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DEGREES & PROGRAMS

Choice of a Faculty Member as Advisor

The student is responsible for selecting a topic and finding a faculty member willing to serve as advisor. In general, the student should follow these steps in choosing a topic and advisor:

1. Begin by exploring topics that match the student's interests, knowledge and skills.

2. Discuss ideas for the master's paper with faculty members who have an interest and expertise in the selected area. The student may explore possible paper topics with several faculty members before selecting the final topic.

3. Select an advisor based on mutual interests and the availability of the faculty member to direct the paper/project during the appropriate semester(s).

The student should understand that individual faculty members may approach agreement on a topic in different ways: through discussion and a written tentative outline, or through a more detailed proposal.

See the list of full-time teaching faculty members who are currently authorized to serve as master's paper advisors. Adjunct and clinical faculty may also serve as advisors at their discretion. They perform this service as a professional courtesy; it is not part of their instructional obligation to the School. A student interested in working with an individual who is not a full-time faculty member must see the Associate Dean or the Student Services Manager.

Planning the Paper

1. If the advisor has not required a formal proposal as part of the selection process, the student prepares the proposal after the advisor has agreed to supervise the projected study. The writing of a proposal is an integral part of the planning the master's paper.

2. The advisor must make clear to the student the types and amount of information expected in the proposal and the timetable for proceeding.

3. Approval of the proposal by the advisor constitutes an agreement. An approved proposal protects both the student and the advisor. Changes in the plan for the study may be made only as the result of mutual agreement between the student and the advisor.

4. If a student plans to make use of human research subjects for the master's paper (i.e., plans to use interviews, questionnaires, or tests), s/he must fill out a "Request for Review of Research Using Human Subjects" form which will be submitted to the UNC Academic Affairs Institutional Review Board (AA-IRB). The form is available online. The student submits the completed form to the advisor, who returns it to the faculty secretary for approval from the SILS Research and Doctoral Committee and the dean before submission to the AA-IRB. AA-IRB approval must be obtained prior to sending out questionnaires or conducting interviews.

Note: The Academic Affairs Institutional Review Board Manual is available online.

5. Carnegie Research Grants, up to $100, are available to SILS students for assistance with unusual expenses involved in researching the master's paper. Grants have been made for the costs of travel, postage, microfilm materials, and certain other necessary expenses. Grants are not made for the mechanical preparation of a Master's paper, such as typing or copying the finished paper.

Writing the Text

Please note: There is a template available on the Web that conforms to guidelines below for the abstract and title page. Students are encouraged to create pages using this template.

1. The student submits to the advisor a first draft of the paper which conforms to the characteristics described, along with an abstract of no more than 150 words. The draft should follow the latest edition of Turabian's Manual, The MLA Style Manual or the APA Publication Manual consistently, with these additions:

a. The title page should conform with the sample attached to these policies. The date should reflect the month in which the paper is actually completed.

b. The abstract should conform with the sample. Note that the abstract is not numbered.

c. Footnotes, instead of being placed at the foot of the pages, may be gathered at the ends of chapters or at the end of the paper, with the heading: NOTES. End notes always precede appendices (if any) and the bibliography.

d. Margins for the paper are 1.5 inches on the left and 1 inch on the right, the bottom, and the top except that the first page of the text, each chapter (if any), the Table of Contents and the first page of the Bibliography have margins of 2 inches at the top.

e. Margins for the abstract are 1.5 inches on the left and 1 inch on each of the other sides. Single-space the citation and the abstract itself.

f. Pagination should appear on each page except the title page. Arabic numbers should appear in the upper right hand corner of the paper.

g. When placing tables broadside, place headings at the binding and notes, if any, at the bottom of the table.

h. Placement of appendices relative to the bibliography or list of works cited depends on the particular style manual consulted. However, the bibliography must not be one of the appendices.

i. Block quotations are indented from the left and are single-spaced.

2. The first draft and subsequent drafts will most likely require revisions. Students should expect to rewrite all or part of the text before final acceptance, and should submit substantial drafts to their advisors several weeks before the final deadline.

The Final Version of the Paper and Abstract

1. The title of the paper should describe precisely the nature of the study.

2. After the advisor finds the paper acceptable, the student must submit two copies of the paper in its final form. Both copies must be on white, 100 percent cotton paper or paper guaranteed by the manufacturer to be its equivalent in durability, 8.5 inches by 11 inches, 16 to 24 pound weight.

PAPERS SUBMITTED ON UNACCEPTABLE PAPER WILL BE RETURNED TO THE STUDENT TO BE REPRODUCED ON THE CORRECT PAPER.

3. Copies may be produced in the following manner:

a. By letter-quality computer printer, such as laser printer or daisy wheel. Do not use ink jet printers as the ink will run if the paper becomes wet.

b. By clear and clean photocopy of an original produced by method a.

4. A total of five copies of the abstract must be submitted, following the paper and reproduction guidelines as above.

5. Submit not more than six subject headings to assist in indexing the paper in bibliographic sources. These headings should follow the sample abstract. The headings to be used are those employed in Library Literature and should closely reflect the content of the study. If the student does not find appropriate headings in Library Literature, s/he should develop headings that are consistent with those.

