Senior Research Paper
Psychology 496
Senior Research Paper
Procedure and Standard
I. A student interested in enrolling in psychology 490 should have an interest in a research topic applicable to psychology. (Student's Responsibility)
II. Once the research topical area has been determined the student should seek out an MSU psychology faculty member with interests in the topical area as a chair of the research project. (Student's Responsibility)
III. In consultation with the chair of the research project, the student should choose two additional faculty members to serve on the committee. (Student's and Faculty Member's Responsibility)
IV. The student should obtain the "Senior Research Project Form A" from the AS/P/SW secretary. The student should then fill out the form and obtain the necessary signatures. This form should be returned to the secretary to place in the students file. (Student's Responsibility)
V. In close consultation with the chair the student should work on their research endeavor. Constant feedback should be obtained from the chair concerning the methodology employed in the research and the quality of the work. (Student's Responsibility)
VI. Upon completion of the research project which includes the writing of the report, the project chair will schedule a time for the committee to meet and review the paper. (Faculty Member's Responsibility)
VII. The student should photocopy three copies of the paper and disseminate them to the committee at least two weeks prior to the scheduled defense. (Student's Responsibility)
VIII. During the research defense, questions are fielded by the student author and a critique of the paper is provided by the committee. The student is then asked to leave the proceedings and the committee discusses the merits of the paper. The committee then assigns a grade to the project. The chair fills out the "Senior Research Project Form B" and places it in the students file. The student is then brought back into the proceedings and is informed of the decision by the committee. The chair then submits the grade to the Records office. (Faculty Member's Responsibility)
Standard
The Senior Research project is a high quality research paper befitting the 3 semester hours given for the project. Students should expect to carry out original research with the intent of publishing the document. In rare cases a student may successfully complete the Senior Research Project by doing a review of the literature. When this occurs however, the project should be thorough and extensive. It is imperative that the student be in constant contact with the chair of their committee to obtain input on the quality and direction of the project. This paper usually requires multiple rewrites on the part of the student.
