Senior Thesis
Senior Neuroscience majors may choose to pursue an honors thesis, which is an independent research project that is conducted with supervision from a neuroscience faculty member. Neuroscience theses must be related to understanding the operation of the nervous system and the mind.
Neuroscience Senior Thesis
- Thesis Declaration form (signature lines appear when downloaded)
Students interested in pursuing a thesis should consult with a faculty member no later than their junior year in order to begin planning their thesis work.
Neuroscience majors wishing to pursue a senior honors thesis should enroll in at least two semesters of independent research; NSCI 0500 (non-seniors) or NSCI 0700 (seniors) for the first term, and NSCI 701 (Senior Thesis) for the final term.
Unless otherwise noted, Neuroscience students follow the thesis process of their thesis advisor’s department. Therefore, students interested in pursuing a Neuroscience thesis should consult the details of the thesis process and due dates in Biology, Psychology, or Philosophy, as appropriate.
The Neuroscience thesis process culminates in a public presentation of the thesis, a written thesis document, and an oral defense of the thesis document before a committee composed of at least two Neuroscience faculty members. In order to be eligible for honors in the Neuroscience major, students must complete a Neuroscience thesis and maintain a minimum GPA of 3.3 in Neuroscience major courses, not including NSCI 0500, 0700 and 0701. Eligibility does not guarantee honors are granted. Honors are determined on the basis of the thesis, presentation and defense.
Semester when completing a thesis
| Task | Fall ‘25 | Winter ‘26 | Spring ‘26 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meet with committee | First week of fall | Winter or first week of spring | |
| Start to schedule presentations | early Oct | Early Mar | |
| Presentations scheduled | Oct. 6 | Mar. 2 | |
| Schedule defense | Oct. 13 | Mar. 16 | |
| Submit presentation title and photo | Oct. 20 | Mar. 23 | |
| Submit slideshow | 10 pm the night before your presentation | ||
| Submit written thesis to committee | 1 week before presentation | 1 week before presentation | |
| Public presentation of thesis | Last week of class | Last week of class | Last week of class |
| Submit final thesis to coordinator | Last weekday of exams | Last weekday of exams | Last weekday of exams |
Submit presentation title and photo to:
-
Missey Thompson mathomps@middlebury.edu (Academic Coordinator)
Thesis Presentation Slideshow submission
Please submit a .ppt or .pdf version of your thesis presentation. If you are using Google Slides you can export to either of these formats. The talk will be given on a Windows computer. You can sign up for a practice session to test that your talk displays correctly on that computer.
- Submit your slideshow here.
- The talk will be given on a Windows computer. You can sign up for a practice session to test that your talk displays correctly on that computer.
Your Written Thesis
Thesis Title page (example)