As one of the requirements for an Honors College diploma, every senior must undertake a year-long thesis project.

For this project, students focus on the skills they have learned during the core courses and seminars and apply them to an original, extended research project.

View the current Honors College Thesis guidelines, deadlines, and forms.

Thesis Process

Students will begin their thesis work in the second semester of their junior year, under the direction of a faculty adviser. The project is completed in the student’s final semester when they present the results of their research to the campus community.

The nature of the individual project depends on the discipline.

Sciences

Students in the sciences typically write an extended lab report, detailing extensive lab research and including a general 10-15 page introduction and relevant bibliography.

Social Sciences and the Humanities

Students in the social sciences and the humanities generally develop research and/or critical work, approximately 50 pages long, that presents an original argument situated with a comprehensive literature review and a thorough bibliography.

Arts

Students in the arts—including graphic design, performing arts, studio art, and creative writing—will often develop a substantial new work in their field that will be accompanied by a 10-15 page critical introduction and supporting bibliography.

Thesis Prize Recipients

2022 Recipient

  • Margaret Brackey — Birds Into Bodies: Synthesizing Dance and Research 

2021 Recipient

  • Olivia DiSanto — Red Isn’t Always Red: Psychological Color-Word Associations in Children’s Picture Books

2022 Recipient

  • Matthew Pezzulich — Creating in Response to COVID: A Reflection on Tradition and the Emerging Through ‘Antigone’ 

2021 Recipient

  • Nurjahan Khan — Moments of Pause: An Exploration of Public Installation Art

2022 Recipients

  • Jay Peierls — The Alias and Gender Fluidity in Surrealism and Dada
  • Rachel McKee — The Road to Radicalization: Tracking the Development of the Weather Underground’s Ideology

2021 Recipients

  • Megan Clifford — Eventualities: A Critical Amplification of Contemporary Issues through Science Fiction 
  • Rebecca Justiniano — El Puente: A Historical Novella Set in 1928 Puerto Rico 

2022 Recipient

  • Isabella Andrade — What Leads to the Rise of Populist and Anti-establishment Political Parties in France?

2021 Recipient

  • Eleni Zamagias — Mathematics in Epidemiology: An Early Review of Responses to COVID-19 by Institutions of Higher Education 

2022 Recipient

  • Jasur Shukurov — Improving Accessibility for Low Vision and Blind People Using Machine Learning and Computer Vision  

2021 Recipient

  • Gabriela Vidad — Exploring and Communicating the Severity of Coral Reef Changes in the Philippines Using Remote Sensing and Widely Available Resources  

Examples of Honors Program Thesis Topics

One of the outstanding benefits of the Honors College is the opportunity to work one-on-one with a faculty mentor to develop an honors thesis or research project.

