Honors Program

The following timetable is based on graduation in the Spring Term; dates for other terms should be adjusted. Honors thesis advisors may modify this schedule at their discretion.  Questions about the Honors Program should be directed to Chloe Schafer: chloe.a.schafer@dartmouth.edu.

May 15 (junior year) 

Students must apply to the Honors Program by May 15 of their junior year, submitting a form with preliminary thesis proposal to the department. A link to the form along with preliminary thesis proposal guidance will be emailed to all juniors by the first week in April. The Department of Geography offers preliminary acceptance to the Honors Program based on these documents and academic performance, typically a minimum GPA of 3.5 in the major and 3.33 overall. Proposals and research plans are developed further in GEOG 12.01 during senior year Fall Term.

The Department of Geography will select an appropriate advisor and reader for each successful Honors Program application. The advisor and reader oversee the student's progress, provide a means of communication between the student and the department, and ultimately make a recommendation to the Department of Geography about the quality of the thesis. The typical course sequence associated with the Honors Program begins with GEOG 12.01 (Fall Term), followed by GEOG 85 (Winter Term) and GEOG 87 (Spring Term).

Many students support their scholarship with research grants. Students must apply to non-departmental sources first before requesting Department of Geography funds. Honors Program students are strongly encouraged to explore the options available at:

Dickey Center for International Understanding
Rockefeller Center

Please pay special attention to the funding deadlines as applications are typically due a term or more before funding is provided. If support from these sources is limited or unavailable, student may then apply to Department of Geography for research support.

November 1 (senior year)

Full, formal thesis proposals must be submitted no later than November 1. Email your proposal to chloe.a.schafer@dartmouth.edu. The department will make a final decision about acceptance into the Honors Program based on this document and academic performance.

April 15 or earlier (senior year)

Preliminary draft to advisor. This draft, while not necessarily complete, should include all major chapters.

May 1

First draft due to advisor and reader. This draft should have been completely read by the advisor and serves as a basis for the thesis defense, and for comments by the reader.

Week before Memorial Day

Thesis public presentation and defense. The Department of Geography will schedule the presentation and defense at times mutually convenient to the student, advisor, reader, and department. The presentation precedes the defense, although they may occur on the same day. Presentations are formal, public lectures, open to the Dartmouth College community. Only the student, advisor, and reader attend the defense. The defense is an opportunity for the committee to provide detailed, interactive feedback to the student about the thesis.

Based on the first draft, presentation, defense, the Department of Geography votes to classify the thesis as honors or non-honors. If a thesis is judged to be non-honors, the student will receive credit for Independent Study (Geography 85) or Senior Thesis (Geography 87).

Typically, the committee awards honors contingent on satisfactory revision of the thesis. At the discretion of the committee, they may also advise the student of revisions that will make the thesis eligible for high honors.

May 30 (or approximately 7 days before grades are due)

Final draft due to advisor and reader. This draft should include all of the revisions required by advisor and reader. The advisor will use this draft to assign the student's grades for GEOG 85 and GEOG 87, and the department will use it to evaluate the thesis for high honors.

June 4-5 (or approximately 1-2 days before grades are due to the registrar)

The department meets as a whole to evaluate all theses, and votes on high honors.

Completed Thesis

Students will upload completed theses online using Dartmouth Digital Commons: https://digitalcommons.dartmouth.edu/thesis_dissertation_instructions.html

Example Preliminary Proposals & Letters of Application

Coming Soon!

Example Formal Proposals

Coming soon!

Example Geography Theses

Past Geography theses can be accessed using Dartmouth Digital Commons: https://digitalcommons.dartmouth.edu/geography_senior_theses/