For Students Entering Before 2020

Incoming students who have scored a 28 or higher composite on the ACT and have a GPA of 3.8 or higher are invited to join the CSB/SJU Honors Program. If you would like to participate but didn’t meet the criteria or initially declined the invitation, you may ask a faculty members (usually your First-Year Seminar professor) to nominate you for a place in the program. A letter stating why you are a good candidate for the Honors program is sufficient. Send this letter and your request, to the Honors Program Director by e-mail.

Graduation Requirements

1. If you began the program as a first-year student and do not study abroad:
   To graduate with Honors you must have at least 32 credits in honors courses. Of the 32, at least 12 must be in 300 level or higher courses.
2. If you began as a second year student or participated in a study abroad program:
   To graduate with Honors you must have at least 28 credits in Honors courses. Of the 28, at least 8 must be in 300 level or higher courses.

Course Requirements

You may complete the credit requirements for the program in many different ways:

1. