ENST 3900: Independent Study | This Independent study offers a specialized exploration of a specific topic, with the student intensively investigating it while supervised by a faculty mentor.  Students should, along with the faculty mentor, create an intensive reading list in the area of focus and complete a substantial project during the semester. Prerequisite: permission of instructor and program Director and/or DUS is required. Can be taken for up to 6 units total (offered every semester)

ENST 3910: Directed Research in Environmental Studies | Research activities or project in environmental studies done under the direction of an instructor in the Program. Students should, along with the faculty mentor, create a project plan that includes the background rationale for the project, a proposed reading list, a description of the final project deliverable and any midpoint draft materials, a proposed timeline, and a method for weekly progress checks. Prerequisite: permission of instructor and program Director and/or DUS is required. Can be taken for up to 6 units total ( offered every semester)

ENST 3920: Directed Field Work in Environmental Studies | A student engages with Directed Field Work when they join an ongoing field work project being carried out by an Environmental Studies instructor. Students should, along with the faculty mentor, create a project plan that includes the background rationale for the project, a proposed reading list if relevant, a description of the project or data collection methods and any midpoint or final deliverabels, a proposed timeline, and a method for weekly progress checks. Prerequisite: permission of instructor and program Director and/or DUS is required. Can be taken for up to 6 units total ( offered every semester)

Information on courses used for senior thesis research is found further down on this page.

* Research mentors: Please contact us if you need a section of one of these courses in order for a student to enroll to do research with you.

• Students should average about 3-4 hours per credit, or 10-12 hrs per week, for 3 units of credit for directed research. A plan for the time commitment and project goals should be arranged between the student and the faculty sponsor.
• If a student wants to spend 6 hrs/wk for 2 units of credit, the mentor will be asked to verify that it is a worthwhile project.
• 3 units of credit or more must be completed if this course is to be used to satisfy the Capstone Experience requirement for the Environmental Studies major.
• The faculty sponsor should assign a grade of Incomplete (I) if the time commitment agreed upon has not been met. This “I” can be changed to “Pass” by work the student completes after the semester is over.

Research experiences should be carefully designed to facilitate productive, engaging, and collaborative experiences for students as they are novice, early-stage researchers. Students are learning about the epistemology, methodology, and professional social norms within a discipline. They are learning how to do research, including how to search for, read, and synthesize scholarly literature to learn about a new topic and prepare a written product. They are learning disciplinary methods of data collection, data analysis, and visualization and text descriptions of results and disciplinary writing. We have the following expectations for students and mentors:

1. Students should work directly with the faculty sponsor or with someone of the sponsor’s choice: research associate, post-doc, senior graduate student, technician. In the case of the latter, we ask four things of the faculty sponsor: (1) be certain that the direct supervisor is enthusiastic about the arrangement, (2) continue to accept responsibility for the student, (3) monitor progress in understanding and achievement, (4) lend encouragement. Student or sponsor is free to terminate the arrangement after one semester.
2. The research mentor should create a setting that facilitates an engaging, collaborative, mentored experience. Research mentors should are providing regular and timely coaching, mentorship, and feedback and meet regularly with the student, at an interval agreed upon by the student/mentor.
3. Students should spend a regular amount of time per week (~3 hours per credit hour) on research activities. Students should maintain notes on their work and progress, maintain regular communication with their research mentor, and engage in regular meetings with the research mentor, at an interval agreed upon by the student/mentor.
4. Projects should have defined goals, even though the goals are often not met in one semester.
5. Tasks assigned by the mentor should be for learning related to the student’s project.
6. For students enrolled in ENST 3900, 3910, and 3920, they should turn in at the end of the semester a <1 page written reflection that 1) summarizes the progress of what was completed during the semester and 2) reflects on what they learned in terms of content, skills, methods, or about themselves as learners/researchers/collaborators. Written reflections should be submitted to the research sponsor and environmental@wustl.edu. 

