Writing a Senior Thesis in Criminology

In the College, many majors allow students the option of writing an honors thesis in their senior year. With the guidance of a faculty advisor, students conduct extensive research throughout the year on a major-related topic of their choosing. Majors often have special courses that help students build the skills necessary for writing a thesis, and students who write a thesis can typically present their findings toward the end of the year. Currently, I am enrolled in the Criminology Capstone Seminar, a required class all senior Criminology majors take. This class has been so helpful in terms of demystifying what it means to write a thesis and conduct empirical research, and I have learned skills such as how to write a literature review or request data from a government institution. At the end of this semester, I will have developed a research design and proposal for a potential thesis, and am excited to say I have elected to continue my research into next semester through writing a thesis. Next semester, I will receive credit for an independent study in which I work with my Criminology faculty advisor to conduct my data analysis and actually write my thesis, in which I seek to examine how systemic administrative delays in the Philadelphia court system impacts defendants’ likelihood of reoffending.

- Samara H.