Thesis or Non-Thesis Options
Thesis
Those of you who wish to do a thesis will sign up for 6 hours of H.Edu. 6970 and conduct a controlled research project under the direction of their committee. A proposal will be first presented to the committee before beginning the thesis research. You will also have to submit an application to the Institutional Review Board (IRB)for approval.
The thesis will require control groups, appropriate design for validity, and outcomes should be tested statistically. A thesis is a research project that is potentially publishable. The Thesis Option requires a comprehensive write up of your study. You can use either the traditional format, which includes four or five chapters.
You may also use the Contemporary Format, which includes an introduction (literature review, needs assessment, underlying theory), a publishable article on your research results, and a conclusion. This format is recommended for those desiring to pursue a Ph.D. degree upon completion of the Masters.
Non-Thesis
If doing a project, sign up for 3-6 hours of H.Edu. 6990. The project should be a health promotion or education project that might involve the development, implementation, and evaluation of a health intervention.
The evaluation could be a non-experimental pre- and posttest design with no comparison groups. However, you should be evaluating your objectives in your Logic Model for an intervention that should at least include changes in knowledge, attitudes, if not behavior. However, you could also conduct a needs assessment survey or review of existing archival program data, or other practical experience.
You will be expected to write a report of the experience and present it to your graduate committee. We strongly encourage students doing non-thesis option to write up their project as a publishable paper. This is much shorter than the written narrative for a project and also gets you a publication with your faculty committee.
The paper could be a description of your research or the main results of your research findings. Your curriculum materials for the health promotion intervention and evaluation surveys can be attached to the article as appendix materials. This is not a thesis and would not require control groups or statistical tests of efficacy.
Your graduate committee will likely require descriptive statistical reports of the project. Your graduate committee should approve the project before beginning the project.