To sign up for ENST 3900, 3910, or 3920:

1. Work with your mentor to create a study plan for your research experience. The form below and study plan must be submitted by noon on the last day of add/drop during the semester in which you wish to enroll. For ENST 3900, students should, along with the faculty mentor, create an intensive reading list in the area of focus and complete a substantial project during the semester. For ENST 3910, students should, along with the faculty mentor, create a project plan that includes the background rationale for the project, a proposed reading list, a description of the final project deliverable and any midpoint draft materials, a proposed timeline, and a method for weekly progress checks. For ENST 3920, students should, along with the faculty mentor, create a project plan that includes the background rationale for the project, a proposed reading list if relevant, a description of the project or data collection methods and any midpoint or final deliverables, a proposed timeline, and a method for weekly progress checks.
2. Complete this form: Request to register for Environmental Studies research credits – Fill out form
3. Research mentors: Please contact Barb Winston at bowinston@wustl.edu to request a section of the appropriate course to be set up with you listed as instructor.

Below are several fellowship and internship programs available to students who wish to conduct environmental research:

• WashU Summer Undergraduate Research Award (SURA)
  • https://undergradresearch.wustl.edu/summer-research-award
• WashU Tyson Research Center summer undergraduate research program:
  • https://tyson.wustl.edu/undergraduate-opportunities
• WashU Center for Environment summer research program:
  • https://environment.washu.edu/programs/summer-undergraduate-research/
• WUSTL Living Earth Collaborative research opportunities for undergraduates
  • https://livingearthcollaborative.wustl.edu/opportunities/undergraduate-student-research/
• National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduate Experiences
  • https://www.nsf.gov/crssprgm/reu/ 

At any stage, it's a good idea to start with building relationships with your professors who teach classes you are interested. These instructors might be able to offer informal advising, career guidance, point you to further coursework, write a letter of recommendation, or mentor future research. Tell your professors about your interests and ask them for ideas on books and articles you can read to learn more or what classes they recommend you take. Start building relationships with your professors by visiting their office hours, emailing them to ask questions, and getting involved in research internships. You can also search faculty profiles on departmental websites and then consider emailing faculty members whose research interests look appealing and ask if they have any research or lab work you can help with. 

If you want to pursue senior thesis research, you will need to identify a thesis advisor and two supporting committee members in your third year . Your thesis advisor will be your primary research mentor and will most directly guide your research. You will choose additional supporting committee members who can offer strengths on particular aspects of your thesis, such as being a topical expert in something related to your thesis, or an expert in a research methodology that you will use. Connect with professors who have taught elective courses you are passionate in or who have supervised previous research. Peruse these lists of faculty and researchers who are willing to mentor student research and contact them to see if they have senior thesis mentoring capacity and if your interests align.

• Potential Committee Members for Environmental Studies Senior Thesis Research
• Biodiversity Fellows with Living Earth Collaborative
• Scholars with Center for Environment

If you are thinking about senior thesis, you can enroll in courses in your second and third year that will enhance your growth as an early stage scholar and help you successfully complete a thesis. You will likely take many 1000 and 2000 level courses in your first and second years. In your second and third years, you can take 3000 and 4000 level elective courses that offer depth in the topical areas related to your thesis. Consider elective courses that are highly related to your areas of interest, no matter what department they are offered in. In your third year, take EnSt 4350: Foundations of Research: Building a Literature Review to develop your academic research skills, hone your writing skills, and deeply explore a topic of interest to you. You will leave the course with a depth of knowledge and a tractable research question that you could turn into future senior thesis research. Take at least one or maybe several “methods” courses that prepare you for the methods used within the discipline and topic of your thesis. Many of these are open to non-majors with instructor permission. You should take courses in the methods you think you will use in your thesis and it's extremely helpful to take them in your third year if possible. Some courses that may be of interest, depending on your discipline and subject area of focus, include:

• BIOL 3100: R Workshop in Biology
• BIOL 4193: Experimental Ecology Laboratory
• COMPLITTHT 3120: Intro to Digital Humanities
• COMPLITTHT 4310: Stat. for Humanities Scholars
• ENST 3600: Field Methods for Env. Science
• POLSCI 3630: Quantitative Political Methodology
• POLSCI 4043: Policy Analysis, Assessment and Practical Wisdom
• POLSCI 4905: Research Design and Methods
• SDS 2020 or 3020 or 3030: Statistics, Data Science
• SOC 3030: Introduction to Research Methods

Participating in an internship or summer fellowship and attending a conference are excellent ways to learn more about work in your areas of interest. They often help you clarify your interests, network with faculty, professionals, and peers, and encourage excitement about potential research. They can be great gateway experiences to pursuing research, including senior honors research. You can ask your professors or major advisor or email environmental@wustl.edu to learn more about how to find an internship or fellowship.

