Guide to Thesis and Projects

Guidelines for Thesis and Project Proposals

The purpose of this information is to clarify some of the important policies and procedures to Computer Science graduate students who are taking courses online. A much more comprehensive guide to graduate studies, A Guide to Graduate Studies: Policies, Procedures and Format, should be ordered from The Office of Graduate Programs at a cost of $10.00. [Send your request with a check or money order (made payable to The Research Foundation) to: The Office of Graduate Programs, California State University, Chico, Chico, CA 95929-0875.] In addition, students should occasionally review the Computer Science section of the University Catalog to assure themselves that they are adhering to all the published requirements. For clarification of any requirements or procedures, contact Dr. Judy Challinger, Computer Science Distance Education Advisor, at jchallinger@csuchico.edu.

Thesis/Project

As a general guide, a master's project is primarily an exercise in writing a research document, including perhaps the implementation of some algorithm or design in software or hardware. Usually it is based on a reading the student has done on a particular topic or area of interest with some work by the student. In this case it takes the form of a recapitulation of existing research results explained by the student at a level appropriate for a person knowledgeable in the field. Less often it will report on original work by the student. Exceptional master's projects may be submitted for presentation at a professional conference.

A master's thesis requires more actual research effort on the part of the student (equivalent to two courses rather than one), but does not necessarily require the research to be a major breakthrough. Often master's research involves a reformulation of existing work (a new implementation of an existing algorithm or system, a better proof of an important theorem or result, a performance study of an algorithm or system, or an experiment to confirm or analyze results reported in the literature). Any good master's thesis should be suitable for submission to a major conference or research journal ( although not all will be accepted).

Thesis and Project Proposals

Although we find most students begin looking for a thesis or project topic after they have completed most of their course work, you are encouraged to select a topic as soon as is reasonably possible. Before you invest a lot of time in a topic, you should go through the formal procedure of preparing a proposal and having it approved by your committee. Your committee must consist of at least two Computer Science faculty members. Typically the faculty who will serve on your committee will be those who are most familiar with the topic you select. If you are unaware of which faculty are knowledgeable of your topic area, contact Dr. Judy Challinger, Computer Science Distance Education Advisor, at jchallinger@csuchico.edu, for suggestions. Once you have identified faculty for your committee, you should send them a copy of your proposal and ask if they will serve on your committee. Selecting a topic which is related to your job is perfectly acceptable.

When your committee approves your proposal, they sign a cover sheet which the Graduate Coordinator attaches to your proposal. Your proposal is then made available for a period of two weeks for the entire Computer Science faculty to review. If there are no negative comments at the end of the two week period, you will be notified that you have an acceptable proposal on file. Negative comments during the two week review process may prompt your committee to request some changes and resubmission of your proposal. You may not enroll in CSCI 699 thesis or project units until you have an approved proposal on file. Enrollment in CSCI 699 must be accomplished during the first two weeks of any semester. The enrollment process is the same as that used to enroll in any online class.

Procedures similar to those described above are followed by students who elect to use the Analytic Review/Examination plan. Please refer to the University Catalog and contact Dr. Challinger if you plan to use this option for your culminating experience.

The Proposal

A thesis or project proposal is a very important step toward completing a master's degree. Properly done, it provides the student and the supervisor with a contract specifying the research that is to be performed and the results that are expected from that research. It also serves to "start the ball rolling" by forcing the student to direct efforts toward the goal of finishing a thesis or project.

The comments below apply equally well to master's projects or master's theses. They have been summarized from the article "On Ph.D. Thesis Proposals in Computing Science", written by H. C. Laurer in The Computer Journal, circa 1975. Laurer's article suggests this proposal outline:

1. A statement of the problem and why it should be solved.
2. Reference to and comments upon relevant work by others on the same or similar problems (this is more than just a bibliography).
3. The candidate's ideas and insights for solving the problem and any preliminary results already obtained.
4. A statement or characterization of what kind of solution is being sought.
5. A plan of action for the remainder of the research including equipment, software, persons (such as advisers) necessary to support completion of the research.
6. A rough outline of the thesis to the level of major topics within chapters, including a list of appendices or other material that is anticipated.

Etiquette

These guidelines have been established because the Committee's time is important and should not be wasted in reading material that has not been carefully prepared.

1. A project or thesis usually requires two weeks to read. Committee members can give you estimates of how long they expect it will take to review the work.
2. All material submitted should follow the format outlined in A Guide to Graduate Studies: Policies, Procedures and Format. The document should be double spaced and separated into single pages (unburst listings are NOT acceptable). Your name and the title of the document should appear on the outside cover.
3. Documents with substantial spelling errors will be returned without comment.
4. Students should assume that a project or thesis will require at least three complete readings by the chair of the committee. Substantial time can be saved if chapters are submitted individually as they are finished.
5. Students should assume that a project or thesis will require, at most, two complete readings by members of the committee, excluding the chair of the committee.
6. Do not underestimate the amount of time necessary to complete the writing. A master's project or thesis will probably require a minimum of three to four months to write, and many times it will require twice that amount of time. Many students do not appreciate the effort required to prepare an original research document.

Format of Thesis or Project Document

Students should be aware that CSU, Chico has very specific requirements as to the format of a thesis or project, and A Guide to Graduate Studies: Policies, Procedures and Format, mentioned earlier, contains the necessary information you will need. Additionally, students should be aware of the specific procedures to format figures, tables, and references. (Questions about this requirement should be referred either to Dr. Judy Challinger at 530-898-5748 or Chris LaVerne at 530-898-6880.) Often times, students will send a section of their project or thesis to the thesis editor, Chris LaVerne, for preliminary editing and to assure themselves that they are adhering to the format requirements.

Presentation

Before the 14th week of the semester you plan to graduate, you must make an oral presentation (defense) to the Computer Science faculty. You must also submit a final copy of your thesis or project, which has been signed and approved by your committee, to The Office of Graduate Programs by the semester deadline. Contact Dr. Judy Challinger to set up a specific time and date for your presentation. In those cases where making a trip to Chico would be a significant hardship, it may be possible to arrange a remote video presentation.