391 PROSPECTUS

Youve selected your topic and collected research material. Now its time to plan
your project and your ideas for your thesis. The conventional method for this sort
of planning is a 4-5 page prospectus. The prospectus should include:
A detailed description of the project and justification for the essay. Writers
voice is active, scholarly, confident.
A working thesis statement you need to articulate your argument
A description of research problems and strategies for handling them
A description of the essays organization a plan for how you will write the
thesis
o Background what the audience needs to know before they can follow
your argument
o Important scholars/theories/sources influencing your point of view
o How you will analyze or use your primary texts
o Opposition what are opposing or different points of view? This doesnt
have to be direct opposition but could just be different ways of looking
at a problem or interpreting a text.
o Conclusion why your thesis matters
o A Works Cited page
All work must follow MLA formatting and documentation style.
And, please remember, the primary purpose of the prospectus is to convince the
reader you are ready to begin writing your thesis; be convincing and address all of
the required content. Your level of detail and explanation will help you sound
convincing.
Due Dates:
Mon., March 21: Prospectus Introduced
Mon., March 28: Easter Break, No Class
Mon., April 4: Peer Review of First Draft of Prospectus. Bring draft to class.
Share draft with mentor.
Mon., April 11: Peer Review of Second Draft of Prospectus. Bring draft to class.
Final Exam Day, Tuesday, May 3, 11 am: Final Draft of Prospectus Due to
Turnitin/Bb by 11 am.