Honors Program
Department of Communication Honors Thesis Program 2025-26
The Program: The Honors Thesis Program provides eligible students with the chance to engage in independent research in communication and to compose an honors thesis that presents their findings. This program fosters close collaboration between students and their thesis advisors, allowing for substantial support and guidance throughout the research and writing processes. Its goal is to assist students as they navigate the stages of conceptualization, study design, data collection, analysis, and writing—activities that are crucial for achieving scholarly excellence.
The Honors Thesis Program operates under the premise that meaningful research and writing demand substantial time and effort; therefore, the process spans all three quarters of the senior year.
Graduation with Honors: The designation graduation with honors is awarded by the Department of Communication to those graduating seniors who, in addition to having completed all requirements for the Communication major, also achieve the following:
- Successfully completed an Honors Thesis (B+ or better);
- Maintained a distinguished grade average in all Communication course work;
- Are recommended by the Communication faculty.
This distinction will be noted on the student’s diploma and during the department graduation ceremonies.
Eligibility: COMM majors interested in pursuing honors must fulfill the following requirements to be eligible:
- GPA of 3.3 in all Communication courses taken;
- Completed all core courses for the Communication major (COMM 1, 106, 108, STATS 160);
- Received a grade of B+ or better in COMM106 Communication Research Methods;
- Found an honors thesis advisor (Note: only tenured or tenure-track communication faculty can be advisors for an honors thesis in Communication).
Honors Application: Complete the COMM Honors Thesis Program Application in Adobe Acrobat Sign. You will be asked to enter your honors thesis advisor’s and the COMM student services manager’s names and email addresses. The form will then be routed to your honors thesis advisor and the Student Services Manager in COMM.
Honors Thesis Credit: Students admitted to the honors program enroll in COMM 195 Honors Thesis for five units for a total of three quarters. Students are expected to make steady progress on their honors thesis throughout the year. The thesis advisor will enter an ‘N’ grade at the end of each of the first two quarters, indicating that this is continuing work and that the final grade will be a letter grade. The honors work may be used to fulfill Communication elective credit. Honors in Communication cannot be awarded retroactively. A student failing to fulfill all honors requirements may still receive independent study credit for work completed which can be applied toward fulfilling major elective requirements. Failure to submit a satisfactory draft of the thesis during fall quarter will result in the student being dropped from the honors program.
Submitting Your Honors Thesis: A final copy of the paper must be submitted to the thesis advisor for review and grading and an electronic copy uploaded to the Stanford Digital Repository by the end of the eighth week of the student’s third quarter in the honors program.
Writing Consultation Services: The Hume Center for Writing and Speaking provides many resources to help you with Honors projects.
Funding: Academic Advising Student Grants support rigorous, independent projects in all disciplines. Major Grants provide $8000, with a need-based supplement (of up to $1500) for eligible students. Small grants of up to $1,500 support smaller independent student-driven projects.
2025-26 Communication Honors Student,
Omotolani Azeez
When generative AI tools like ChatGPT entered mainstream use, they rapidly became embedded in students’ daily academic and personal routines. Despite the growing reliance on these tools, little empirical research has explored how college students are using generative AI, especially regarding identity, productivity, and ethics. This study aims to examine the patterns, motivations, and concerns surrounding student use of generative AI across academic and non-academic contexts. By exploring how students integrate these technologies into their lives, the research hopes to offer insight into emerging norms, institutional trust, and the role of AI in shaping the modern college experience. Thesis Advisor: Jeff Hancock
2025-26 Communication Honors Student,
Samantha Dizon
Narratives on autism have historically been told and driven by non-autistic people. When families and/or individuals go about navigating disability, challenges arise when the most prominent information available is tainted with ableist ideologies that don’t center on autistic voices. The goal of this research is to create accessible knowledge that refocuses the work on the lived experiences of both autistic individuals and caregivers — to find the resources that are beneficial towards genuine acceptance and progress. Social media has become such a powerful tool for community and knowledge building within neurodiverse spaces. With a rich diversity of backgrounds and experiences online, the objective is to create a resource for both autistic people and their families that prioritizes autistic input. Thesis advisor: Jeff Hancock
Previous Honors Theses
Previous honors theses can be looked up in the Stanford Library catalog. Examples of some recent theses include:
- Self-Presentation of NIL-Participating Student-Athletes on Instagram
Camille Peisner, 2025, Thesis Advisor: Jeff Hancock - Assessing Greenwashing in Electric Vehicle Marketing: Developing a Coding Scheme through Advertising Strategy Analysis
Madeline Bernheim, 2024, Thesis Advisor: Jay Hamilton - America’s Quietest Emergency: Exposing,Identifying and Analyzing Suicide Contagion in Institutions of Higher Learning
Emma Talley, 2024, Thesis Advisor: Nilam Ram - The Effects of Sample Size on Significance Testing
Diana Jordan, 2022, Thesis Advisor: Jon Krosnick - Homeworking in Italy during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Analysis of Preliminary European Labour Force Survey Results
Caroline Ghisolfi, 2021, Thesis Advisor: James Hamilton - Film Franchise Strategy in the Age of Intellectual Property
Walker Brown, 2019, Thesis Advisor: James Hamilton - Leadership During Conflict: Where Charismatic Leadership Falls Short
Pascale Eenkema van Dijk, 2019, Thesis Advisor: Jen Pan