CyberOrientation@JSU...............................The Masters' Thesis or Project
BooksStudents in selected Master’s programs must demonstrate evidence of a high degree of scholarship, competence in scholarly exposition and ability to select, organize and apply knowledge through a thesis.  “Guidelines for Preparing the Master’s Thesis” as developed and enhanced by the Graduate Faculty of Jackson State University, provides examples of best practices concerning format standards that must be met before it receives final approval by the Division of Graduate Studies. 

The unit highlights items from Chapter 3:  Technical Details.  It is not meant to replace the “Guidelines for Preparing the Masters's Thesis” or "Guidelines for Preparing the Master's Project". 
Each student should obtain a copy of the “Guidelines for Preparing the Masters' Thesis” or
"Guidelines for Preparing the Masters' Project" for full details.
Contents

Initial Steps
1. Thesis/Project Committee Approval Form    (Click here for a Committee Approval Form)
2. Institutional Review Board (IRB) and Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC)
3.  Proposal.  The Division of Graduate Studies does not define the content or style for a proposal. Please consult your committee chairperson.
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Arrangement of Preliminary Items in the Thesis/Project.      

Title Page………….Required……..counted as page “i”, but not numbered.
Approval Page……. Required…. …counted as page “ii”, but not numbered.
Copyright Page…… Optional…….. no page number.
Dedication Page……Optional……...no page number.
Table of Contents….Required………Must be numbered as page “iii”.
List of Tables…….. If needed………Small Roman numeral.
List of Figures……..If needed………Small Roman numeral.
Acknowledgements..Required………Small Roman numeral
Abstract……………Required………counted as page, but not numbered.

  1. Title Page:  This page is assigned the Roman numeral “i”, although the number does not appear.  The date used is the month and year of commencement.  The page must be spaced EXACTLY as shown in Appendix A of the “Guidelines for Preparing the Master's Thesis” or the Project Guidelines.
  2. Approval Page:  Each copy of the thesis/project must have an approval page using the exact wording and format shown on the sample page in Appendix A of the “Guidelines for Preparing the Master's Thesis” or the Project Guidelines. This sheet must be on the same brand and weight of paper as the remainder of the thesis/project.  Although the page may be a copy,  THE COMMITTEE SIGNATURES MUST BE ORIGINAL.  Black ink is required for the original signatures.  (Use of ink of other color will result in the thesis/project being returned.)  Approval pages are not numbered.
  3. Table of Contents:  The first page of the Table of Contents must be “iii”.  Other pages are numbered consecutively.  The page number is centered at the bottom of the page.  Chapter or Section Titles, References, Appendix(es) and Vita must be included. Although it is not necessary to include all levels of headings, inclusion must be consistent.  If a particular level is included at any point, all headings of that level must be included. This page should have a 2 inch top margin.
  4. Abstract:  The abstract is a brief summary of the problem and the results of the research.  The abstract of a thesis/project should be concise review of the work and must not exceed 600 words.   This page is numbered for the Table of Contents, but the page number must not appear on the page.  This page should have a 2 inch top margin.
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Text
Refer to the style manual required by your department for items not discussed in the “Guidelines for Preparing the Master's Thesis” or the Project Guidelines.
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Paper
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End Items
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Approval Process
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Closing Comments

Submission of a thesis/project should not be interpreted as approval.  Approval comes only after the document is read and the format reviewed for consistency with guidelines.  The final copy of the thesis/project must be acceptable to all members of the committee as witnessed by the signatures on the approval page.

Student’s Responsibility
  1. Choosing a chairperson following the policies & guidelines of the major department.
  2. Choosing the members of the thesis/project committee in conjunction with the chairperson following the policies & guidelines of the major department.
  3. Meeting with the chairperson and setting a schedule for completion of the thesis/project in a timely manner.
  4. Keeping on schedule.
  5. Turning in all thesis/project material to chairperson typed in correct format.
  6. Knowing and meeting all deadlines.
  7. Filing all forms in a timely manner.

 Advisor and Committee’s Responsibility
It is the chairperson’s and committee members’ responsibility to know policies, rules, and regulations of both the Division of Graduate Studies and the major department relative to the thesis/project process.

In addition the chair is also responsible for..
  1. Ensuring that the student is aware of the rules, regulations and policies of the Division of Graduate Studies and the department.
  2. Assisting the student in the formation of a committee.
  3. Meeting with the student on a regular basis.
  4. Keeping the scheduled appointments.
  5. Ensuring that the student’s work is properly documented and not plagiarized.
  6. Scheduling the prospectus hearing, if required, and the final defense of the thesis/project.
  7. Notifying the committee members and the Department chair of the place, time & date of the prospectus hearing.
  8. Notifying the Graduate Dean, College Dean, Department chair and committee members of the place, time & date of the final defense.
Committee’s Responsibility

It is the committee members’ responsibility to …
  1. Attend the prospectus hearing and final defense.
  2. Read the student’s work throughout the writing process.
  3. Provide written feedback for correcting and/or improving the thesis/project.
Department Chair/Program Director’s Responsibility

It is the department chair/program director’s responsibility for knowing and enforcing policies, rules, and regulations of both the Division of Graduate Studies and department/program. 

The chair/director is also responsible for....
  1. Ensuring that the graduate faculty of the department/program know and adhere to the policies, rules and regulations of the Division of Graduate Studies.
  2. Keeping the faculty abreast of rule, policy and procedure changes from the Division of Graduate Studies.
  3. Serving as a liaison between the student and the advisor, if necessary.
  4. Ensuring the thesis/project advisor and all committee members are qualified to serve.
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Sample Pages
Title Page
 Approval Page
Table of Contents
 Abstract
Sample Table
 Vita
Sample Figure
 Vita (2)

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Last Revised:  August 2006