6. Non-print inclusion: submit two copies of equal quality when the master's paper includes items such as photographs, slides, or computer diskettes. For example, if including photographs as part of the paper, each copy must include original photographs and not photocopies. Put photographs and slides in acid-free holders, which are easily stored on shelves.

7. Arrange any folding tables or pages for ease of binding. Optionally, the table material may be reduced, reformatted, or placed on two pages.

8. Complete two copies of the Master's Paper Distribution Agreement and submit these with the final approved paper. It may be typed or printed.

9. Submit the two final copies of the paper to the advisor in temporary lightweight binders or folders that do not require punching holes in the paper; the extra abstracts may be laid in one of these. Students can obtain used binders in the SILS Library. Attach a label to each binder, giving author's name and paper title. Later, the paper will be permanently bound for the SILS Library.

10. When the advisor finds the final draft satisfactory, s/he signs both title pages and signs the form, REPORT OF APPROVED SUBSTITUTE FOR A MASTER'S THESIS.

11. The student submits to the SILS Office:

  1. The completed, signed paper (2 copies)
  2. A total of 5 copies of the abstract
  3. The REPORT OF APPROVED SUBSTITUTE FOR A MASTER'S THESIS (signed by the advisor)
  4. The signed Master's Paper Distribution Agreement (2 copies)
  5. PDF version of paper (see instructions)

Indexing

1. The SILS Library sends a copy of the abstract to Library Literature for inclusion.

Library Maintenance

  1. Both copies of the master's papers are bound. The SILS Library keeps one copy as an archival copy; one copy is kept on the shelves for circulation.
  2. A copy of the abstract is added to the Abstract Book and kept for reference in the SILS Library.
  3. Files by author name and accession number are kept in the SILS Library.
  4. Master's papers are available for borrowing using normal circulation procedures.

Submitting the Master's Paper Electronically

» see Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about submitting the paper electronically

Students are responsible for creating their master's paper in archivable PDF format. Section B describes how to do this in Microsoft Word. You may, however, use any application to create your master's paper, as long as you prepare a PDF version. If you use another method to create your PDF file, begin at Section C with your PDF file stored on disk. You will have to manually enter your paper’s metadata when you upload your PDF file to the SILS ETD system.  Converting a Microsoft Word Document to PDF file requires that Adobe Professional is installed on the computer you are using.  All computers in the SILS Computer Lab have this software installed.

A. Creating Your Document

We encourage (but don't require) you to use the Microsoft Word template to write your paper. This template will help you format your paper correctly. See the FAQ for the template for more information.

  1. Write your paper.
  2. Save your Word file (please keep a copy). Be sure to include all parts of your paper in a single file for submission (abstract, paper body, any appendices, bibliography, etc).

B. Creating Your PDF in the SILS Lab

If you are submitting your paper from outside of the SILS Lab, including long-distance, please refer to these instructions for PDF conversion.

  1. Open your Word document. Select Acrobat from the set of tabs on the top menu bar and select the Create PDF button.
  2. If there is no choice on the top menu bar for Acrobat, click the Office Button in the upper left-hand corner, then go to Save As and select Adobe PDF.
  3. Type in the filename (your first and last name only, in all lower case letters - ex: scottadams.pdf), and save it to either your USB jump drive or your Duck space (H:\ drive).

C. Submitting your paper to SILS-ETD

For undergraduate Honor's Thesis: Please follow the same guidelines for master's students outlined below.

For SILS Master's Students:

  1. Open SILS-ETD in a browser.
  2. Choose My SILS-ETD on the left sidebar.
  3. If this is the your first time logging in to SILS-ETD, choose Click here to register to create a user account. You will be asked for your ONYEN email address. Be sure to use your full UNC email address (onyen@email.unc.edu).
  4. After registering, you will receive an email that has a link in it. Click on the link to activate your account. You will be asked to provide your name (required) and phone number (optional).
  5. Click on the My SILS-ETD link and log in to your account with your ONYEN email address.
  6. Once you click Continue you will be prompted for your ONYEN password.
  7. SILS-ETD should redirect you to your account. If there is a problem, return to the homepage, click on My SILS-ETD to try again. If this does not work, please contact the SILS Help Desk at help@ils.unc.edu.
  8. Once you are logged into SILS-ETD, select Start a New Submission.
  9. From the drop down menu, choose SILS Master's Paper, then click Next.
  10. Browse for your PDF file, hit Upload, then click Next.
  11. Check that you have the correct file, then hit Next.
  12. Manually type in the metadata at this step by clicking Correct one of these or by clicking on the first Describe link at the top of the page.
    • When entering keywords, put each keyword on a separate line.
  13. Click to accept appropriate licensing for your master's paper, then hit Next.
  14. Your submission is complete. You can check the approval process by clicking on My SILS-ETD and looking for your paper under Submissions in Workflow Process.
  15. Click on Logout in the upper left corner to leave SILS-ETD.
  16. When your master's paper has been approved, you will receive an email notification that it has entered the SILS-ETD archive.
  17. If your submission is not accepted, you will receive an email with the explanation. Log back into SILS-ETD, fix the noted problem, and re-submit.

Note: Once your paper has been submitted to SILS-ETD, you cannot delete a file or overwrite a file. If you need your file deleted, renamed, or replaced, stop by the SILS Help Desk.