Capstone

Explore your interests. Establish your expertise. Expand your possibilities.

While a capstone is not required for the American Studies major, students have the option of writing a 1-semester senior essay or 2-semester senior thesis. A capstone in American Studies gives you the opportunity to do an in-depth study leading to expertise in a particular area of interest. It supports your development of research and writing skills that make you an attractive candidate to prospective employers as well as graduate and professional schools.

Students will work closely with their capstone advisor to craft a project that:

• Substantively engages with existing secondary scholarship on a chosen topic or research question.
• Identifies and employs an interdisciplinary methodology to conduct primary research.
• Makes an original contribution to or intervention in the field of American Studies.

Requirements for Capstones in American Studies: 

1-Semester Senior Essay

• 1 credit (via AMST 407)
• Minimum of 30 pages (7,500 words)
• This project cannot in itself count for honors, but it can count as a 400-level course (and thus can be part of the route toward honors).

2-Semester Thesis

• 2 credits (via AMST 498 and AMST 407)
• Minimum of 60 pages (15,000 words)
• Completion of this project with a grade of A- or higher earns the student honors in the AMST major.

Students have the option of designing a community-engaged, digital, or creative component to their capstone. In these cases, expectations for this project (including a possible word count decrease of up to 15%) should be decided upon in communication with the capstone advisor at the proposal stage.

• Developments in digital humanities are continually transforming how we learn, research, and write. If students seek to undertake a digital component for their capstone, advisors are encouraged to consult the MLA and/or AHA guidelines for evaluating digital scholarship (the ASA does not currently have guidelines).

How to get started

1-Semester Senior Essay: If you are considering writing a senior essay, you should meet with the instructor of AMST 407 in the fall of your senior year to propose your project. If the instructor approves your project, they will give you a PIN to register in AMST 407 Interdisc Capstone Colloquium during the spring semester of your senior year.

2-Semester Thesis: If you think you might like to write a thesis, you should plan to meet with your AMST advisor in the spring of your junior year, who can help you to begin the proposal process and identify a proposed thesis advisor.

As you work toward completing your proposal, you are advised to:

• Approach your proposed thesis advisor
• Seek their guidance on refining your proposed thesis topic, method, secondary research, and primary research
• Set a schedule for their review of a draft proposal so you can receive their feedback before the April 25 proposal deadline

AMST faculty will review your proposal and get back to you with feedback by the end of the term. If your thesis proposal is approved, you will then register for AMST 498 Senior Thesis Part 1 in the fall and AMST 407 Interdisc Capstone Colloquium in the spring of your senior year.

If you need models by which to guide the development of your project or thesis, The American Studies Program office maintains copies of projects and theses submitted by former students. You are welcome to browse through these anytime.

Capstone Deadlines

A full draft of the capstone is due on April 15 to the American Studies program for consideration for honors and prizes. The final version of all capstones must be graded and deposited by the final grade deadline for graduating students (typically in the first week of May).

You are strongly encouraged to meet regularly with your thesis advisor throughout the year, who will support you to create a research and writing schedule and review drafts of your work.