To be carried out successfully, an honors option for a course requires planning early in the semester, close collaboration between student and faculty member throughout the semester, and a serious commitment by both parties to see the project through. Thank you for your willingness to undertake this responsibility. We hope that your participation in the student’s undergraduate honors education results in a mutually engaging and rewarding experience. The following are guidelines to assist you in the development of a productive honors option.
Guidelines for Faculty
- In an honors option, the honors course project should not be an add-on to all the routine assignments, but should be done as an alternative to some or all of the assignments. The project should also fit within the content and intent of the course syllabus.
- The honors option course project should go more deeply into methodology, structure, and/or theory; address more sophisticated questions; and satisfy more rigorous standards than is generally expected.
- Simply increasing the volume of work required does not constitute an honors option. The character and quality of the work should be augmented, but the time required for the honors project should remain commensurate with the number of credits for a comparable honors course.
- A successful honors option experience will include planned regular meetings between the faculty member and the student to review, discuss, and revise as the project develops. Whenever possible, specific deadlines should be identified.
- Faculty should feel free to stipulate clarifications, modifications, or alternatives to student proposals and to reject proposals which reflect no serious preliminary thought about projects worthy to honors treatment.
- Students may not be given monetary compensation for work done for honors option credit.
- The student’s grade should reflect all the student’s work in the course, including work done in common with other students, as well as work done in the honors mode. Completion of the honors portion of the course cannot be deferred without deferring the grade in this course.
- REMOVING THE OPTION – The filing of an honors option represents a commitment by both student and faculty member to see the project through. The course may not revert to non-honors status without the permission of the faculty member. The Honors Coordinator must receive written notification immediately of such a change, but no later than the end of the sixth week of the semester. This rule applies whether or not a student continues in the honors program throughout the semester.
- Honors work must be supervised by members of the regular faculty who have professional appointments. GRADUATE STUDENTS AND STAFF MAY NOT SUPERVISE AN HONORS OPTION. This is required so that students are able to work with tenure-line faculty who may later be able to provide letters of reference and possibly serve as thesis supervisors.
- The student and faculty member should complete the appropriate form, which is to be submitted by the student to the Honors Coordinator by the published date (end of the third week of the semester). It is a good idea to retain copies for your own reference. Please note that completion of the form does not register you for the course.