A new program that will give seniors in Whitman College an additional perk — on top of having functional laundry machines — is drawing skepticism from the University community. The voluntary Whitman Thesis Buddies program will pair each participating Whitman ...(back to the article)
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Just when I thought Princeton was getting its act together.... The administration must be truly daft, if they think underclass students have time to assist thesis-writing seniors with chores. We might as roll the clock back to the 1800s. Knowing that Princeton has changed very little since my day, it's only a matter of time before the program is canceled for lack of interest or, ahem, improprieties.
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I know Whitman only looks old, but has anybody checked to see if they used lead pipes?
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Other than the spellchecking and revision help, this is one of the stupidest ideas I've ever heard of. Asking freshmen to do chores for seniors is not an appropriate "introduction" to the thesis writing process. It is also very unlikely to lead to any lasting bond between writer and helper. If Whitman College really wants to introduce a more meaningful policy, it should pair each freshman volunteer with a department he or she is interested in. Reading a thesis in that department for clarity, logical errors, or spelling can give freshmen a good sense of what independent work will be like in that particular field (perhaps enabling them to make a more informed decision when they eventually choose their major) while giving the thesis writer an oft needed second opinion.
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The most helpful thing Whitman College could do to seniors is give those who don't have carrels a common space to work in. Some seniors who wound up utterly isolated from the rest of the world during the last thesis push because the best place for them to work was a dorm room. It was a lonely, isolated, horribly stressful situation.
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Back in the day...we did our own work on index cards, in our carrels, on typewriters and boo-hoo, nobody cared!! This takes the hand-holding of Princeton students to a new low. Grow up, kids!
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Whitman, once again, has come up with yet another exclusive and utterly ridiculous idea. Who honestly thinks of programs like this? Whitman is quickly growing to become the bane of residential colleges, all in the name of "forming a community" because of it's newness!
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Corollary to the new legislation: Anyone shameless enough to sign up for "thesis slaves" should participate in a compulsory "thesis de-stressing" initiative in which they serve as punching bags for other seniors who have chosen to forgo the perks of freshman servitude. Because seriously, where is your self-sufficiency you feckless infants, is it possible that you go to Princeton but cannot manage to juggle writing a long paper and getting a snack, do you miss your manservants from home, etc. etc.
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Last time I checked, when a frat does this, it's called hazing. But when the university does it, it's "bonding"?
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Marta, you should relax; clearly this article was published 29 days prematurely -- by accident. Regards, Lee Kaplan '73
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"proofreading a chapter for spelling mistakes" -- I guess it's asking too much for the seniors to use spell check in MSFT Word? Is editing for content against the [non-existant] honor code?
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With all the money the University has, if this is an identified need on the part of seniors, the University ought to pay for such thesis buddy help for ALL seniors. Meanwhile, for freshmen at Whitman, there should be study/thesis breaks limited in attendance to seniors writing theses and frosh, featuring great food and music, so that they can bond in a much more meaningful way. This is not a good program.
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When I was writing my thesis back in the day (a whole two years ago), we didn't need freshman slaves. We had these things called friends. It worked out pretty well, as I recall, but my memories from that time are hazy...
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Where can a thesis-writing graduate student get a buddy?
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And if the freshman does not put ice in your lemonade or use fabric softener he has to drop down and give you 20 pushups?
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alternatively, make some friend outside of your CA group or Mol Bio lab and you might just have your own support network by the time you're a senior rather than having to enlist an attention-starved freshman to get you some chicken tika and green tea at (!!!) 11:30 at night.
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How does this not qualify as University Sanctioned Hazing?
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Whoa Freshman getting hazed!!!!!
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Dear editors of the Daily Princetonian, IvyGate blog reported on this story days ago. While recycling old news may be environmentally responsible, to do so without acknowledging where it was first reported is unethical. This is a pattern of plagiarism that began with the article on quitting Facebook that was lifted from the New York Times. Please begin to acknowledge your sources.
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