  • Victoria Alonso — Sibling Relationships in Adoption  
  • Jenna Anderson — Loneliness: An Integrative Thematic Review Inspired by the COVID-19 Pandemic  
  • Isabella Andrade — What Leads to the Rise of Populist and Anti-establishment Political Parties in France?  
  • Victoria Arnold — CANCELLED! A Look into the Moral Obligation of the Fan  
  • Jonathan Aronov — Assessing potential inhibitors of Trichomonas vaginalis and determining compound safety in Drosophila melanogaster  
  • Victoria Asodi — Evolution of PCSK Gene Isoforms in the Context of Human Menopausevolution of PCSK Gene Isoforms in the Context of Human Menopause  
  • Carson Bailey — Last [Disempowered Person] Standing: Identity in the Battle Royale Narrative Formula  
  • Panayotis Baki — The Migrant Crisis and Nationalist Responses in Europe Agelarakis 
  • Ryan Barrett — Application and Implementation of Augmented Reality  
  • Tasmiah Basher — Differences in the Association Between Religious Coping Styles, Psychological Well-Being, and COVID-19 Related Stressors among Christian and Muslim Young Adults  
  • Nicole Basilan — Investigating the Role of Transcribed Ultraconserved Regions on the Expression of Genes Related to Substance Abuse Disorders
  • Marcello Bellia — Money In Youth Sports and its Effects  
  • Andrea Bentivegna — The Effectiveness of Online Learning and Virtual Simulation in Undergraduate Nursing Education and its Subsequent Impact on Students’ Transition to Practice  
  • Justin Bergson — Teaching Spanish Inclusively: A Spanish Teacher’s Dilemma and How to Combat Gendered Languages in the Classroom  
  • Tasha Berol — Staged Violence: A Historical and Practical Evaluation of Stage Combat  
  • Margaret Brackey — Birds Into Bodies: Synthesizing Dance and Research  
  • Kaitlyn Brooks — The purpose of NFTs: What role do Non-Fungible Tokens play in the future of art and technology?  
  • Dominique Browne — Axial-based locomotion in Lepidosiren paradoxa of Different Sizes on a Loose Pebble Substrate  
  • Ally Buettel — The Detrimental Effects of Childhood Experiences and the Significance of Trauma-Informed Care for Nurses  
  • Valerie Buonaiuto — I + E: Educating & Raising Awareness About Introversion & Extroversion  
  • Elizabeth Butler — Mistreatment of Older Adults with Alzheimer’s Disease  
  • Vincent Cahill — The Effect of Menthol on Cancer Cell Proliferation and Migration  
  • Marissa Campano — A Systematic Review of Voice Disorders in Children  
  • Jessica Campitiello — Technology and Theatre: How Modern Advances in Technology Have Altered the Ways in Which Messages Are Sent and Received  
  • Nicholas Caramihai — Stress Response of Degu (Octodon Degus) Pups to maternal Separation at Various Stages of Postnatal Development, as Indicated by Play Frequency Behavior   
  • Serena Chen — Language and the Conscious Mind: Epistemological Concerns of Text-Analysis in Psychotherapy Research  
  • Tinamarie Ciorra — The Role of Donepezil, Memantine, and Vitamin E on PC12 Neuroendocrine Cells  
  • Megan Clifford — Eventualities: A Critical Amplification of Contemporary Issues through Science Fiction  
  • Jessica Colonna — Horrifically Female: The Role of Women in the Horror Film Industry and its Reflection on Society  
  • Connor Coupe — United States Arms Exports to Iraq  
  • Kellyann Coveny — The Magic of Musical Interpretation and Expression  
  • Karli Cox — Curriculum Embedded Social and Emotional Learning in English Language Arts  
  • Caitlin Cronin — Music to my Ears: How the Correlation Between Music and Language can Possibly Help Children with Specific Language Impairment  
  • Erin Cullen — From Irish Immigrants to Irish-Americans: The Evolution of “Irishness” in the United States from the 1910s-1960s  
  • Patryk Czyzo — Determining the Impact of Institutional Investors on Bitcoin  
  • Sabrina Davis — A Series of Unfortunate Events: Understanding the Lives of Ordinary Colonial Women through Unusual Circumstances  
  • Thomas Dayton — I Can’t Believe It’s Not Gambling: Why “Loot Boxes” Negatively Affect Consumers, Developers, and Publishers  
  • Nicholas DeMarco — Assessment of Undergraduate Curriculum Using Statistical Methods  
  • Meagan Demaria — The Political Impacts of Climate Change: Narratives in Literature and Art  
