Honors Program

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The Honors Program prepares students with the 21st century skills needed to address the complex problems facing our communities and our world. To that end, the Honors curriculum will assist all students in developing transferable skills in independent thinking and research. These outcomes encourage students to understand multiple perspectives, conduct serious investigations into important questions, and develop their own well-informed voices. Additionally, students will select one of three focused areas of skill development to enhance their versatility and career readiness—study of a non-English language and culture outside of the US, data programming, or statistics. These skills—representing the humanities, STEM, and social sciences—ensure that all Honors Program graduates leave BW ready to live meaningful lives, provide substantial value to organizations, and continue their education at the most distinguished institutions.

Any student with sophomore standing and a minimum 3.5 GPA can register for Honors courses without special permission. Other students interested in Honors courses should contact the Associate Dean of Honors and Scholars.

Minimum Credits Required: 24-30

Requirements:

Problem Solving:

Take one of the following

World Language:

Complete one year (two semesters) of study in a non-English language.

Required Track:

Choose one of the following tracks

Intermediate/Advanced World Language Track:

Take two additional semesters of a single non-English language at the 201 level or above.

Statistics Track:

Take one course at each level

Level I-

Level II-

Data Programming Track:

Take one course at each level

Level I-

Level II-

CSC 280 - Data Systems, 3 credit hours

Honors Electives:

Complete a minimum of three additional Honors courses. Elective options may include:

All courses with an HON prefix (topic may not be repeated, but course number may). ²
Any University core course with an “H” after the course number (examples: ENG-131H) ²
Honors Option ³

Thesis/Senior Project:

Complete a thesis or senior project under the supervision of a faculty mentor.¹

Notes:

¹ Departmental thesis will fulfill this requirement (See Honors Program Director).
² HON 491/492, Honors Thesis, do not count as additional Honors courses. FYE 100H does not count as an Honors course. MUC 111H, 112H, 113H, 114H, 211H and 212H are being phased-out and do not count in this version of the Honors curriculum.
³ Successfully completed Honors Options will be indicated as HON 010, Honors Project, zero credit, on your transcript. Honors Options connected to 3-4 credit courses can be used to fulfil any number of Honors elective courses.

Admission into the Honors Program:

(1) An entering student who meets criteria for candidacy will receive an invitation to apply to the Honors Program. These criteria include superior high school grade point average, rigorous coursework in high school, and other criteria relevant to academic performance.
(2) Current first year students who show outstanding promise in their first term at BW can be nominated by faculty or can submit their own names for consideration to be admitted to the program as second-semester freshmen.
(3) Transfer students can request admission to the Honors Program through Admissions or by contacting the Office of Honors and Scholars directly. Those who have taken Honors credits at their prior institution can transfer up to 12 credit hours of Honors requirements.

Honors Recognition:

All courses in the Honors Program must be taken for a letter grade, A+ through F; they may not be taken on an S/U basis. Students who successfully complete the required Honors curriculum and who have achieved a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher will, upon graduation, receive appropriate recognition on their transcripts. Students will also be awarded the special Honors Program regalia to be worn at graduation.