separate
sheets. Position each full-page
figure on a separate page
immediately following the place
where it is first mentioned in
the text.
Special media. If
videotapes or audiotapes are
used, include two copies and
note "accompanying material
available" within the text.
University Microfilms, Inc.
(UMI) will not record videos. In
order to include other types of
multi-media components with
THESIS, candidates must petition
the Department of Communication
Arts prior to beginning the
work.
Mounting of photographs and
other prints
-
Use photos with
images no smaller than 3-inch X
5-inch, no larger than 5-inch X
7-inch. Preferably,
photographs should be printed
directly onto a lightweight
document paper that is washed
and processed to reduce or
neutralize the chemicals which
cause deterioration, observing
the margin guidelines, and
trimmed to 8-1/2" by 11" size.
-
Use no color
photos: Color photographs
are impermanent and do not
reproduce well (or in color) on
microfilm. If using color
photos, they must be processed
into black and white copies or
color reproductions that will be
mounted inside the thesis .
Include original photos with
both the Archives and library
copies of the manuscript. |