Why complete Honors in the Major?
Honors in the Major (HM) -Neurobiology is intended for students who are interested in original research and who wish to graduate with the best possible undergraduate training in neurobiology. Students must communicate their intent to complete HM – Neurobiology with a Neurobiology Major advisor.
Requirements – Honors in the Major You must declare HM with L&S Honors Program, complete an L&S Honors in the Major declaration form.
- Earn a 3.300 University GPA
Earn 3.300 GPA in all major courses. - Two of the following 3 Required Neuroscience Courses for honors:
PSYCHOLOGY 454- Behavioral Neuroscience
ZOOLOGY 523- Neurobiology
ZOOLOGY 500- Neuroscience Seminar. - At least 1 course from the Distributed Neuroscience Course listing for honors (see our courses page).
- 6 credits of a Two-semester Senior Honors Thesis – 681-682; a Course Authorization Form may be required to enroll. Your thesis project MUST show relevance to a neuroscience-related topic.
You must complete at least 14 credits in honors courses in the Neurobiology Major while in residence at UW-Madison. Types of honors courses and how to enroll in them, see L&S Honors Program website on earning honors credit.
Honors Thesis AND Senior Thesis – Proposal and final thesis guidelines.
Proposal Due Date and Submission:
By the end of the first full week of classes your proposal should be submitted. This proposal needs to be approved by the Neurobiology Major Proposal Approval Committee. The approval process could take up to 2-3 weeks, please plan accordingly. Email a single PDF copy to neurobiology@ibio.wisc.edu
Proposal submission steps (in one PDF file) include:
1. An Honors Thesis/Senior Thesis proposal form , this should be signed by you and your mentor. If a dual honors thesis is intended, you must still submit a proposal to Neurobiology, and note that you are pursuing a dual thesis on this form. Please talk to your Neurobiology advisor before beginning your research.
2. A 2-3 page proposal for your thesis project. This proposal should include the following components: experimental question, rationale for this experiment, description of the methods, and expected results. The thesis proposal MUST show relevance to a neuroscience-related topic.
3. A Course Authorization Form to be given authorization to enroll in thesis courses in Zoology.
Honors Thesis – 681 semester 1, and 682 semester 2
Senior Thesis – 691 semester 1, and 692 semester 2
Final Thesis Due Date:
The Monday after finals week. A signed, electronic copy of the thesis is due to the Neurobiology Major (see Thesis title page template link below). Additional formatting guidelines and an example thesis are linked below. If you are unsure about appropriate formatting see your Neurobiology Major advisor. Email a single PDF copy to neurobiology@ibio.wisc.edu.
A note about grading:
It is the responsibility of your mentor to grade your final thesis. After the proposal is approved by the Neurobiology major, students will be given permission to enroll in Honors/Senior Thesis credits. During the first semester, a student will be assigned a grade of “P” for progress by the faculty mentor. At the end of the second semester, the student submits the thesis to their faculty mentor for approval an grading. Once the final thesis has been approved and graded by the faculty mentor, the student submits a final thesis to the Neurobiology major neurobiology@ibio.wisc.edu. The Registrar’s Office will update the “P” grade from 681/691 to match the assigned grade from 682/692.
Useful links for students completing a Honors/Senior Thesis:
Thesis Timeline
Thesis Guidelines
Thesis Title Page Template
Thesis Example