The Big Choice: Thesis or Comprehensive Exam?
The final requirement for the American Studies
Master’s Degree
at CSUF
is the writing of either a thesis or a comprehensive
essay examination. In both cases, your work will be supervised and evaluated
by the three faculty members you have asked to serve on your
Master’s committee (one of whom you will ask to serve as chair) and have confirmed
on your study plan. In deciding whether to write the thesis or the comprehensive
exam, you should consider the following:
Thesis
A thesis in this department is an extended discussion!
argument based on complex analysis of your original research and includes a review
of the literature on your topic as well as a historical framework. With the approval of your committee chair, you enroll in AMST 598 in
your final semester of coursework You begin by developing an outline or summary
of your topic and how you plan to approach your study and then meeting with
your committee for their response and advisement regarding your research and
writing plan. Once you have completed your research, you submit drafts of each
chapter to your committee chair for their review and circulation to the other
two members. Chapters are then revised in response to faculty critique and
formatted to University guidelines for theses (the Grad Studies office publishes
these guidelines).
Once your committee has approved the final draft, your thesis is submitted
to the University thesis reader for evaluation of compliance with University
standards. Theses in American Studies are typically well over 100 pages in
length and organized into four -six chapters. You can find a listing of titles
of completed theses in American Studies on our website.
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Comprehensive Exam The comprehensive exam is based on your reading of 25 (+/-) of
the books and articles which make up the department’s Master’s
Examination Reading List. The MA Reading List is divided into three sections:
American Studies Movement: History and Theory, Processes of Cultural Change,
and Cultural Pluralism.
With the approval of your committee chair, you enroll in AMST 599 in
your final semester of coursework As you read through the works on the list,
you meet independently with the members of your committee for discussion and
guidance.
For the exam itself, you are given two questions for each section of the
reading list and you then choose one question for each section to write your
essays on. You are allowed four days (you must turn in your essays 96 hours
past the time you pick up your examination questions) to write the three essays,
each of which is characteristically 8-12 pages in length.
*The MA Reading List is currently undergoing revision and a new list will
be issued before the end of spring semester 2000. Students already enrolled
in the graduate program during or prior to this semester may choose between
the existing list and the new list. Students admitted in Fall 2000 will read
from the new list.*
Last question/answer: "Once I’ve decided! declared on my study plan!
enrolled in AMST 599 or 598, can I change my decision?" The answer here is
yes, however the farther along you are (i.e., actual enrollment in AMST 598),
the more complicated the process, so it is not an decision to be undertaken
lightly. I will be happy to talk with you at length and help you make this
decision when we meet to discuss your study plan.
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