"I definitely wouldn't recommend doing it just to get honors," Narducci says. "It's not something to do a half-assed job on."

Harvard's system of honors is not universally known, students say, and many times, employers and schools will not know the difference between honors in field and honors in general studies.

Susan M. Vacca, associate director of the Office of Career Services, said she doesn't know if outside employers can tell the difference unless they are intimately familiar with the College's system.

Jose M. Padilla '97, a government concentrator, did not write a thesis, but will graduate with honors in general studies.

"On my resume it says, 'A.B. in Government with honors,'" he says. Padilla says he doesn't claim to have written a thesis, but that law schools he has applied to have not asked whether he earned honors in his field or not.

Jobs and Graduate Schools

The world-wise Harvard student, most likely a veteran of Social Analysis 10: "Principles of Economics," worries about returns from the investment. Is a thesis a free ticket into law school or landing a job on Wall Street?

It depends, say those with the power to accept or reject.

Law and graduate school admission officers say the thesis is only one of many factors that goes into the admissions decision, but that the thesis can confirm acceptance of an already strong candidate.

Russell E. Berg, dean of admissions and financial aid at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences says "it depends on the department the student applies to, it depends on the school from which he comes, but in general, it certainly does help" to write a thesis.

But Berg cautioned that students should not write a thesis looking for future rewards. Instead, "a passion for [the subject] now" should guide the decision.

"You should make that decision without regard to how it's going to advance your career a year from now," Berg said.

Berg said applicants should not merely state on their application that they wrote a thesis, but should be "proactive."

"My advice is...to remind us why you did the thesis and [tell us] what you have learned."

Harvard Law School (HLS) admissions officials tell a similar story.