COLLEGE OF EDUCATION & HUMAN SCIENCES
Thesis (KINE 551)
Kinesiology graduate students completing a thesis as part of their degree program must follow the specific requirements of the College of Education and Human Sciences and the Graduate School. Deadlines for thesis review and approval at the college and Graduate School levels are provided in the following link: https://www.latech.edu/study-with-us/graduate/thesis-dissertation/
Students interested in pursuing the thesis experience must submit the Thesis Research Agreement Form to the department main office by the first Friday of the quarter prior to the quarter they plan to enroll in KINE 551: Research and Thesis. The 6 credits of KINE 551 can be taken in the same quarter, or divided across 2 quarters. If a student plans to take 3 credits of KINE 551 in the Winter quarter and 3 credits of KINE 551 in the Spring quarter, the Thesis Research Agreement Form must be submitted by the first Friday of the Fall quarter.
For the thesis, the oral examination over the thesis (defense) constitutes the comprehensive examination (KINE 585). Although a thesis is an independent research project initiated and conducted by candidates for graduate degree, considerable guidance and assistance in selecting and defining appropriate topics, collecting and analyzing data, and generating the written thesis in acceptable form are provided by the Thesis Chair and members of the thesis committee. The thesis chair will guide and assist the candidate throughout the project, and must be a graduate faculty member in the student’s academic concentration area. The remaining committee members will include a second graduate faculty member from the Department of Kinesiology (any concentration area), and at least one additional graduate faculty from any content area/department. Please note if the third member is from outside of the university, additional approval will be needed and the student should communicate with their thesis chair and the Department Chair of Kinesiology to initiate those approvals.
Graduate students completing a thesis as part of their graduate degree program should check with the College of Education and Human Sciences for specific requirements regarding the oral presentation and defense of the research. Oral defense of a thesis or dissertation must take place no later than the 10th class day of the quarter of expected graduation. Given the early deadlines for format checks in the graduating term, students are strongly advised to complete the defense in the prior quarter.
Please refer to the Graduate School chapter of the current Catalog for University policies pertaining to thesis tracks in Master’s degrees and Doctoral dissertations.
Please contact the Graduate School (kguillot@latech.edu) or Dr. David Szymanski (dszyman@latech.edu) with any questions regarding the thesis process.