  • Aliyyah Dewji — The Association Between Depression and Seizure Disorders: The Neuro Transmitter That Are Present in Both Disorders  
  • Olivia DiSanto — Red Isn’t Always Red: Psychological Color-Word Associations in Children’s Picture Books  
  • Michael Ducker — Ecology, Oil, and Chronotopes: On Reza Negarestanis “Cyclonopedia” in the context of Ecocriticism  
  • Emily Dunlop — The Integral Overlooked Ingredient of Literary Modernism: Intimate Relationships  
  • Ahmed Ellahie — The Association Between Depression and Seizure Disorders: The Neuro Transmitter That Are Present in Both Disorders  
  • Arthur Fain — Development of Novel Hypervalent Iodine Regents  
  • Emily Farrell — Technology and Humanness: A Media Ecological Study of Organ Transplant and Death in the 21st Century  
  • Madeline Feehan — The Museum of Things Best Left Forgotten: A Connected Story Collection that Renovates the Missing/Dead Girl Genre  
  • Benjamin Feldman — Despite Everything  
  • Ariyana Felician — Tracking, teacher expectations, and cultural bias: examining minority student participation in upper level courses in public schools  
  • Megan Ferguson — The Suan shu shu and the Nine Chapters on the Mathematical Art: A Comparison  
  • Sarah Ferraro — Demanding Perfection From The Perspective of Transformational Leadership: The Management Practices, Leadership Principles, and Core Values of Hyman G. Rickover  
  • Rachel Foley — The Impact of Technology on the Accounting Industry  
  • Ryan Foley — The Effects of Visual Marketing and the Impact of Evolving Technology  
  • Isabella Franco — Neat Freak: Understanding How Media Portrayal of OCD Can Negatively Impact the Stigma Surrounding Mental Health  
  • Avery Gaeta — Predictors of success in second language learning  
  • Katherine Gifford — “I Forgot the Formula Again But It’s Cool”: Exploring How Physics Students Pivot After Forgetting an Equation or Expression    
  • Maria Giovanna — Environmental Economics and Policy and Global Water Insecurity Jumper 
  • Jami Glatter — How Has Fake News Became a Political Tool with Real Consequences  
  • Fiona Govin — Into the Oblivion: Drawing the Depths of Dante’s Inferno  
  • Nicole Grace — Human Trafficking in the United States  
  • Julia Griffo — Transgressive Spanish Women and Their Agencies through the Lens of the Film Industries of Spain and United States  
  • Frederick Grimshaw — Feminist, Trailblazer, or True Woman: An Analysis of Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s Contributions to American Society Through Her Life, Career, and Decisions  
  • Thomas Grlic — Initial Framework for Using Single Board Computers for DAQ and Complex Process Control  
  • Victoria Grodzki — Nonpharmacologic Interventions to Slow Progression of Alzheimer’s Disease-A Look into Music Therapy, Nutrition & Physical Exercises  
  • Danielle Grushkovsky — The Transgenerational Effects of Rapamycin on Drosophila Melanogaster  
  • Dori-Jo Guterrez — Stories of Women in Greek Mythology: Modern Feminist Retellings Through Original Songs  
  • Emily Hakimi — Nursing Practices for Pain Management and the Use of Non-Pharmacologic Alternatives to Opioids  
  • Oman Hameed — Why Narrative Matters: Empathy and Death in Modern Medicine  
  • Joseph Hoeffner — Shared Stories, Essays, and Music: A Creative Writers Approach to Listening  
  • Olga Horbal — Blood Loss Estimation and its Effects on Patient Care  
  • Anika Husain — First Generation College Students: Retention Rates Campus Involvement, and Career Outcomes  
  • Angela Ibragimov — Neuroprotective Effect of Estrogen on Alzheimer’s Disease in Murine Hypothalamic Cells  
  • Janet Ilyayev — Issues and Trends of the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Nursing Perspective on Stress and Recommendations Moving Forward  
  • Janice Im — Preadolescent conduct problems,empathy, attachment security with their mother, and collaborative decision-making  
  • Samantha Irace — Nonword Repetition in Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders  
  • Andrew Jacobson — Rethinking the Student Debt Crisis: Income Share Agreements  
  • Nandini Jojode — Analysis of the Function of the LSH3 Gene in Growth of Arabidopsis Thaliana  
  • Kristina Joo — Nonword Repetition in Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders  
