INTR7017 From Topic to Thesis: Honours Workshop

The objective of this topic is to help students turn their ideas for a thesis into a viable argument. It introduces skills necessary for successful thesis writing - defining a research problem, identifying and evaluating evidence, reading critically and imaginatively, and writing a dissertation - and provides students an opportunity to develop these skills. The topic consists of intensive interactive workshops in which students can develop a peer group experience of the Honours program in International Relations, presenting their work for constructive criticism and essential feedback as it moves from topic to thesis.

This topic aims to bring together the Honours cohort of students in International Relations at a crucial period of the year, when they move from coursework to the development and writing up of their thesis. This is often a very lonely experience, when students feel cut off from their peers as they grapple with the specific challenges of thesis writing. The topic will facilitate the transition from coursework to research. Students will develop the skills necessary to engage with the mechanics of writing a thesis, they will develop the oral and critical skills in defending their arguments with their peers, and they will feel part of an Honours cohort of students as it makes the transition from absorbing knowledge to creating it.

1. Plan and design a research project
2. Actively identify and respond to problems/issues raised in the workshop
3. Position your research questions explicitly in the context of existing scholarship
4. Orally defend arguments in a peer group environment