Each year during the fall semester the Graduate Council solicits nominations for the Distinguished Master’s Thesis Award. The award recognizes and rewards students for distinguished scholarship and research at the master’s level.
The winning thesis is also nominated for the Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools (MAGS) Distinguished Thesis Award.
Award recipients
| Academic year | Name | Program | Advisor | Thesis Title |
| 2011-12 | Linda Covey | Religious Studies | Dr. Martha Finch | DINÉ BECOMING BAHA’Í: THROUGH THE LENS OF ANCIENT PROPHECIES |
| 2010-11 | Angela R. Boyer | Natural and Applied Sciences (Agriculture) | Dr. Elizabeth Walker | EFFECTS OF ENDOPHYTE-INFECTED GROUND TALL FESCUE SEED ON THE PHYSIOLOGY OF FEMALE MEAT GOATS |
| 2009-10 | Sarah E. Myers | History | Dr. William Piston | “LIPSTICK SQUADRON”: THE MEDIA’S PORTRAYAL OF THE WOMEN AIRFORCE SERVICE PILOTS OF WORLD WAR II |
| 2008-09 | Katie Striley | Communication | Dr. Cherlene Berquist | “DON’T BE A NERD IN FRONT OF A GANGSTA”: EXPLORING COPING STRATEGIES, IDENTITY MANAGEMENT, AND MARGINALIZATION IN GIFTED ADOLESCENTS |
| 2007-08 | David Rice | Religious Studies | Dr. Martha Finch | HOW THE MISSOURI BAPTIST CONVENTION SHIFTED THEIR IDENTITY TO THE SOUTHERN BAPTIST CONVENTION’S NEW HEGEMONY |
| 2006-07 | Govind Mundada | Materials Science | Dr. Kartik Ghosh | THE EFFECT OF NON MAGNETIC DOPING AND GROWTH TEMPERATURE ON THE MAGNETO-TRANSPORT PROPERTIES OF MAGENESE AND COBALT DOPED ZINC |
| 2005-06 | Nathan L. Windel | Biology | Dr. Alicia Mathis | BEHAVIORAL AND METABOLIC RESPONSES OF THE SOUTHERN RED-BACKED SALAMANDER (PLETHODON SERRATUS) TO PREDATORY STIMULI: INFLUENCE OF BODY SIZE |
| 2004-05 | Brian Doak | Religious Studies | Dr. Victor Matthews | PATRIARCH AS TRICKSTER: THE SOCIAL AND LITERARY FUNCTION OF THE JACOB CYCLE IN GENESIS 25-33 |
| 2003-04 | Shem Unger | Biology | Dr. Alicia Mathis | SPERM PRODUCTION AND LARVAL DEVELOPMENT IN HELLBENDERS (CRYPTOBRANCHUS ALLEGANIENSIS ALLEGANIENSIS AND C.A. BISHOPI): A COMPARISON OF DECLINING AND STABLE POPULATIONS |
| 2002-03 | Kyle Barrett | Biology | Dr. Alexander Waite | THE EFFECT OF SPATIAL SUBSIDES ON THE DIET DENSITY AND SPECIES RICHNESS OF INSULAR LIZARDS IN THE GULF OF CALIFORNIA |
| 2001-02 | Kevin Murray (Received the 2003 MAGS Thesis Award) | Biology | Dr. Lynn Robbins | THE USE OF ULTRASONIC DETECTORS IN THE STUDY OF BAT COMMUNITIES |
| 2000-01 | Jennifer Moody-Weis | Biology | Dr. John Heywood | POLLINATION LIMITATION TO REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS IN THE MISSOURI EVENING PRIMROSE, OENOTHERA MACROCARPA (ONAGRACEAE) |
| 1999-00 | Kimberley Rey | Biology | Dr. Erwin Mantei | HEAVY METAL CONCENTRATIONS IN STREAM SEDIMENTS ADJACENT TO THE GREENFIELD SANITARY LANDFILL, DADE COUNTY, MISSOURI |
| 1998-99 | Jennifer Cacka | Biology | Dr. John Havel | COMPETITION BETWEEN NATIVE AND EXOTIC DAPHNIA |
| 1997-98 | Jill Black | Resource Planning | Dr. David Castillon | WILSON’S CREEK, GREENE AND CHRISTIAN COUNTIES, MISSOURI: WATER QUALITY MACROINVERTEBRATE INDICES, AND PLANNING IMPLICATIONS USING GIS, BASED ON WATERSHED LANDUSE AND WATER CONTAMINATION HAZARDS |
| 1996-97 | Judith Laing Grable | Resource Planning | Dr. Johnson Elias | WATER QUALITY AND URBANIZATION : A MULTITEMPORAL STUDY OF THE PIERSON CREEK DRAINAGE BASIN, GREENE COUNTY, MISSOURI |
| 1995-96 | Kelly Carter | Psychology | Dr. Helen Schartz | EFFECTS OF PRETRAINING ON THE VISUAL DISCRIMINATION LEARNING PERFORMANCE OF 3-MONTH-OLD INFANTS |
| 1994-95 | Lisa Berger | Geography, Geology, and Planning | Dr. David Castillon | SCIENTIFICALLY BASED WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY PLANNING : BARRY/STONE COUNTIES, MISSOURI |
| 1992-93 | Rex Whitfield | Defense and Strategic Studies | Dr. William R VanCleave | MISSLE PROLIFERATION IN THE 1990’s |