Sample Master's Thesis Evaluation

Student: Joe JSchooler Class:

Class: M.A. Program; Master’s Thesis

Professor: XXX

Date: XXX

Joe has been a pleasure to advise on his thesis, and has done wonderful work throughout the process. His article, “No Longer at Liberty: New York City Takes on Invasive Species,” does a lovely job interweaving history and new developments to describe the impact of, and response to, invasive species in New York City. 

Joe knew quite quickly that he was interested in New York City’s invasive species problems, and was initially hoping to focus on a group of researchers studying mitten crabs, an Asian crustacean that has proven disastrous in San Francisco Bay and other places. It was not clear whether the crabs were a problem, or were poised to be one, in New York, but they are an object of study at the moment. The relevant researchers, however, and not the crabs, turned out to be the issue. The researchers were elusive; Joe was not able to visit them, or visit Chinatown (the likely seat of the release) with them, or travel upstate to see them. So he had to figure out another approach, and he did. By spending time in archives, and talking with botanists, he was able to shift his lead story to that of the Norway maple, which proved a wonderful choice. The tree was brought to the U.S. by John Bartram, as Joe discovered, and provided an excellent symbol because it grows on Liberty Island, was a favorite of Robert Moses, and because it allowed Joe to get into the long history of invasives and to establish in a lyrical way how dramatically our views change over time. It also introduced Joe to the world of archives, which seems to have engaged him, and which will be a terrific resource for him in the future. 

Joe’s drafts showed improvement every step of the way. In fact, it struck me throughout Joe’s thesis work that his pace for a project of this length was ideal. He didn’t seem stressed at any point. He moved consistently forward, and when he slowed for a while, he was able to take that time because he had done such good foundational work earlier on. In early drafts, Joe needed to work on getting more deeply into the science of invasive biology, into the economics and into synthesizing studies and reports so he could present them with authority and not in a listy way. He addressed all of these issues as he went along. The only other area he needed to work on was reporting out the particularly New York angle and placing it in the national context. This did not happen until quite late, and it turned out that New York was not so ahead of the game as he had thought it was. The thesis argument or nut idea had to be shifted slightly to the point that New York is a bit behind, but is starting to address the problem more energetically. 

Joe’s writing at times became a bit more ornate that usual; when he had been in the environmental reporting class in the M.S. program, his writing stood out for its clarity and spare quality. Joe too felt that his writing was getting away from him a bit, and by the last draft had pulled back and streamlined, returning to his clear voice. Joe did wonderfully moving back and forth between the science and history and contemporary scenes. In some of his earlier drafts, the lede was too short, and he needed to take time, to relax and let the story unfold more leisurely. Which he did to great effect. In his final version he is really telling a story, and the reader is happy to let him unfold that story slowly. Joe worked very hard on getting the last scene right—he had to wait until the weather got better before he could even get the scene. And he delighted in small touches that add vibrancy and lyricism to the piece, such as putting in all the species’ names. 

I am so delighted that Joe moved from the M.S. into the M.A. program, and that he has accomplished such wonderful narrative long-form work during this year. He has been a delight to work with, and I am looking forward to watching his writing and reporting as he goes forward. I couldn’t be more pleased with his thesis project.