List of Senior Requirements

You must prepare for graduation at least a year ahead of time to make sure that you fulfill all requirements.  Failure to do so may delay your graduation.

A. SENIOR AUDIT

  1. You should apply for a senior audit after you have completed 85 credits.
  2. Do not put this off!  Otherwise you may discover unpleasant surprises.
  3. After receiving your audit, you must carefully review the audit to make sure that you have not missed any requirements, and to make sure that there are no errors or problems that need to be resolved.
  4. It is important to keep track of your unofficial transcript on the web and to double check your own files on a regular basis.

 

B. POST OFF-CAMPUS REPORT

    Report to the Honors Program

  1. Students must provide a brief narrative after returning from the off-campus semester. The narrative will later become the preface for your thesis.
  2. A financial report with receipts for large items is required. You must use the budget form to provide an acceptable report.
  3. Receipts for large items must be mounted on sheets of 8 ½ by 11 inch white paper with scotch tape. These are attached to the report.
  4. The report is due four weeks after the off-campus study is completed.
  5. Three copies are required: one copy goes to advisor for your files in the department, one copy to Honors Director for your Honors Program files, keep one copy in your senior binder. 
  6. You must return the funds if you do not provide a financial report and receipts.

   

    Financial Report for Other Off-Campus Funding Sources

  1. A report must be handed in within three weeks of your return for all other funding sources such as research grants from the Office of Research, or resources from the Annual Fund. 
  2. If you fail to file the report, you must return the funds.

 

C.  HONORS 393

  1. Honors 393 (1 credit per semester) is required for all seniors until they complete their thesis and their applications for graduate and professional schools as well as for professional employment.

 

D. COMPLETING HONORS 495 AND 496

  1. You may enroll in these courses at any time before, during and after the off-campus experience.
  2. These are independent study courses, which do not have a specific class time for meeting.  To complete them satisfactorily, you must meet regularly with your school or departmental advisor/mentor.
  3. You receive a Y grade (course in progress) for both courses until the thesis is completed in its final approved draft.

 

E. HONORS 498 (formerly HON 390) SENIOR SEMINAR

  1. All Honors Seniors participate from across the disciplines must take this senior seminar for three credits. 
  2. It is generally done after the off-campus study experience is completed. However, under special circumstances, it may be done before undertaking the off-campus study with permission of Honors Director and Instructor, subject to availability of spaces. 
  3. It is taught in winter semester only.

 

F. COMPLETING YOUR HONORS THESIS

  1. Be prepared for extensive revisions on your thesis.
  2. You must have your thesis completed, revised, and approved at least four weeks before graduation.
  3. The first draft of your thesis is never the final draft.  You need to provide adequate time for revisions, corrections, changes, or you may discover that the deadline for submitting your grades has passed and that you cannot graduate until the next graduation cycle.
  4. The initial full draft of your thesis should be submitted 8 to 12 weeks ahead of time to avoid unpleasant delays.
  5. The thesis is extremely important because it sets you apart from the competition when you apply to graduate and professional schools or when you enter the job market. 

 

G. COMPLETION OF HONORS ELECTIONS

  1. Students in the four year program must have all five honors elections completed, and must make sure that all of the paper work has been handed in to the Honors administrative assistant.
  2. Students in the two year Junior/Senior transfer program are required to have two honors elections completed.
  3. Students may complete more than the required number of honors elections.  Since honors elections count as independent study projects on your resume and in your personal statement, you can enhance your profile by completing additional honors elections.
  4. Check your transcript to make sure that all of your Honors Elections have been recorded in the Registrar’s Office.
  5. If honors elections are missing on your transcript, send an email to the Honors Program administrative assistant with a brief list of the courses (course number, semester taken), along with a brief description of the honors election.
  6. Electronic Portfolio: Keep a list of all honors elections completed on an MS Word file in the honors election folder in your electronic portfolio on your home drive.
  7. Conference papers are generally attached to completed Honors 393 courses.
  8. Service elections (30 hours of service minimum) appear seperately on the transcript.

 

H. FULFILLING THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT

  1. Check to make sure that you have completed the full requirements for foreign language at the 205 (1 credit course) level or the 211 (3 credits) level.
  2. Keep the paper work to indicate your placement if you have placed out of the requirement by placing into the 212 level of the language.

 

I. APPLICATION FOR GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL SCHOOLS

  1. Update your electronic portfolio on your homedrive
  2. You will need a personal statement, which you should start one year before you apply to graduate and professional schools.
  3. You will need an electronic copy of all abstracts and papers presented at Honors Colloquia and at undergraduate and professional conferences.
  4. You will need to provide your updated resume, your personal statement and the above information for papers presented to your referees when requesting a letter of recommendation.
  5. See the Blackboard community for further information.

Honors Scholar Program