  • Rebecca Justiniano — El Puente: A Historical Novella Set in 1928 Puerto Rico  
  • Paulina Karagianes — The Integration of Genetics and Genomics Education Into Undergraduate Nursing Program Curricula in the United States  
  • Allen Karimov — The Effects of Cocaine Addiction on the LNCRNA in the Hippocampus  
  • Abraham Kariyev — Factors Associated with Mental Health Symptoms Among College- Aged Students During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic  
  • Nicole Katsanis — The effects of parental romantic attachment on the emotional socialization of their children  
  • Abinash Kaur — Molecular Modeling & NMR-based Counter Screens of Fragments Inhibitors of Trichomonas Vaginaltis Adenosine/Guanosine Nucleoside Ribohydroase  
  • Aadil Khan — The Temporal Dynamics of the Neural Response to Social Rewards  
  • Nurjahan Khan — Moments of Pause: An Exploration of Public Installation Art  
  • Morcel Khwajazadah — The Effect of Metabolic Intermediates on the Viability of HL & VHL Cells  
  • David King —  “Look at her”: Function and Effect of Contemporary American English Gendered Slang  
  • Eleni Kokoris — Improving Phishing Awareness Through Gamification Techniques  
  • Angie Kolobukhova — Let’s Play It by Ear: Audiation and Creativity in Jazz Vocal Improvisation  
  • Tereza Kuzmina — Choosing for Friends Relative to Strangers in Need Decreases Risky Decision-Making  
  • Atanas Lapchev  — “Knowledge Presentation” A Formalization of knowledge Sharing between multiple individuals  
  • Alina Larina — The Harmful Systematic Conditions That Are Linked to Periodontal Disease  
  • Gianna Lavacca — The effects of the knock-down of the pyruvate kinase isoform, PKM2, on VHL+ and VHLkidney cancer cells  
  • Emily Lawrence — Ethnics and Our Global Food System  
  • Elizabeth Levner — Open Eyes: a narrative in progress  
  • Alexandra Lombino — Mother as Writer, Writer as Mother: Challenging the Traditional Family in Ferrante’s Neapolitan Quartet  
  • Sandrine Lorin — Disparities in pregnancy outcomes among Afro- Caribbean populations in Brooklyn (NY). The Role of Doulas  
  • Kevin Lubin — The Creation of Four Jewish Women Playing Mah Jongg  
  • Brigid Lynn — Class, Capital, and Political Engagement Among Panhellenic Sorority Women  
  • Alecia Lyseight — The Relations of Maternal Role-Confusion and Maternal Emotion Regulation with Preadolescent Behavioral Problems  
  • Vinay Maddula — Computational Studies of aB-Tubulin and its Role in Breast Cancer Metastasis  
  • Stephanie Malcangi — Maternal Stress is related with decreased play behavior in Octodon degus pups  
  • Virginia Maloney — The Life, Death, and After-Life of the Western Film: How A Genre Creates and Responds to National Culture and Politics  
  • Ravyn Malvino — Starting a Science Blog During a Pandemic  
  • Danielle Mark — The Evolution of Dental Tissues in the First Mammalian Megaherbivore  
  • Emma Martin — The impact of social and political factors regarding self-disclosure of sexual orientation on Adelphi University undergraduate students  
  • Maggie Matassa — Philosophy of the Body: a Philosophical Perspective as Aid to the Progression of the Western Health Paradigm  
  • Monica Mattei — The Remote Work Experiment: An Analysis of the Rise and Impact of the New Working Normal  
  • Danielle McDougall — Situating the Tribe: How the African Diaspora Uses Literature to Grapple with Epistemicide  
  • Erin Mcelhone — Der Lauf der Dinge  
  • Rachel Mckee — The Road to Radicalization: Tracking the Development of the Weather Underground’s Ideology  
  • Marisa McLeod — Photocatalytic Degradation of Hazardous Wastes using Tungsten Trioxide Based Hybrids   
  • Sophie Meyers — False Memories and the Misinformation Effect: Impacts on Classroom Learning  
  • Mark Mikhail — Effect of Exam Wrappers on Student Learning and Metacognition across a Semester in a Nursing Genetics Course  
  • Stephanie Milillo — Voice Characteristics of Female College Athletes  
  • Kalei Mills — Origins of Performance Outcome Differences in Children with Cochlear Implants  
  • Areej Mohini — Impact of incline during terrestrial locomotion in South American lung fish  
  • Donato Moneta — The Impact of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act on the Individual Taxpayer & The American economy  
