Selecting a Major Professor
Selecting a major professor is an important task for a graduate student. This
faculty member assists the student in framing research questions,
selecting the thesis or creative component format, supervising the
work and managing the activities of the Program of Study Committee.
The major professor and the student form a partnership, so the process
of selecting a major professor is a process of matching similar interests.
Any member of the graduate faculty is eligible to work with graduate
students as a major professor. Faculty members who are not members
of the graduate faculty may serve as additional members of a student's
Program of Study Committee, but they may not serve as major professor.
More information on members of the graduate faculty can be found
under Faculty on the Greenlee Web site.
There are many ways to select a major professor. One is to search
the research areas of the faculty for topics that are of interest
to the student. Topics already under investigation by a faculty member
probably hold high interest to him or her, and the faculty member
might have financial resources available that could be used to support
additional student research.
With this approach, the student may contact one or more faculty members,
express an interest in a particular topic, and discuss what areas
the professor might suggest as best for future thesis development.
If a topic is agreed upon, the student is often asked to develop
a proposal for research in the area. Based on the proposal the faculty
member can be asked whether he or she would be willing to serve as
major professor.
A second approach is used when the student already has selected a
topic or problem of interest. In this case, the student should write
up a brief proposal explaining the research or creative component
problem and present it to several faculty members whose interests
suggest that they might be competent to supervise a thesis in this
area.
Following these discussions, the student asks a faculty member if
he or she would be willing to serve as a major professor. Additional
discussion of how the thesis or creative component work might be
financed or carried out will be necessary. It is not the responsibility
of either the Greenlee School or the major professor to find funding
for thesis or creative component work, although major professors
may assist in the process of locating resources.
Other important factors to consider in selecting a major professor
are:
¥ The major professor should be an individual with whom one can work
honestly and openly and understand easily.
¥ Establish from the beginning a tentative timeline for completion
of the work, and assure that the professor selected plans to be available
during those periods.
¥ Know how different professors approach thesis work and make sure
he or she is compatible with the student's approach.
