With Deadlines Looming, Thesis Writers Ready for Relief

As a batch of thesis deadlines rapidly approaches in the days before spring break, seniors who have spent the past year or more researching, writing, and revising expressed relief that they were close to finishing what is often a student’s most massive academic undertaking and said they look forward to enjoying their last few months at the College.

While some concentrations such as Social Studies and History and Literature require students to write a thesis in order to complete their degrees, other departments like English and Economics do not mandate that students write a thesis but ask that students who seek highest honors at the College complete one.

Theses range from economic analyses to dramatic performances to scientific experiments, and for some students, the process of constructing and completing their thesis can begin early in their college careers as they seek out advisors, begin field research, and apply for grants.

While the students interviewed for this article said they viewed their theses as a fundamental and formative part of their Harvard experience, most said they were excited to finally submit their work.

Matthew S. Ackerman ’14, whose economics thesis is due Thursday, said after he submits his paper it will be “weird to be normal again.”

“[I’ve] gone out only a couple of times this semester,” Ackerman said, adding that he has stayed up until 3 a.m. most nights for the past six weeks to finish his thesis. “I ask myself, is it fun enough to warrant me not working tonight? And usually that answer is a depressing no.”

Rebecca E. Handlin ’14, who submitted her creative English thesis on March 3, said she had planned her daily schedule around writing her thesis, which was composed of five original short stories.

“I live in the quad, so I would wake up and write, and I would stay in the quad and revise,” Handlin said. “I would need to choose between staying in the quad all day or going to the river all day.”

Handlin said she is still adjusting to having free time now that she has submitted her thesis.

“When you aren't working on the thesis, you are wondering, ‘Why am I not working on my thesis?’” she said.

There is no College-wide data about the number of thesis writers, but, as an example, according to Economics Director of Undergraduate Studies Jeffrey A. Miron, approximately 40 students are writing a thesis in his department, which amounts to about 20 percent of concentrators.

“I would say the majority of students actually don’t write a thesis,” Ackerman said. In fact, Ackerman originally had not planned to write a thesis, but after researching a charter school study in a graduate economics course last semester, he decided to continue researching and petitioned to enter the thesis process late.

Although many thesis writers, like those concentrating in Government, History and Literature, or English, have already submitted their theses, many seniors will be writing over spring break.

Jason C. Huo ’14, an Engineering Sciences concentrator who will be finishing his thesis in early April, said he is envious of friends who are finishing their theses this week. Still, Huo said, he anticipates that his final months at the College will be a relaxing time of reflection.

“It’s sort of time to look back and think, ‘Wow we’ve been here for four years,’” he said.

—Staff writer Meg P. Bernhard can be reached at meg.bernhard@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @Meg_Bernhard.