Courses

The Honors College offers courses (HNRS) that are writing- and communication-intensive and explore connections between different subject areas, such as art and history, science and commerce. The Ogden Honors College draws on faculty members from across the campus to teach HNRS courses. In doing so, we create courses that can focus on particular topics in the professor’s research area of expertise.

These seminars give you a chance to dive into a topic that is the instructor’s passion in a discussion-oriented classroom format, fulfilling general education requirements and/or area requirements of your major in the process. Because these courses often span several subject areas, they can count flexibly toward your degree requirements.

Departmental Honors courses are usually Honors versions of an equivalent course in the same department, designed by that department in partnership with the Honors College with high-achieving Honors students in mind. For example, CHEM 1421 Honors General Chemistry is the curricular equivalent of CHEM 1201 General Chemistry, with both carrying the same prerequisites and degree credit.

Departmental Honors courses may be applied in the same way as their equivalent toward any foundation or general education requirement of your major. In this type of course, you may find a smaller class, a higher-level approach to the subject, or an independent project-based syllabus, depending on the course and professor. Often taken as prerequisites for later major courses, departmental Honors courses strengthen your foundation.

The Honors Option adds an independent component to courses at the 3000/4000 level. Completion of this component, in addition to the requirements of the course syllabus, awards Honors credit for the otherwise non-Honors course. Your professor will work with you to design this independent component, and the Honors College allows a wide degree of flexibility.

Presentations, semester projects, guided discussion sessions, primary source research, and conference reports are examples of components added to courses for Honors Option credit. The Honors Option is what you and your professor make of it. Get the most out of the experience it provides.

How to Set Up an Honors Option Agreement:

To arrange and complete an Honors Option, an Honors Option Agreement must be arranged and approved. The Honors Option may be pursued in 3000/4000 level courses and can be applied to Honors distinction and “good standing” requirements.

An Honors Option Agreement is established in the OH!Portal by both the student and instructor to outline the conditions to receive Honors credit. Upon agreement between the student and instructor, the Honors College Dean (or designee) will review for approval to establish the Agreement. The instructor will verify whether conditions have been fulfilled by the grade posting deadline for the semester of the course. 

Honors students pursuing Research minors will begin a Capstone sequence that includes HNRS 3800: Capstone Reading and Research Methods and HNRS 3900: Capstone Development and Writing. These courses provide students with a structured approach to beginning and developing the research for their capstone projects. Students will be supervised in securing capstone directors, composing literature reviews, building a research proposal and sketching out a complete work plan, all in preparation for enrollment in HNRS 4000: Capstone, which is supervised by the capstone director.

HNRS 3800 and 3900 are divided by disciplines, and students will be placed into appropriate cohorts. Certain majors will have their own research pathways that will substitute for HNRS 3800 and 3900. It is important that you discuss your research plans with an Honors counselor before embarking on the Capstone sequence.