  • Catherin Murphy — The Evolution of Free Agency in Baseball  
  • Samantha Napoli — Workaholism in Undergraduate College Students  
  • Iffat Naveed — Challenges in Measuring Organizational Impact Within Nonprofits  
  • David Navindra — Utility of Hypervalent Iodine in Organic Synthesis  
  • Eric Nelson — What Makes a Video Game a Roguelike?  
  • Catherine Olsen — The Sorrow and the Pity: A study of Shifting Memory in France  
  • Helayna Ortiz — Identifying potential target genes encoding glycolytic enzymes in VHL disease  
  • Victoria Ouzounian — How do people regulate important goals? Exploring construal level and goal hierarchies  
  • Alyssa Paciullo — Contemporary Fairy Tale Adaptations: Tales and Reality Meet in the Woods  
  • Priya Patel — Analysis of Cytokinins Signaling Arabidopsis  
  • Jay Peierls — The Alias and Gender Fluidity in Surrealism and Dada
  • Matthew Petrouskie — Recessions and Depressions: An Economic Comparison of the Great Depression and Great Recession and their respective aftermaths  
  • Matthew Pezzulich — Creating in Response to COVID: A Reflection on Tradition and the Emerging Through ‘Antigone’  
  • Jenna Piller — Business and Corona Virus: The New Normal  
  • Sandra Pinto — Studying the evolution of cytokinin signaling using the green algae Coleochaete scutate  
  • Manasa Pisipati — Osteoporosis and Calcium  
  • Brandon Ram — Biocontrol in Aquaculture  
  • Lauren Redford — Social Media’s Effect on the Semantics and Etymology of Slang  
  • Erica Redmann — Effects of substrateon terrestrial locomotion in Lung Fish  
  • Christopher Ricca — Beyond the Numbers: Are Ethics and Fraud ‘Accounted’ for in the Business World?  
  • Erik Riedlinger — Accounting and Regulation for Cryptocurrency  
  • Julia Rietbroek — Mapping Experience in Tourism: A Case Study of Scotland, 2000-2020  
  • Seo Rin — Horrifically The Effects of Knockdowns of the Pyruvate Kinase Isoform, PKM2, On VHL- and VHL+ Kidney Cancer Cells Celine Jeong
  • Leea Rizzo — The COVID-19 Pandemic’s Impact on Undergraduate Nursing Students Learning Activities  
  • Samantha Rooney — America’s Token Refugees: The Refugee Experience at the Fort Ontario Emergency Refugee Shelter of World War II  
  • Julio RuizDiaz — Human Paleoecology of the Terminal Pleistocene and Early Holocene of the Greater Tanana Valley, Alaska circa 22-9ka  
  • Paul Russell — Redevelopment of a MOT  
  • Emma Ryan — A review of investigations into rapamycin’s mechanism of action and utility as a treatment for succinate dehydrogenase deficiency in a Drosophila melanogaster model  
  • Julianna Sacramone — The Negative Effects Associated with the Stigma of Being a Neurodivergent Child and the Importance of Anticipatory Guidance by Healthcare Workers  
  • Aria Saltini — Musicals and the Transitional Roles of Women  
  • Melissa Saporito — The Effectiveness of Inquiry-Based Instruction In Secondary Mathematics Education  
  • Dominique Sarcona — Is This All? Domesticity in White America, 1945-1965  
  • Alison Schoeder — The Interconnection of Ecofeminism & Vegetarianism: How They Can Save the Environment  
  • Rebecca Schoenfeld — All Social Media is Not Created Equal: How Finsta and Instagram Use Differ in Their Relationships With Loneliness and Social Engagement  
  • Matthew Schroh — Chinese Reforms of the Nanjing Decade: Nationalist and Communist Efforts behind Reform Pursuit  
  • Steffanos Selearis — Effect of exam wrappers and exam corrections on student learning and metacognition in a nursing genetics course  
  • Thiha Set — Netflow Visualization for Cyber Defense  
  • Sarah Shin — A Case Study Analysis of the Anti-Defamation League’s work in Public Policy through the lens of John Kingdon’s Public Policy Model  
  • Rebekah Shin — Synthesis of Phenyl Pyridine Derivatives and their Inhibitory Activity on Adenosine/ Guanosine – Nucleoside Ribohydrolase (AGNH)  
  • Jenna Shipley — The Neapolitan Quartet: Conveying the Realities of the Feminine Mystique  
  • Tasneem Shoubir — The Threat of Science Illiteracy to the United States  
  • Jasur Shukurov — Improving Accessibility for Low Vision and Blind People Using Machine Learning and Computer Vision  
  • Kyra Singh — The Effect of Inhibition of Lactate Dehydrogenase on Human Renal Carcinoma Cells that Lack the Von Hippel Lindau Gene  
