WKU History Graduate Program

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Thesis Proposal Guidelines

The thesis proposal must be approved by the student’s thesis committee prior to enrolling in HIST 599 and commencing work on the thesis.

The thesis proposal serves two purposes. First, a thesis proposal defends the necessity of a research project and demonstrates that it is accomplishable. Second, it sets up a detailed plan for completing a thesis in a reasonable and realistic timeframe. A well-developed and argued thesis proposal is key to completing a successful thesis.

• Abstract (200 Words): This should be a brief overview of the thesis topic and structure.
• Background/Problem (300 Words): Gives an overview of the major historical events under consideration for a general audience, lists what new question(s) this project addresses, and defends why it is necessary to explore this topic.
• Historiography/Methodology (500 words): Outlines the major secondary historical writings on the topic to date, contextualizes the project within those works, and explains the major methods that will be used to answer the questions, including the major influences on developing the methods used and how this methodology will be applied to the present research.
• Sources and Research Plan (750 Words): Describes the major primary and archival source collections that will be used to complete this project and identifies when these will be consulted. Also describes the writing plan for the project, including when chapters will be handed to the thesis chair and a proposed date of completion.
• Project Outline: (250 Words): Gives an outline of the major sections/chapters of the thesis and a brief (one to two sentences) summary of the main topics and questions that will be addressed in each section.
• Short Bibliography: Provides a list of the major secondary works (c. 10-15 articles and books) on the thesis topic. Use Chicago Style bibliography format.