Master of Science in Exercise Science

ES 599 - Thesis Syllabus

 (4 credits minimum)

If you are considering the Thesis Option in Exercise Science, read all of this document!

ES 599 Thesis (1-4 credits) represents the course designation for a Master’s Degree Research Thesis.  Successful completion of a 4-credit (minimum) Thesis fulfills the research requirement for the M.S. degree in Exercise Science.  Registration for one or more ES 599 credit(s) initiates structured progress toward completion of the Thesis.

Before a student registers for one or more credits of ES 599, he/she should begin thinking about the process that leads to successful completion of this project.  Possible Thesis topics should be formulated by the student and discussed with an advisor or the potential Thesis Director.  In order to successfully complete the Thesis, several organizational and administrative steps must be completed.  The normal order of such steps is presented below:

Process

The student will be expected to perform an initial literature review of one or more potential thesis topics to identify and focus a direction for the research.  The student should also review all information at the Thesis website of the Office of Graduate Studies (go to: http://webb.nmu.edu/Colleges/GraduateStudies/).  Download the Thesis Guidelines PDF file.  This document is required reading for Thesis students.

1. The student, in consultation with an advisor, will select the thesis topic and identify a Thesis Director (must be a member of the Graduate Faculty).

2. The student will complete an extensive literature review related to the selected topic.  The significant material resulting from the literature review will eventually be written in a research review format as an initial draft of the Thesis Chapter II  - Review of Literature.

3. Following the initial literature review, and in consultation with the Thesis Director, the student will identify a specific research question to pursue.

4. The student will write a formal Thesis Proposal.  This Thesis Proposal must include the following components:

a. An initial Introduction will be composed to establish a summary of existing research related to the question, a statement of the problem, and the purpose of the study.  This Introduction must be based upon the Literature Review.

b. The student will outline and describe an appropriate research design to test the hypothesis.  The details of this process will be written into an initial draft of the Methodology section of the Chapter I (manuscript section) of the Thesis.  The student must include a tentative design for statistical analysis of data.

c. A proposed time-line for the study will be included.  This time-line must identify the proposed Thesis Defense (see below) date.  The Thesis Director will coordinate the proposed defense date with other thesis defense dates to prevent an overload on faculty members of thesis committees.   If a student fails to have the Thesis ready for defense by the proposed date, there may be a delay before a new date may be scheduled.

d. A statement concerning any costs associated with the study, and how such costs will be covered, should be included in the Proposal.  The student should discuss potential costs with the Thesis Director prior to writing the proposal.

e. The Proposal document should follow the reference citation format of the anticipated publication target journal or of Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise (ACSM).  Number the pages of the Proposal.

Drafts of the Thesis Proposal will be submitted to the Thesis Director for review and editing.  This may involve several exchanges of drafts and re-writes.  When the Director and student find the proposal acceptable, a Thesis Committee will be identified.

The Thesis Committee will consist of the student, the Thesis Director, and a minimum of two additional graduate faculty members.  See the NMU Graduate Bulletin for the Guidelines Regarding Membership of Graduate Advisory and Theses Committees.   The formal written Thesis Proposal will distributed to members of the Committee at least one (1) week prior to a scheduled meeting of the Committee to review and approve the Thesis.

5. The student will schedule a meeting of the Thesis Committee to present the Proposal for approval.  This meeting will provide all Committee members an opportunity to discuss the proposed project with the student.  The student should be prepared to deliver a 15-minute oral description of the Thesis:

a. Provide a brief review of the literature and identification of the problem or question.

b. Review the planned methodology and data analysis procedures.

c. Summarize the importance of the study.

d. The student may utilize MS PowerPoint slides and/or other helpful visuals during the project description.

Committee members will have an opportunity to ask questions and make comments regarding the project.  The Committee will expect the student to respond to questions.  Any necessary research design changes will be agreed upon before the Committee approves for the student to begin the project.  A Thesis Approval Form is completed, signed by the Committee, and submitted to the Department Head for approval.

