Honors Thesis Program

Students who have participated in the Honors Program frequently view it as the most challenging, exciting, and rewarding intellectual experience of their college years. There are many rewards to pursuing an honors thesis: the chance to work closely with a faculty advisor, craft an original research project, engage in sustained intellectual study of a topic, sharpen research and writing skills, and form a research community with other honors theses writers.

Admission to the political science honors program is competitive. Honors students work closely with a faculty advisor to complete a research project of their own design. Honors students craft a research plan, analyze relevant research materials, and write a 60-100 page senior thesis based on this research.

Honors applicants are encouraged to apply for Undergraduate Research Grants (URG) through the Office of Undergraduate Research, Ginsberg Research Grants through the Department of Political Science, or to other grants to support their research.

If you are considering pursuing honors, we encourage you to meet with a Political Science faculty member to discuss your interest and research ideas.

Applications for the 2025 - 2026 Honors Program will open in March 2025. 

Requirements to apply to the Political Science Honors Program

1. GPA of at least 3.5 in the Political Science major and overall. To calculate your major GPA, find the average of the courses that are counting towards your Political Science major.
2. Complete at least seven political science courses before starting the Honors Program, usually in the fall quarter of senior year
3. Recommended but not required: complete a political research seminar (Poli Sci 395) before enrolling in the Honors Program
4. Recommended but not required: complete a political science research methods class (Poli Sci 210, 211, 212, 310, 311, or 312) before enrolling in the Honors Program

Honors Program APPLICATION

To apply to the Honors Program, you must complete the application process. The application requires you to:

• Complete the application form.
• Include your unofficial transcript (submitted via online application).
• Include a 2 - 3 page project proposal (submitted via online application). In your project proposal, try to address following information, even if it is only preliminary at this stage:
  • problem/puzzle
  • research question
  • gaps in existing literature
  • what you hope to explain
  • hypotheses/hunches
  • methods/data you might use

• Have a political science faculty member complete the online recommendation form on your behalf. Please send the faculty member your project proposal when asking them to complete the online recommendation. It is also advised that you discuss your proposal with the faculty member.

Requirements to earn honors in Political Science

1. Admissions to the honors program
2. Satisfactorily complete the two-quarter Senior Thesis Seminar (Poli Sci 398) in the fall and winter quarters. The 398 courses do NOT count toward the completion of the political science major, but they do count as credit towards graduation
3. GPA of at least 3.5 in the Political Science major
4. Cumulative GPA of at least 3.3
5. Complete all requirements for the political science major
6. Submit an honors thesis that meets departmental requirements, including the individual review by two anonymous political science faculty members

Learn more

For more information about how to prepare a successful application, visit the FAQ section and writing tips for honors theses.