  • Colette Sirabella — Men Writing Women: A content analysis of r.h. Sin as a feminist writer  
  • Tara Sirotkin — Current Issues in the Nursing Care of Eating Disorders  
  • Francis Slezinger — Genetics and Genomics Integration in Undergraduate Nursing Education  
  • Katelin Smith — “HEEL” Healing, Empowering & Enhancing Lives  
  • Billy Smith — Inside the Mind of an American Independent Voter: How do we elect the President of the United States of America in the 21st Century?  
  • Sarah Sohn — The Effectiveness of Equine Therapy for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Challenge to the Medical Model  
  • Ilana Stukal — Impacts of Cross-Fostering on Octodon degu mothers  
  • Christina Sullivan — Construction of Sudoku Puzzles and Their History  
  • Lucas Sullivan-Barrale — For the Love of God! An original one-act musical Comedy  
  • Alexandra Szynwald — The Need for Health Literacy in Combating Vaccine Hesitancy: A Reflection of the Covid-19 Vaccine Response  
  • Jade Tabor — The consequences of the commodification of education: A Market Comparison  
  • Samantha Tannenbaum — Converting a Chirality Experiment to be Inquiry-Based and Virtual  
  • Olivia Tcholakian — Looking at the Ethics of Big Data: An Analysis of the Moral Implications of Current Data Practices  
  • Milly Tenenbaum — A Study of the Current State of Genetics and Genomics in Traditional 4-Year BSN Programs in the United States  
  • Jack Thomann — What would happen if the United States was Erased from Existence Today?  
  • Amber Torvund — The Intersections of Intimate Partner Violence & Social Work: Understanding the Issues Using a Human Rights & Social Justice Approach  
  • Joanna Troyanos — Marital conflict, parental Romantic attachment, and children’s attachment security in middle childhood  
  • Tina Tudisco — Which Witch is Which? A Study of Witch Trials Comparing an Italian to an American Example  
  • Aianne Urgel — Mechanics and Narrative in Video Games  
  • Rachel Vacca — Narratology and the abstract condition of translation theory  
  • Paul Venturi — Electrochemical Synthesis of Tungsten Trioxide and Optimization of Its Photocatalytic Ability Through Creation of Hybrids with Gold Nanoparticles  
  • Gabriela Vidad — Exploring and Communicating the Severity of Coral Reef Changes in the Philippines Using Remote Sensing and Widely Available Resources  
  • Eric Vonczerniewicz — A Practical Approach to the Question of Responsibility Regarding Climate change  
  • Bhargawi Vutukuri — Telemedicine and its Role in Addressing Health Inequity Globally  
  • Jessica Wang — Forgiveness and Empathy in Early Adolescence  
  • Emily Wasnieski — Social and Academic Experiences in Higher Education  
  • Krystal Wheaton — Making Education Accessible: Using Arts-Integrated Learning for Students with ADHD  
  • Jennifer Williams — Effects of Card Game “Codenames” on Lexical Processing Skills  
  • Malcolm Woodard — How a well-meaning rule change became an attack on the agricultural community  
  • Lila Woodbridge — Attachment Style, Stress, and Media Preferences  
  • Deborah Yanez — Exploring the Efficacy of Rote vs. Note: An Authoethnography of a Senior Recital  
  • Juliana Yee — The Relationship Between Science and Literature: A Reflection of Society’s Attitude Towards the Sciences, and Path Towards a more Interdisciplinary Science  
  • Muhammad Zaarir — The Association Between Depression and Seizure Disorders: The Neuro Transmitter That Are Present in Both Disorders Dulloo 
  • Eleni Zamagias — Mathematics in Epidemiology: An Early Review of Responses to COVID-19 by Institutions of Higher Education  
  • Kelly Zhu — WO3 Hybrids and their and their applications for the photocatalytic degradtion of p-substitutes phenois  
  • Jacqueline Zito — Assessing the Effectiveness of the Going Concern Disclosure  
  • Rheanna Zotto — The Pedagogical Implications of Repertaire Quality and Choice: A Case Study of an undergraduate Soprano  

Research at Adelphi and Beyond

Students present their work in the spring of their final year at Adelphi at the Scholarship and Creative Works Conference and are encouraged to take their research beyond the campus and attend the Northeast Regional Honors Council and meetings in their academic disciplines.
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