Deadlines
Spring 2024 Theses Deadlines
One week before Spring term begins
- Submit proposal: Submit signed thesis proposal to Tessa Haynes.
January 29- Feb 2, 2024 Registration Week
- Register for thesis: Register for undergraduate thesis, 4.THU, for 12 units only if an approved thesis proposal was submitted.
Week 7 of term
- Midterm Review
Week 10-12 of term
- Final draft: Provide the final draft of your thesis to your supervisor (and reader).
Monday, April 29, 2024
- Thesis submission: Upload your final thesis document to the Department Thesis Submission Tool (choose "Single Sign On" and log in with your MIT email address).
Week 16 of term (May 15 or 16)
- Formal Thesis Review with your thesis supervisor and committee.
General Information
The senior thesis is intended for students who wish to culminate their education with a challenge that would demand advanced work and reward them with portfolio material and developed viewpoints on a topic of importance. It is required for the Bachelor of Science in Art and Design (4B) and optional for the Bachelor of Science in Architecture (4). When optional, it can be used to fulfill 12 units of unrestricted elective requirements.
The nature of the work may be an original research or design project that involves additional learning of a substantive nature. The work must be documented with a written thesis, completed to institute specifications, within the final term of the senior year. The final document is is submitted by STOA to DSpace where it is archived in the MIT Library.
Thesis preparation subjects are taken the fall prior to registering for thesis and will assist students in preparing a thesis proposal and choosing a supervisor.
Thesis Guidelines
- At the start of the spring thesis term, students are responsible for setting a schedule of meetings with their thesis supervisor to make steady progress. Remember that the thesis receives only 12 credits, so the scale of the project needs to be compatible with amount of time allotted (approx. 12 hrs/wk).
We ask that you submit digital information and images about your thesis by no later than April 22, 2024 for the purpose of preparing a Review Pamphlet. See further instructions below.
- A final draft of the thesis should be presented to the supervisor at least two weeks prior to the thesis deadline. This allows supervisors to provide critical comments and for you to make adjustments prior to finalizing the thesis document for submittal.
- The week that the thesis is due for submittal upload the final document to the Department Thesis Submission Tool (choose "Single Sign On" and log in with your MIT email address) for formatting review. This is for the purpose of making certain the document is in compliance with MIT archive requirements. You will be contacted quickly if adjustments are needed.
- Upon satisfactory completion of the thesis, the supervisor will assign a grade. The grade will not be submitted to the Registrar until the approved final thesis document is submitted to the Department Thesis Submission Tool by the thesis deadline provided on the Institute Academic Calendar — see the Final Thesis Submission tab on the Formatting, Specifications, Copyright & Submission page for more information.
Resources
BSA / BSAD Thesis Contacts
- Undergraduate degree administrator and thesis submission: Tessa Haynes