INTR7015A International Relations Honours Thesis (4.5/18)

2018

4.5

1 x 2-hour seminar per semester

This is a component of an 18 unit topic. Students must enrol in all components and complete the full number of units for the Honours thesis.

International Relations (Honours)

A thesis of between 15,000 to 18,000 words to be written under the supervision of a member of the academic staff in the School of International Studies. The thesis must provide evidence of the student's abilities in researching and evaluating information; constructing, testing and defending an argument (i.e. thesis); and critically examining the dominant literature and theories in their area of enquiry.

Thesis work-in-progress seminars are held in first semester. Students should choose a thesis topic and obtain the agreement of a member of staff to act as their supervisor in the previous year.

The topic aims to:

• provide a student scope to develop a special research interest under the supervision of an individual staff membe
• provide the chance to enhance research skills to an extent not possible earlier in the degree, by working in anintensive way and reading widely on a particular issue
• enable a student to show originality in the writing of an extended piece of argument of 15,000 to 18,000 words in length which is fully supported by an extensive range of evidence, most often of aprimary kind
• provide the opportunity to examine directly some of the academic literature in political and international studies.

On completion of this topic students will be able to:

• manage a piece of sustained research and writing, between 15,000 to 18,000 words in length
• work in an independent way, largely taking responsibilty for the form, argument and quality of thefinal thesis
• understand the critical need to employ reliable research methods
• support an extended argument with appropriate and convincing evidence by way of well-organized footnotes and bibliogaphic support
• compose a level of originality in some aspect(s) of the thesis submitted