Below are all of the forms you will use for senior thesis research in an easy to find location.

Spring of junior year:

1. Email Form to declare your intent to environmental@wustl.edu and cogeorge@wustl.edu (due at 5pm on the last day of registration one year before intended graduation date)
2. Complete this webform: EnSt Thesis Intent: Submit advisor names, emails, and topic – Fill out form

Spring of senior year:

1. Use Template to format senior thesis to prepare your thesis
2. Email Form for rubric and final thesis evaluation to environmental@wustl.edu and cogeorge@wustl.edu (due March 31 or Friday before of senior year for May senior graduation)
3. Complete this webform: EnSt Thesis Final: Submit final title and advisor names – Fill out form

Committees for senior honors research consist of a thesis advisor (primary research mentor) and two supporting committee members. Because our students often conduct research that is interdisciplinary and have committees that consist of housed in different departments and familiar with different disciplinary products and timelines, it is important that our students receive collective guidance early on. This helps to make sure the thesis is on track to meet Environmental Studies guidelines and prevents hiccups when reviewers from different disciplines read the final product through different lenses at the final end point. Thus, students and committee members should plan to participate in at least two committee meetings (one at the beginning of senior year to review the thesis propsal and one in March to evaluate the final thesis). Additional meetings are optional and should be agreed-upon by the committee based on their capacity. Committee members should be able to read the introduction section and one version of the complete thesis within three weeks of receipt.

• Role for student: Stay in regular communication with your research advisor and committee; utilize scholarly sources; complete a rigorous search and synthesis of your field and topic that motivates your project and serves as the background for your prospectus and thesis introduction; turn in items on time; if in doubt, ask mentor and committee questions for guidance sooner than later.
• Role for primary thesis advisor: Serve as the primary research mentor; have capacity to supervise within disciplinary field and topic; devote time to student mentoring, communication, and regular meetings (often biweekly); engage in regular meetings with student to guide research, work through issues, guide data collection, analysis and interpretation of results; work with student to shape scope of the final product (e.g. thesis or policy brief or publishable manuscript); attend at least one initial and one follow-up committee meeting; read and provide constructive feedback on drafts within three weeks of receipt.
• Role for committee members: Serve as supporting research mentors; provide additional expertise in some aspect of the topic or methodology of research; attend at least one initial and one follow-up committee meeting; read and provide constructive feedback on drafts within three weeks of receipt.

Some of our senior thesis students have been conducting research with the same research mentor for several summers or academic years; others begin their thesis research with a new research mentor about a year before graduation. The timelines for some of these activities may vary slightly depending on the history of the collaborative relationship between the student and mentor. The timeline for turning in key forms and paperwork and general timelines for preparing a scholarly product should be similar. The following outlines the process and general timelines for completion of a senior thesis assuming a spring graduation. If you plan to graduate in December, you can modify the timeline by moving all deadlines one semester earlier.

Fall of third year

• Take EnSt 4350: Foundations of Research: Building a Literature Review, the product of which is a full and twice-revised literature review on a topic of your choice and a tractable research question.
• Make sure to sign up for any topical electives or disciplinary methods courses that could be useful for your thesis. Keep an eye out for courses that are only offered every other year and make sure to get them early. Examples of disciplinary methods courses include:
  • BIOL 3100: R Workshop in Biology
  • BIOL 4193: Experimental Ecology Laboratory
  • COMPLITTHT 3120: Intro to Digital Humanities
  • COMPLITTHT 4310: Stat. for Humanities Scholars
  • ENST 3600: Field Methods for Env. Science
  • POLSCI 3630: Quantitative Political Methodology
  • POLSCI 4043: Policy Analysis, Assessment and Practical Wisdom
  • POLSCI 4905: Research Design and Methods
  • SDS 2020 or 3020 or 3030: Statistics, Data Science
  • SOC 3030: Introduction to Research Methods

Spring of third year: Identify your committee and research topic

• Begin chatting with potential advisors in February and March. Choose your advisor and committee members in March and April.
• Identify one person to be your thesis advisor. This person will serve as your primary research mentor. Meet with them to discuss your thesis topic, question, and potential methods in depth, and ask them if they will serve as your thesis advisor. Ask their advice on who else they recommend for your committee. Your thesis advisor can be any person on the Environmental Studies thesis advisors list (see list of potential committee members here; please inquire with the DUS and Research Coordinator if you would like to add someone not listed).
• Then, identify two supporting committee members. Using your own experience and your mentor’s advice, seek out and meet with two additional people to serve as your supporting committee members. These committee members will offer strengths on aspects of your thesis, such as being a topical expert in something related to your thesis, or an expert in a research methodology that you will use.

