Thesis

1. Thesis/Capstone Orientation Georgia State University Institute of Public Health

2. The Process During the semester preceding registration for the thesis/capstone You should have a reasonably well-defined topic in mind before requesting a faculty member to chair or serve on your committee. Submit all paperwork to the Graduate Coordinator and register for the thesis/capstone course (PH7990) at least a week before the registration deadline. Complete the IRB approval process (if required): http://www.gsu.edu/research/human_subjects.html Complete CITI Training: https://www.citiprogram.org/default.asp?language=english

3. The Thesis/Capstone Paperwork Three forms must be submitted to the Department Chair & Graduate Coordinator before you can be authorized to register for thesis. Please do not wait until the last minute to do this. Appointment of Committee form Chair must be an IPH Faculty Member Application form Approval of Proposal form (placed on file with the College) Forms for the thesis and capstone can be found at: http://publichealth.gsu.edu/current_students.asp

4. General Timeline First Day of Class One month after 1st Day of Class: Submit 1st and possibly 2nd draft to your Chair Two months after 1st Day of Class: Submit final draft to your chair and the rest of your committee; schedule and announce defense Two weeks before Last Day of Class: Last Day to Defend Thesis/Present Capstone Last Day of Class by 4 pm: Submit final corrected, PDF version of thesis to the Electronic Thesis Database (www.etd.gsu.edu) or submit final, corrected capstone product for approval by Graduate Coordinator

5. Human Subjects A student planning to conduct research involving human subjects must submit pertinent information for review. The Georgia State University Institutional Review Board (IRB) for the Protection of Human Subjects is charged with protecting the rights and welfare of human subjects by reviewing the background, purpose, methodology, and instrumentation of all research involving human subjects conducted by faculty, staff, students and employees of the university. GSU IRB Website http://www.gsu.edu/research/human_subjects.html

6. Writing the Thesis Follow the format outlined in the IPH Student handbook and on the IPH website: http://publichealth.gsu.edu/pdf/thesis_guidelines.pdf. Set a reasonable plan for tackling each part of the thesis: Introduction, Lit. Review, Methods & Procedures, Results, Discussion & Conclusion, References and Appendices. Schedule regular meetings with your chair to discuss your progress.

7. Preparing for the Defense Practice, practice, practice! Your defense should be scheduled and announced by the stated deadline. Your entire presentation should not be written on your PowerPoint slides. Be confident in your work! Be prepared to start on time. Make sure copies and other preparations are completed the day before the defense.

8. Electronic Thesis Database The Georgia State University ETD Database is the Electronic Thesis & Dissertation Database. The ETD Database is designed so that students may submit their theses or dissertations themselves - once it has been approved by the appropriate graduate office, it is then available over the Internet. You can access the ETD website at this link: http://etd.gsu.edu/ For examples of MPH theses filed electronically, visit: http://publichealth.gsu.edu/thesis.asp

9. Writing/Developing the Capstone Follow the format outlined in the IPH Student handbook and on the IPH website: http://publichealth.gsu.edu/1913.html Set a reasonable plan for tackling each part of the capstone. Schedule regular meetings with your chair to discuss your progress. Examples of Capstone Projects: Grant Proposal/ Research Plan Community Assessment Public Health Program Plan Program Evaluation Video Website Development