FSSH holds inaugural Undergrad Thesis Showcase

The Faculty of Social Science and Humanities (FSSH) recently held its inaugural Undergrad Thesis Showcase, bringing together a group of students to showcase the innovative research they’ve conducted.

"These students should be very proud of themselves," said Dr. Barbara Perry, Associate Dean, FSSH. "The amount of confidence I've seen these students develop over the whole thesis writing process shows just how far they've come as academics. And hats off to the faulty who helped them on their journey. Their successes are your successes, and you should be proud as well."

The five Bachelor of Arts students featured at the showcase were:

• Carolyn Carter, Criminology and Justice student. Thesis title: Jamaican Federal Skilled Workers: What are Their Experiences? Supervisor: Dr. Sasha Baglay.
• Jamie Gesualdo, Criminology and Justice student. Thesis title: Orange is the New Black, Education or Entertainment? The Portrayal of Female Inmates within the Media. Supervisor: Dr. Carla Cesaroni.
• Samantha Reid, Criminology and Justice student. Thesis title: Depictions of Youth on Youth Homicide in Films Set in Rural Environments. Supervisor: Dr. Carla Cesaroni.
• Meghan Rourke, Criminology and Justice student. Thesis title: Slut Shaming on Twitter. Supervisor: Dr. Steven Downing.
• Kristen Sullivan, Legal Studies student. Thesis title: The First Nation Land Management Act and Self-Determination for Aboriginal Peoples. Supervisor: Dr. Rachel Ariss.

"This whole process of writing a thesis has opened my eyes to what research does, and it has assured me that I want to go on and do my master’s," said Gesualdo.

The students spent countless hours working on their thesis projects. Reid began her research 13 months ago and watched 175 movies before finding seven on rural homicide. Rourke pored through countless tweets before finding 4,653 of them that qualified for her thesis study. However, all the students agreed that the thesis study was an enjoyable experience.

“I think it's something that all students should do because it really transforms you," Carter said. "You become curious and more curious about things, and you learn to analyze them."