Condensed MA thesis timeline?

[zigzag]

Hi everyone. I guess I'm not sure what advice I'm looking for, but basically I'm a humanities MA/PhD and got told by my department's DGS that instead of completing my MA thesis paper by NEXT spring, I should have it done by THIS summer WHILE I am also interning (or working). This is a 2 year MA, not a one year, so I'm a little nervous, although I know it's completely possible and achievable. 

 

The reason she told me to get most or all of it done over the summer is because my advisor is going to be on leave next year. This doesn't pose a huge problem otherwise -- I'm a 5 year student, and it's not a "crucial" year for me, aside from writing the MA thesis paper, which they have to sign off on. My advisor seems very nice, and so far (with having only known them a few weeks) I feel they're a good match for me -- we're both very driven and expect a lot, but they are also supportive and helpful. The criticism and high expectations are from a place of wanting me and others to succeed. (They're also the professor in charge of the undergrads in our department, hence the nice, but firm personality.) I think they will be very supportive, and honest with me -- and they already offered to do an independent study with me this Spring, and even work with me throughout the summer. I'm their only PhD directly within the department, so I can and will get "them" without having to fight for time or attention with other grads. 

 

I am fairly positive I will be supported and helped -- and I might even be able to find a summer internship which could supplement a possible MA paper topic. 

 

But I'm also not quite sure what to do yet. I've begun to collect a folder on my computer of articles that are related to my area of specialty, as well as a list of monographs. I've got a few ideas, but it's a little difficult to figure out what is a good MA paper vs what is better for my eventual PhD dissertation. So I have "loose" directions (the topics and sub-topics of my interest), but obviously something has to be selected -- and faster than I anticipated. 

 

What are the best methods of brainstorming? So much advice online seems directed towards STEM or Social Sciences students who might have lab work, but this isn't my problem. How can I condense my timeline (i.e. not have the semester of thesis research and then the semester of thesis writing next year, but next semester and this summer)? 

 

Basically -- help, how can I do this much faster and just as well as if I had two whole years to develop it? How did you find your perfect topic? What's the best way to pin it down? 

Edited September 6, 2014 by zigzag

[rising_star]

Write a proposal this fall. If possible, do it as one of your final papers for a course. If that's not possible, then try to use your seminar papers to develop the ideas that will ultimately be in your master's thesis (that is, write a chapter or two of the MA thesis this semester for final papers). By doing this, you'll be able to get feedback soon about whether your topic is a feasible one for a MA thesis (you seem concerned about picking too large of a topic, so this could definitely help), as well as get feedback from multiple professors on the topic itself.

[zigzag]

Write a proposal this fall. If possible, do it as one of your final papers for a course. If that's not possible, then try to use your seminar papers to develop the ideas that will ultimately be in your master's thesis (that is, write a chapter or two of the MA thesis this semester for final papers). By doing this, you'll be able to get feedback soon about whether your topic is a feasible one for a MA thesis (you seem concerned about picking too large of a topic, so this could definitely help), as well as get feedback from multiple professors on the topic itself.

 

My requirements actually say: "The Master’s Paper may be, indeed most commonly is, an amplification of a research paper initially undertaken as part of one of the regular seminars." But this early on, I hadn't exactly planned how I might tackle a paper topic my first semester that would lead to an MA paper that also served for my seminar topics. 

 

I'm thinking my current paper for my advisor's seminar is best approached as something to prove my skills and abilities, and then my independent study next semester can build towards the "seminar paper" that becomes my master's paper. I just have to figure out a solid "topic" for my independent study next semester to work within. I guess the biggest concern I have is creating this proposal before I've even submitted my proposal for the seminar paper for this semester. 

Edited September 7, 2014 by zigzag