Getting Started

Your thesis, at this early point in the process, is entirely up to you. You choose what to make, and why to make it.

 

Use Fall Semester and VCOM486 to:

1. identify your thesis topic and work
2. select a committee of experts who will provide you with feedback and guidance
3. map a calendar that details when you will do your work
4. share your ideas during two informal presentations to the class and guests
5. at the end of the term, propose the thesis in a comprehensive document due on our Exam Day

Your thesis will be completely due and handed in on Spring's Final Exam Day as part of VCOM487, but earlier incremental deadlines such as the Senior Show and Winthrop's SOURCE Presentations may mean—or require—having an earlier completion. 

 

Already know what you want to do? 

Great.

Don't know what to do? That's great too! 

You have some time to decide. Enjoy the process, trust the process.

Fridays in August & September

Preliminary Topic Discussion, Proposal, Definition
Days for each student to talk about ideas they have for their thesis project: identify an area, subject, or media. Come prepared to talk about these ideas during the first two Fridays of the fall term. You will receive feedback from your peers and the instructor. You'll receive Activity Points for participating during these days.

Issues to consider:

• Your thesis will require you to create visuals, art and design, with a purpose for a defined audience. We sometimes think of "the thing" first: logo, poster, book layout, exhibition, website, app, typeface, etc.
• All students will have to create something, but don't get too focused on "the thing" too soon. You need to know the concept, content, story, purpose, and audience—then, get to "the thing." 
• Will your thesis inform, entertain, educate, communicate, help, connect, or network? Will it be bought or sold? Can it do a combination of those things? All of those things? Will it be a toy or a tool?
• Your thesis can demonstrate an area of interest, even a career interest; something you want to do for "paid work" when you graduate.
• Your thesis does not have to be a product, does not have to be bought or sold. However that is optional and you can choose to do so provided it's a manageable and doable endeavor.
• Some students choose to be critics, and their "thing" comments and critiques an audience, social class, problem, policy, company, topic. We sometimes call this being a creative agent or critical agent because you will need to be a critic.
  

In terms of what you can do or should do for your thesis, it's a very individualized approach, BUT you must be able to produce it. If you're making an iPhone or Android app, it must function on that device or those devices. If you're making a website, it must be online and function. And, in all cases, the final product you create in the Spring will be assessed using a craft, composition, and concept rubric. All presentations of your research and work in progress will also be assessed and graded.

Weekly Documentation: digital journal, diary

1. Instructions for setting up your journal are forthcoming.
   
2. This journal becomes your Home Base to keep track of your research and share it with your committee and the class.
   
3. This journal will also be the basis for creating and submitting your Fall Thesis Proposal, and subsequent Spring Thesis Packet.
   

By September or Late October

You should have an idea of what you'll do. If this is not your final final thesis idea that's alright. You should have identified and stated a an area, with a purpose or purposes.

Calendars & Planning

All students must design a proposal plan in Fall that includes work to be done from October to December, and into the Spring thesis design, January to May. GANTT charts work great for planning, or you may choose another visual project plan, such as a bullet journal. Your plan should include weekly tasks, and ideally daily tasks, and you must include your plan when submitting your Proposal on Fall's Finals Day, and your Spring Thesis on Finals Day.

• Microsoft Excel lets you easily create a GANTT, and you can use those tools with Google Sheets or iWork Numbers.
• AIGA includes resources that explain how and why it's important to see the full scope of your work.
• What's the best visual project plan for you? Maybe it's not a GANNT chart, as Edward Tufte shows here.
  

VCOM486 Materials Needed

• Personal Notes: notebook or sketchbook and pencil or pen, for taking notes as needed; you can also keep your own notes in the cloud with apps like Evernote or Google Keep or Apple Notes also work well for this, as does Dropbox Paper
  
• personal electronic device with internet access: smartphone with camera and/or tablet or laptop or personal compute
• web browser, Safari or Chrome or Firefox or Edge, Opera works well too
• Instagram account for visual research and sharing your own work
• your mailbox.winthrop.edu email tied to Winthrop's Google Drive
• design software, design apps, as needed

Some helpful words about email…

• In addition to this class website, course communications will be routinely sent to students' mailbox.winthrop.edu email which you are responsible for checking.
• But email can become overwhellllllllmmmmmmmming, right!?
  
• Work with email smarter, use rules and filters to help sort messages, and also consider using important and priority inbox designators.
  

DEADLINE, Friday Sept. 3rd, on or before 11:15AM.

• Read the Syllabus.
  
• Students will receive instructions at their mailbox.winthrop.edu email about setting up your individual digital journal.
  
• Complete those instructions.
• Check your email and complete the quiz that covers both the syllabus and digital journal process.

 

Your Committee

Each student will need to identify no less than 2 experts or no more than 4 experts, who will act as consultants, and make up your Thesis Committee, a.k.a. Outside Experts.

You will get feedback, suggestions, and advice from these outside experts through in-person meetings, emails, phone calls, Skype, or even Google Hangouts/Meet, or in-person meetings.

Expert Discussion: At our Fri. Sept. 3rd class, students will take turns talking about their possible Outside Experts. Experts cannot be family members, friends, co-workers, or friends of family members. 

1. Expert 0 (Zero): Jason Tselentis, a.k.a. Mr. T, is automatically your first expert and your thesis Advisor since he teaches the Thesis Class.
   
2. Expert Option 1: Winthrop VCOM faculty member (cannot be Mr. T, your primary thesis adviser)
3. Expert Option 2: Winthrop faculty member outside of VCOM, they may be in the College of Visual and Performing Art, such as Art, or Theatre and Dance, or Music, they could also be in Interior Design; they could be in English or Math, or Computer Science, or any other college or department on campus; if needed, you could have two VCOM Committee Members, such as Elizabeth & Jesse
   
4. Expert Option 3: Regional Subject Matter Expert (a.k.a., SME), could be another designer, illustrator, artist, fashion designer, or a production expert such as a printer, engineer, etc., that is in South Carolina or North Carolina; it could also be a professor or teacher at another academic institution
5. Expert Option 4: National Subject Matter Expert (a.k.a., SME), same as above but outside of South Carolina and outside of North Carolina

If your thesis idea changes come October, then your Thesis Committee may need to change.