6. Once the Thesis is approved by the Committee, the student may proceed with the project under supervision and advisement of the Thesis Director.  If human subjects are involved, appropriate approval to conduct the project must be obtained from the University Institutional Review Board for human subjects research (IRB) prior to any collection of data.  Also, studies that involve animals must be approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee.  Approvals can take up to six weeks and data collection may not begin until approval is obtained. 

Application forms are available from the Office of Research Development website: http://webb.nmu.edu/GrantsAndResearch/SiteSections/Compliance/HumanSubjects.shtml .

It is essential that you read the information at the Common Questions and Answers IRB link: http://webb.nmu.edu/GrantsAndResearch/SiteSections/Compliance/QuestionsAndAnswers.shtml

7. The student should read all information available at the Office of Graduate Studies website for Completing the NMU Thesis Successfully:  http://webb.nmu.edu/Colleges/GraduateStudies/ .

8. During the data collection phase of the Thesis, the student will interact mainly with the Thesis Director.  The Thesis Director will decide if any full Committee meetings are necessary prior to the final Thesis Defense. 

9. The final written Thesis may be prepared in a Manuscript Format.  A basic description of the Manuscript Format is included at the end of this syllabus.  The format includes a manuscript ready for submission to a specific and appropriate scientific journal for publication consideration.  The student should note that the final Thesis document must also adhere to the Theses Guidelines from the University Office of Graduate Studies.   Where differences in format exist between the specific journal’s instructions and the Thesis Guidelines, the latter will take preference.  The Guidelines are available at the Graduate Studies website - go to:  http://webb.nmu.edu/Colleges/GraduateStudies/.

10. Registration for ES 599 Thesis credits is by form.  The student should contact his/her advisor or the Thesis Director concerning registering for ES 599 credit.  Grades for ES 599 sections will be submitted as “R” (research in progress) until the final written Thesis has been approved by the Committee and a final letter grade is assigned.  If the Thesis is not completed by the end of the semester in which the student registers for the last 599 credit, a “continuous enrollment” policy takes effect.  This means that the student must enroll for one credit of GD 593 Continuing Master’s Project each semester until the Thesis is completed and approved by the Graduate Office.  It should also be noted that “R” grades expire after three years.  If the project or thesis is not completed within three years of the semester in which an “R” grade was assigned, the R-graded credit must be repeated.

11. The student should submit drafts of the final written Thesis document to the Thesis Director for comments.  These drafts should be submitted in electronic format.  Generally, the Thesis Director will accept early drafts of the Thesis in portions (Manuscript, Literature Review, Summary and Conclusions) as the sections are written.  However, the student should begin writing the Thesis in the required format (see Thesis Guidelines from the Graduate Office).  The student should expect considerable revision prior to submission of a final draft of the Thesis to the full Thesis Committee.

 

12. Upon completion of the project and acceptance of a final written draft of the Thesis by the Thesis Director, a Defense of the Thesis will be scheduled with the Thesis Committee.  The student will distribute copies of the final draft to all committee members at least one week prior to the scheduled Defense.  At the Defense, the student will present a 15-minute review of the project.  This review should include a brief introduction, description of the methodology, results, and interpretation/conclusions.  The format should be as a “free communications” presentation at a professional conference.  The student may use slides, transparencies, or PowerPoint type visual aids.  Following the presentation the student will field questions from anyone in attendance.  Following the general question period, the student will meet with the Thesis Committee to discuss the work.  This discussion will determine if the final Thesis will be approved and if any final changes must be made prior to submission to the Office of Graduate Studies.

13. Following the Thesis Defense, the student will attend to any final recommendations and requirements specified by the Committee and process the necessary final copies of the Thesis.  The final copies(or electronic file) must adhere to the requirements of the College of Graduate Studies Thesis Guidelines.  Appropriate signatures will be obtained for the approval page and the final product submitted by the appropriate deadline (30 days prior to the date of graduation). 

