BA Honors

An honors thesis is a chance for you to apply the knowledge and skills you have gained in your undergraduate classes to a topic that you are curious about. It involves original empirical or theoretical analysis under the supervision of one of our faculty members. It starts with an honors seminar in spring quarter of your third year, continues with research over the summer and an honors prep course in autumn quarter your fourth year, and culminates with a completed thesis in spring quarter.

To receive program honors at graduation, students must have (1) attained a GPA in the major of 3.5 or higher and an overall GPA of 3.25 or higher by the end of the quarter prior to the quarter of graduation, and (2) completed a meritorious BA honors paper under the supervision of a CHDV faculty member or other person in the field with a Ph.D. at the University of Chicago. Students who seek departmental honors must complete the CHDV 29800 Honors Seminar in Spring Quarter of their third year and the CHDV 29900 Honors Paper Preparation course in Fall Quarter of their fourth year. Students must work with a CHDV faculty member or associate faculty member who agrees to supervise their BA thesis.

BA Honors Seminar. The CHDV 29800 Honors Seminar aims to help qualified students formulate a suitable proposal and find a CHDV faculty supervisor. Students eligible for program honors must take the Honors Seminar Spring Quarter of their third year (see the section BA Honors Guidelines for the prerequisites and the note on Residence). This course must be taken for a quality grade (not pass/fail) and may be counted as one of the required electives.

Honors Paper Preparation Course. The CHDV 29900 Honors Preparation course aims to help students successfully complete work on their BA honors paper through data analysis and peer review. Students must register for the course in Fall Quarter of their fourth year, as a thirteenth required course.

BA Honors Guidelines. Students with qualifying GPAs may seek to graduate with honors by successfully completing a BA honors paper that reflects scholarly proficiency in an area of study within Comparative Human Development.

The paper should reflect original research of an empirical, scholarly, or theoretical nature and must be rated as worthy of honors by the student’s BA Honors Committee. This Committee shall consist of two University faculty members: a supervisor—who must be a CHDV faculty member or faculty associate member—and a second reader—who must be a University of Chicago faculty member, faculty associate member, Instructional Professor or Teaching Fellow.
The paper should be about 30-40 double-spaced pages in length, and the grade given for it will become the grade of record for the CHDV 29900 Honors Paper Preparation course.
Permission to register for the BA Honors Seminar course (CHDV 29800) will be granted to students based on their GPA at the end of the quarter prior to taking CHDV 29800.
Permission to undertake a BA honors paper and register for the Honors Paper Preparation course (CHDV 29900) will be granted by the CHD undergraduate chair to students who (1) have successfully completed the CHDV 29800 BA Honors Seminar, and (2) have filed a properly completed BA Honors Paper Proposal Form with the CHDV Student Affairs Administrator no later than ninth week of Spring Quarter of the third year.
To receive CHDV honors upon graduation, students (1) must have attained a cumulative overall GPA of 3.25 or higher and a major GPA of 3.5 or higher by the end of the quarter prior to the quarter of graduation, and (2) must have received a grade of A or A- on their BA honors paper.
BA thesis writers will present a summary of their research project at the annual CHDV Trial Research Conference held Spring Quarter.

What if I am a Dual Major? In very special circumstances, students may be able to write a longer BA honors paper that meets the requirements for a dual major with prior approval from the undergraduate program chairs in both departments. Students should consult with both chairs before the end of Spring Quarter of their third year. A consent form, available from the student’s College adviser, must be signed by both chairs and returned to the College adviser, with copies filed in both departmental offices, by the end of Autumn Quarter of the student’s graduation year.

What if I am a BA/MA Student? Students pursuing a joint BA/MA may be able to write a paper that meets the requirements for honors in CHDV and for the MA, subject to the approval of both programs.

Students should consult with the Director of Undergraduate Studies of the Department of Comparative Human Development and with the Faculty Director of the MA program before the end of Spring Quarter of their third year.
Students must also complete the fourth-year major course plan by the beginning of Winter Quarter in third year. Students are permitted to double count up to four courses for the major and the MA program.
Students must follow all the deadlines and requirements of the honors track of the major, including taking CHDV 29800 B.A. Honors Seminar and CHDV 29900 Honors Paper Preparation.
To receive a BA with honors, students must (1) complete the requirements of the major and (2) submit a meritorious honors BA paper in the Spring Quarter of their fourth year in accordance with the departmental deadlines and requirements.

When is the Honors Paper due? Honors papers are due by the end of sixth week of the quarter in which a student plans to graduate (typically in Spring Quarter).

Is there funding available to conduct research? BA thesis writers can apply for summer research funds through the Franklin Research Fellows program. Information can be found at: https://humdev.uchicago.edu/undergraduate-programs/requirements-and-forms/franklin-research-fellowship

Is there a BA Honors Thesis Prize? BA thesis writers can nominate their research project for the Bertram J. Cohler B.A. Thesis Prize for the best thesis investigating topics related to individuals in context. Information can be found at: https://humdev.uchicago.edu/undergraduate-programs/requirements-and-forms/bertram-j-cohler-ba-thesis-prize

What if I study abroad? Qualified students who wish to seek CHDV honors but who plan to study elsewhere Spring Quarter of their third year should speak to the BA Preceptor about a separate arrangement. Students who have already undertaken a BA honors project who plan to study elsewhere during their fourth year must have prior approval from their CHDV faculty BA project supervisor and the CHDV undergraduate chair.

What types of theses have students produced in the past?

Non-grievable: Disabled politics in Cook County Jail
A competitive dancer’s edge: A critical analysis of the commercial competitive dance industry and its influence on adolescent girls’ body image
Early roots of preferences for punitive and restorative responses to physical and emotional harms
Swimming through ambivalence: Vigilant coping in female college athletes
Good Germans and bad Nazis: The Holocaust and German responsibility in postwar West German history textbooks
Nonsensical conversations and children’s linguistic predictive abilities
"Diabetes in not a poor person's ailment": How individuals on the South Side of Chicago negotiate the diabetes care experience
Children of the corn: Examining the meaning of adolescent employment in the American Midwest
Early roots of preferences for punitive and restorative responses to physical and emotional harms
Language, literacy, and liaisons: The effects of an intermediary interpreter on health literacy and outcomes
Resilience as a construct of productivity: How grieving students navigate college after loss
Discrimination, ethnic identity, and national identity in Turbaned Sikh-Americans: A post-9/11 analysis
The disembodied self: Conceptions of body and self among Americans with multiple sclerosis
Exploring how peer interactions shape mental health experience and help-seeking at the University of Chicago