George Mason University

Registering for a thesis requires advance planning--start the semester before you plan to enroll at the latest.  Registration comes only at the end of a number of steps...

 

STEP 1: Finding a Committee

 

The first time-sensitive task is finding a director.  Faculty schedules generally fill up a semester in advance, so students planning a spring thesis should already be working to find an appropriate director. (Note that in general faculty do not oversee thesis work during the summer, although there are some rare exceptions; still, you should not count on it.)

You are encouraged to identify a director who has some expertise in, and sympathy for, the project you're considering--a past PWE instructor, for instance, whose class inspired the project in some way.  Please note that your advisor is not automatically your director; note, too, that not all faculty are willing to work with students whom they haven't taught at least once.

Of course, all thesis students need two other readers as well a director; these can be chosen in consultation with the director.  In general, all three readers are from the department; on occasion, however, it is possible to bring in someone from outside the department within the university, if the subject demands a specific expertise that isn't represented in the department. The outside member needs to be formally vetted both by the committee and by the MA Programs Director (Tamara Harvey), and can never serve as director.

 

STEP 2: Submitting a Proposal

 

• Proposal Checklist:
  • Draft proposal with your director and committee
    • Work with your director on drafting and refining a proposal, which should combine a sense of the aims of the thesis with a scholarly/related bibliography that in some way supports the project.  The length and style of your proposal are negotiated with your director. There is no template for the proposal.
  • Attach proposal to thesis signature page
    • Signature page template
    • Collect signatures by either...
      • taking your proposal around to your committee members -OR-
      • leaving your proposal and signature sheet with the graduate programs manager and sending an email to your committee members asking them to sign
        • Committee members may see the graduate programs manager to sign or they may send their permission to sign via email

STEP 3: Turn in Your Signed Proposal:

 

• If you chose to collect signatures on your own, please turn in the signed proposal to the graduate programs manager
• The graduate program manager will collect two more signatures from the graduate director and from the department chair. Once the proposal has been signed by the department chair, the graduate programs manager will send you an email with registration information.

 

 

STEP 4: Registering for ENGL 799:

 

You must complete the proposal checklist above and receive registration info via email before you can register for thesis hours. 

Once you receive the registration information (CRN and section number), you may register for ENGL 799.

• ENGL 799 is a variable credit course, but you must start by registering for three credit hours in your first semester of thesis. After that you may choose to take fewer hours per semester, depending on your schedule.
• Once your thesis is under way, you must stay enrolled for at least one additional credit a semester (not counting summers) until it is completed. 
• If you are a PWE student, your thesis is three units.  All other concentrations, including PWR, require six units of thesis that should stretch over at least two semesters.
• If ENGL 799 is the only class you are taking, all the above steps should be taken prior to the start of the semester to avoid a late registration fee.

 

 

Completing and Submitting Your Thesis

 

Once you have completed the required number of thesis hours and are in the final stages of writing your thesis, you need to meet with Sarah Patton, the GMU Dissertation and Thesis Coordinator, in Fenwick library. She must approve your formatting prior to printing a final copy. She can be reached at 703.993.2222 or spatton@gmu.edu.  Please note that the sooner you contact Sarah Patton, the easier this process will be for you.

• There are thesis formatting workshops held each semester that can help answer formatting questions. The workshops are purely informational. Should you not be able to attend a workshop, the information presented in workshop is available online at thesis.gmu.edu. Emails go out to the listserv with workshop annoucements.

After your thesis formatting is approved, once again you need to acquire all of your committee members signatures (who, we assume have read the thesis and approve of it).  Once again, the Gradaute programs manager can help collect signatures from your committee members.  Please note one important difference: even though the graduate programs manager could sign by proxy for your committee members on your thesis proposal, THE GRADUATE PROGRAMS MANAGER CAN NOT SIGN FOR YOUR COMMITTEE MEMBERS ON THE FINAL SIGNATURE SHEET. 

 

Signature checklist:

 

• Print the correct number of copies of your signature sheet (two if your are turning in two hard copies of your thesis and one if you are turning in one hard copy and one electronic copy. You may also print extras for yourself or as backup if you like.)  

 

• Collect signatures by either...
  • taking your signature sheets around to your committee members -OR-
  • leaving your signature pages with the graduate programs manager and sending an email to your committee members asking them to sign.
    • In this case, the faculty members must sign the signature sheets. Approvals can not be accepted via email.
    • Signatures may be difficult to collect in summer months as many faculty are not on campus or live elsewhere during the summer months. It is best to plan to complete your thesis in the fall or spring.
    • If you have a faculty member on your committee who does not live in the immediate area, it is your responsibility to collect his/her signature. This may require mailing signature sheets out to a faculty member. Please plan accordingly and allow enough time to collect signatures.
    • All signatures must be in black ink. There are no exceptions.
• Collect the department chair's signature
  • It is best to send an email to the department chair to arrange a time to meet. Robert Matz, the English Department Chair, can be reached at rmatz@gmu.edu.
    • Where to go:
      • Robinson A, Room 487
    • What to bring:
      • Your thesis (at least one copy) and your signature sheet(s)
• Collect the dean's signature
  • It is best to send an email to the graduate academic affairs office to a arrange a time to get the dean's signature. Susan Turriziani in the graduate academic affairs office can be reached at sturrizi@gmu.edu.
    • Where to go:
      • College Hall, Room 109
    • What to bring:
      • Your thesis (all copies), your signature sheet(s), and all supporting documents:
        • Either:
      1. Two copies of your entire properly formatted thesis on fancy (100% cotton, resume) paper
      2. A completed Thesis/Dissertation/Project Transmittal Sheet with Sarah Patton’s signature
      3. Two signature sheets, also on 100% cotton paper, with signatures of all of your committee member
         • Or:
    1. One copy of your entire properly formatted thesis on fancy (100% cotton, resume) paper
    2. One PDF version on CD (1 file entire document, 1 file abstract only)
    3. A completed Thesis/Dissertation/Project Transmittal Sheet with Sara Patton’s signature
    4. A signature sheet, also on 100% cotton paper, with signatures of all your committee members
    5. One completed MARS Agreement Form
    6. One completed Electronic Submission Form

     

• Turn in your thesis to Fenwick Library for credit and binding:
  • Bring your approved thesis back to Sarah Patton to be officially processed and bound. 
    • Where to go:
      • Fenwick Library, Room C201
        • If you are not able to turn in your thesis by the deadline at 5pm, it will not be counted as complete during that semester of study so plan accordingly.  Give yourself enough time to collect the necessary signatures and get to Fenwick Library by 5pm.

For more information about the thesis process go to thesis.gmu.edu.  You’ll find formatting templates and all the necessary forms available for download. 

• Please note that you will want to download forms that are specific to the College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS).