All QSS majors are required to complete an independent research project, either a senior honors thesis, which takes a full academic year, or a one quarter research project in the student's last year on campus. All QSS research projects--honors theses and one quarter projects--are supervised by QSS-affiliated faculty at Dartmouth and by the QSS Director of Undergraduate Research. QSS research projects are independent, meaning that each student completes his or own project. However, QSS students working on research are embedded in a network of advisers and other QSS students. All QSS research projects must be publicly defended upon completion.