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To graduate with Honors, you will need to write an Honors Thesis and have it approved (i.e. signed) by your thesis
supervisor and the Biology Honors Advisor. Please follow these guidelines:
Thesis Sections:
Your thesis should have the general format of a scientific paper and should contain the following components
in the order indicated:
- Title Page
- Abstract
- Acknowledgements
- Table of Contents
- List of Tables (optional, but desirable for lengthy theses)
- List of Figures (optional, but desirable for lengthy theses)
- Introduction
- Materials and Methods
- Results
- Discussion
- Literature Cited
A combined Results and Discussion section is also permissible, but check first with your thesis supervisor
to see if he/she approves of this approach. Each of the above sections begins on a new page.
Title Page:
The University of Iowa Honors Program requires that you follow their instructions for the
Thesis Title Page. Pay
special attention to Page 4 of those instructions, which shows you exactly how your Title Page should look with
respect to submissions from our Department. Note also that you should include your first name, middle initial(s), and
last name (i.e. Susan B. Anthony). Please do likewise for the names of your thesis supervisor and Biology Honors
Advisor (Jonathan E. Poulton).
Approval of Title Page by UI Honors Program:
Please take the Title Page of your thesis to Mary Uhl at the University of Iowa Honors Program, 420 BHC,
for proof-reading and formatting approval, before you take
it to your thesis supervisor and Biology Honors Advisor for signatures. Mary will apply a seal to your Title
Page to indicate that this requirement has been met.
Page Margins and Spacing:
FOR THE TITLE PAGE ONLY: Please use left and right hand margins of 1.5", and top and bottom margins of 1.0".
This will facilitate proper binding of your thesis by the Blank Honors Center.
FOR THE REMAINDER OF YOUR THESIS: Please use margins of 1.0" for left and right hand margins and for top and
bottom margins.
Your thesis, except for the Title Page and the legends to Tables and Figures, should be printed double spaced.
Tables and Figures:
Tables and Figures (with relevant legends) should NOT be provided as a collection at the end of the thesis.
Instead, there are two acceptable ways to include them:
Method 1: Insert them into the thesis, printed one Table or Figure to a (new!) page (along with relevant
legends), immediately following first mention of that Table/Figure in the text.
Method 2: Embed Figures and Tables (along with relevant legends) within the text, placing them close to first
mention within the body of the text. Allow ample space between the embedded Figure (Table) and the text.
Irrespective of which method you adopt, make sure that you draw the reader's attention to a specific Figure or Table
by inserting a "flag" within the text, e.g. "Castanospermine competitively inhibited amygdalin hydrolysis (Figure 1)".
Page Numbering:
The Title Page should NOT be numbered. The Abstract, Acknowledgements, Table of Contents, List of Tables
(optional), and List of Figures (optional) pages should be numbered with Roman numerals (i, ii, iii, iv, etc). Then,
use Arabic numbers for the remainder of the thesis, beginning with the Introduction as page 1. Number the pages
centered at the bottom of each page. If you chose Method 1 for insertion of figures and tables above, don't
forget that pages bearing these components should also be numbered.
Preparation of Thesis for Submission:
Do not staple or punch your thesis pages in any way. Just submit them to the Biology Honors Advisor as a stack of
pages in the correct order. The University of Iowa Honors Program will bind your thesis for their library.
Submission Deadline:
Please submit your approved thesis to the Biology Honors Advisor no later than the last day of classes of the
semester in which you intend to graduate (i.e. one full week before Commencement). This allows the Advisor
sufficient time to review your thesis before submitting it to the Blank Honors Center by the UIHP stated deadline
(Wednesday of Finals Week).
Questions:
Please feel free to consult the Biology Honors Advisor (335-1322) at any time, if you have any questions or concerns.
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