Students should read all information at the Graduate College website for Thesis:  http://webb.nmu.edu/Colleges/GraduateStudies/ .

14. One additional printed copy will be delivered to the Thesis Director.  It is also customary to provide copies for the other members of the Thesis Committee (check with the individual Committee members to see if these may be electronic or hard-copy).

 

Additional Notes

The HPER Department has a variety of laboratory instrumentation available for student research, however, certain priorities exist.  Check with your advisor or Thesis Director concerning availability of any items that you expect to use and any associated costs for equipment or expendable supplies.  All use of equipment from the NMU Exercise Science Laboratory must be scheduled on the laboratory master calendar.  Thesis students are expected to have expertise in the operation and maintenance of instruments prior to beginning their studies.  The ES 571 modules are a good way to learn instrumentation and procedures.  In the case of exercise studies with human subjects, the current exercise testing guidelines of the American College of Sports Medicine must be followed.

Students are expected to fund any expenses and additional instrumentation needs for their research.  The University supports two internal funding programs for student research:  Spooner Student Research Grants (2-3 awards per semester at $500 each), and Excellence in Education Awards (approximately 20-25 awards per summer at $1500 each).  Both of these programs are competitive and require formal written proposals.  Submission procedures are available from the Office of Graduate Studies or on the Graduate Office website.

History has demonstrated that the Thesis requirement is very time consuming and demanding.  The student is strongly encouraged to establish a reasonable time-table for completing the various components of the project.  Allow extra time at each step of the process.

Some have called the Master’s Thesis a “study in excellence” and the Thesis Director and Committee are likely to force a very high degree of quality in the project.  Students should expect to work through several drafts, edits, and revisions during the process of completing the Thesis.  The student and the Thesis Director will expend much effort in making the final product as excellent as possible.

Helpful References

Day, R.A.  How To Write and Publish a Scientific Paper.  Oryx Press. (text for ES 501).

“Guidelines for Scientific Writing”  at  http://www.sportsci.org/index.html   -  Find the Research Resources link in the left column and follow it to Writing and click to find Guidelines for Scientific Writing.

Go to:  http://webb.nmu.edu/Colleges/GraduateStudies/ and download the Thesis Guidelines document.  Read it.

Read … read … and read some more from professional scientific journals.  This will help you get a feel for the style of writing.

 

 Format for Manuscript Style Thesis (ES 599)

Page(s)

i Title/Subtitle or General Content

Title page Additional Notes

Number not printed on title page

ii Abstract with key words page numbers lower case Roman, bottom center of page.

iii Acknowledgments

Optional page.  Continue lower case Roman page numbers.

iv - ? Table of Contents Continue lower case Roman page numbers.

List of Figures Continue lower case Roman page numbers.

List of Tables

1 . . . CHAPTER I

(Manuscript format for submission for publication) 

No title page for the manuscript.

Introduction

Methods

Results

Discussion

(No Reference list at this point but keep one on file)

 Use the master reference list for the full Thesis document – see below.  This will require modification and addition of a Reference list in the Manuscript before actual submission for publication.) Written as per submission to a journal.  The intended journal should be identified by name.  The manuscript is prepared according to the specific journal’s Instructions for Authors.  Begin Arabic page numbers and continue throughout.

CHAPTER II

LITERATURE REVIEW

Including justification of the problem/study as described in Chapter I.  (With some modification it may be possible to submit this Review as a stand-alone paper to a journal.) 

Must specify style used for Chapter II - MSSE or same journal as the manuscript submission. 

Full comprehensive literature review as in the traditional thesis Chapter II.  Includes full reference list.

CHAPTER III

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

FULL REFERENCE LIST 

Combine cited references for the Manuscript and Literature Review into one master list here. As in a Traditional Thesis Chapter V.

APPENDICES May include:  Consent Form, other forms, any raw data.

Assign capital letter order; APPENDIX A, APPENDIX B, etc.

Check the Guidelines document at the Graduate Studies web