Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication

College of Liberal Arts & Sciences

Thesis or Creative Component

There are four areas graduate students need to address to successfully complete the graduate program.  These are

  • Selecting a major professor
  • Selecting the program of study committee
  • Deciding whether to complete a thesis or creative component
  • Taking the final oral examination

 

Selecting a major professor

When selecting a major professor, the student is selecting someone who assists them in framing research questions, selecting the thesis or creative component format, supervising the work and managing the activities of the Program of Study Committee.

Selecting the program of study committee

Whether a student selects a thesis or a creative component, a three-person program of study (POS) committee must be selected.

The committee includes three members:

  • The major professor
  • One person from inside the Greenlee School
  • One person from another department or major

 

Thesis/Creative Component

Greenlee graduate students must complete either a thesis or creative component.

A thesis is a scholarly product that is:

  1. Approved by the students committee
  2. Produced in a defined format, bound
  3. Placed in the Greenlee Reading Room and Parks Library
  4. Made available to scholars around the world


A creative component permits students’ maximum flexibility in their approach to scholarship.  It is equal in scholarly rigor to a thesis, but is often presented in non-traditional ways, such as:

  • Web sites
  • Videos
  • Audiotapes
  • CDs
  • Self-instructional guides
  • Campaign plans

Final oral examination

Every graduate student must hold a final oral examination or thesis/creative component defense.

Before granting permission for the final oral examination, the Graduate College will check to ensure that the following items have been completed:

  • Full admission status
  • Approved POS committee
  • Approved POS form
  • English requirement met
  • Not on probation
  • Time limit met
  • Diploma form submitted and approved
  • Registered for term in which exam is to take place for at least two credits
  • Overall GPA 3.0 or above
  • No incompletes in courses listed on the POS form