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Home > Undergraduate Programs : Senior Paper

Senior Paper

All Statistics majors, BA or BS, need to take Stat 4893W, Senior Paper (1 credit, prerequisite, Senior in Statistics). It must be taken for a Statistics BA to meet the College of Liberal Arts Major Project requirement. Stat 4893W is also necessary for a Statistics BS, since it is the only way to satisfy the upper division Center for Writing writing-intensive course requirement. This states in part that “At least one upper-division W-I course should be taken within the student's major or program area.” Since Stat 4893W is the only such course in the major, all majors need to take it.

You can complete Stat 4893W in several ways:

• Writing a case study report. This might be a report on a consulting assignment or on analysis of data you have access to through an outside job. It can also be a report describing your collection and analysis of data.
• Writing and documenting a computer program to implement a nontrivial statistical technique. This must include appropriate documentation for users of the program including a description of the technique implemented with references.
• Writing a report comparing the capabilities of 3 or more computer programs in a particular area of statistics such as categorical data analysis, analysis of variance, or regression analysis.,
• Writing a paper exploring the statistical issues related to an area of public policy.
• Writing a paper on the history and application of a statistical methodology.
• Writing a biographical paper about a prominent statistician and his or her importance to statistics.

This is not intended to be an exhaustive list. If you have an idea for a paper that doesn't seem to fit any of the above categories, run it by the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

When to Register for Stat 4893W

You can register for Stat 4893W in any semester of your Senior year or in the summer term. Since this is a degree requirement, it is prudent to register for Stat 4893W, pick a topic, and start the paper the term preceding the final term. If you're not done by the end of the term, you can request that an Incomplete (“I”) be submitted. You will be required to sign a contract specifying when it will be completed.

Choosing Your Topic

You should choose the topic of the paper in consultation with a statistics faculty member who agrees to supervise your work. Often the faculty member will be your instructor in a 5xxx statistics course and the material will build on material from the course. The director of undergraduate studies is the default supervisor.

Length of Paper

There is no fixed expectation for the length of the paper except that it is usually in the range of 10 to 15 pages. It is up to the faculty supervisor to judge whether the paper is long enough and well written enough to fulfill the requirement.

Time Needed to Complete Your Paper

The time required varies but according to U of M policy on hours per credit that each credit should require 3 hours per week, you should expect to spend about 45 hours researching, writing and revising your paper.

It is important to keep in touch with the faculty supervisor while working on the paper. Unless you are told otherwise, you will be expected to provide progress reports and/or drafts at intermediate stages. Presenting a “finished” product without consultation is risky.

Steps to Take

1. Register for Stat 4893W; it is offered every semester and in the summer.
2. Choose a faculty member who is willing to supervise the project.
3. Select a topic in consultation with the faculty supervisor.
4. Prepare an outline and go over it with your supervisor.
5. Prepare a first draft and show it to your supervisor.
6. Prepare additional drafts as needed until the paper is finished.
7. Provide two copies of the final draft to the supervisor who will then report a grade to the School of Statistics Office.

Student Writing Support Program

If you have trouble getting started, you may find help from a writing consultant in the Center for Writing's Student Writing Support program. You can get help at all stages of the writing process.