Each student is guided by a faculty committee that includes: (1) A Thesis Director from the College of Motion Picture Arts; (2) A second faculty member from the College of Motion Picture Arts ; and (3) An outside faculty member from another department. An optional, fourth committee member from any department can be added, if desired. Members of the faculty committee must read and approve the student’s prospectus, review the final thesis project, and attend the formal defense.
When selecting a faculty committee, it is important for students to go over a proposed timeline and give the committee member an opportunity to discuss any conflicts with their schedule. Ideally the full committee will be present on campus for the duration of the project.
Thesis Director
The Thesis Director is the primary supervisor and instructor of record for the Honors thesis, serving as a mentor and resource for the student throughout the process. Thesis Directors will assist students in defining the scope of their project, developing their prospectus, and setting individualized milestones for each semester.
As students progress through each semester, the Thesis Director is responsible for reporting on the student’s progress to the Department Liaison at regular intervals and is responsible for assigning a letter grade for each semester of Honors work.
The Thesis Director chairs the faculty committee for the thesis defense.
Other committee members
The College Honors Liaison and Thesis Director guide students in selecting the other committee members, which must include one additional faculty member from the College of Motion Picture Arts and one faculty member from another department. Students are required to have their committee fully formed no later than Week 10 of the BFA2 Spring semester.
Faculty committee members do not need to be experts in the specific area of the research, but should have an interest in the topic and in helping the student. They generally have much less responsibility than the Thesis Director, but do need to commit to the full project timeline. All committee members must read and approve the student’s prospectus, review the final thesis project, and attend the formal defense. Some committee members may choose to play a more active role throughout the whole process, but it is not required.