Spring of third year: Turn in your intent form and sign up for EnSt 4998

• Contact the DUS and Research Coordinator to discuss signing up for senior thesis research.
• By the end of spring registration, turn in the intent to pursue senior thesis form.
• During course registration, request permission to enroll in EnSt 4998. Register for ENST 4998 and sign up for any courses that will help you prepare your thesis. Ask your thesis advisor and committee members for recommendations on what courses to take.
• Work with your advisor to create a loose plan for reading relevant literature, methods, and data collection. Depending on the nature of the research and other student and faculty obligations, some students may do thesis related research over the summer, while others will complete it during academic terms. Regardless of when you complete the work, you will read extensively, take notes, and begin building a bibliography and literature review. You will narrow your research question, prepare a short summary of your preliminary argument, plan your methods, and depending on the discipline, collect data. You will confer with your thesis advisor at regular intervals to make sure you both agree on the timeline and that you are on track.

Fall of senior year: Lit review, methods, data collection and analysis

• Participate in ENST 4998 (3 credits). During this class you will draft and revise a two-page proposal you can use during your fall committee meeting, draft and revise your literature review, and create an action plan for data collection, data analysis, and writing. The proposal length and form may vary by discipline, but in general the prospectus should include background information (from the scholarly literature) that motivates the project and outline the question/problem, methodology, and proposed analyses. Your action plans will help with goal setting and task management to keep you on track for finishing and producing a rigorous scholarly product.
• Meet with your primary thesis advisor regularly (often biweekly) to plan your research, guide your literature review, and review your progress.
• Hold a committee meeting in October, which may be your first ever or first of the fall. Your committee may decide to hold regular committee meetings or ask that you meet regularly with your primary research advisor.
• Enroll in EnSt 4999 for spring semester.

Spring of senior year: Writing, revision, and presentation

• Participate in EnSt 4999. This independent study gives you credit for the time you spend working on your thesis completion.
• Use the thesis rubric and evaluation form to help guide crafting your final written product.
• Analysis, results, and writing: You will continue to work on data analysis, preparing results, and drafting sections of the thesis over winter break and early spring semester. Plan your tasks and timelines to keep you on track for your goals.
• Turn in your final draft for evaluation by Friday before spring break: The final draft of your thesis is due to your committee by the Friday before spring break. Your committee will read and evaluate your thesis and return comments to you electronically or at a final committee meeting during which you all discuss your thesis. They will evaluate your thesis and accept it as is, with minor revisions, or with major revisions and evaluate the thesis quality based on the rubric. You and your committee will complete the evaluation form to be turned in by March 31 or the Friday before if it falls on a weekend.
• Present your thesis research: While presenting research is not a requirement, we encourage all senior thesis students to present their research at the WUSTL Undergraduate Research Symposium or an Environmental Studies faculty breakfast at the end of their last semester.
• Turn in your final version to EnSt by end of final exam period: After receiving final feedback from your committee on your final draft, you will make any major or minor revisions or editorial changes requested and submit a final version in PDF format to environmental@wustl.edu by the end of final exam period. Your diploma will be withheld until your final version is received.

Any Environmental Analysis Major may conduct senior thesis research regardless of GPA. To be eligible for Latin honors, students must complete senior thesis research and have maintained a 3.65-grade point average through the sixth semester and must be accepted for candidacy by Environmental Studies Program. Upon certification by the department that the Honors program has been satisfactorily completed, the student may be awarded the AB cum laude, magna cum laude, or summa cum laude according to the following proportions: The top 15% in overall GPA of the full cohort of Latin Honors candidates who complete the necessary requirements of their major departments will graduate summa cum laude; the next 35% magna cum laude; and the next 50% cum laude. The guidelines for earning Latin Honors in the College of Arts & Sciences are described here: https://bulletin.wustl.edu/undergrad/artsci/honors/

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