M.S. Thesis Option

The student is expected, in concert with their advisory committee, to identify a conceptual basis for their thesis work. The student is expected to develop significant work that explores the identified basis.

Required Writing

The student, in concert with their advisory committee, must write a high-quality thesis presenting their work. When approved by the advisory committee, this thesis will be submitted to the Texas A&M University Thesis Office.

View thesis research from former students

Publication

The student is required to write and submit a high quality paper to a competitive venue. The paper must be:

  • Related to their thesis work
  • Developed for a specific, peer-reviewed publication venue
  • Appropriate for the target venue
  • Formatted and written with the audience and guidelines of the target venue in mind

The submitted thesis and the submitted paper may be essentially the same. Documented submission of the paper must precede scheduling the final examination.

Students are encouraged to develop and submit for publication additional papers related to their thesis work.

Exhibitions

Students are encouraged to have both local and competitive external exhibitions related to their thesis work.

Final Examination

The Texas A&M Graduate and Professional School requires an oral final examination. This is a presentation by the student defending their thesis work. It is presented primarily to their committee, but it is also open to the public.


MS Non-Thesis Option

The student is expected, in concert with their advisory committee, to identify a practical basis for their capstone project. Capstone projects demonstrate mastery of a known practice, and should be executed in approximately one semester.

Required Writing

The student, in concert with their advisory committee, must write a high-quality paper presenting their work. When approved by the advisory committee, this paper will be submitted to the visualization program.

Publication

The student is required to write and submit a high-quality paper to a competitive venue. Acceptance for publication is not required. The paper must be:

  • Related to their capstone work
  • Developed for a specific, peer-reviewed publication venue
  • Appropriate for the target venue
  • Formatted and written with the audience and guidelines of the target venue in mind

Documented submission of the paper must precede scheduling the final examination.

Students are encouraged to develop and submit for publication additional papers related to their capstone work.

Final Examination

The Texas A&M Graduate and Professional School requires an oral final examination administered by their advisory committee. This is a public presentation by the student defending their capstone project.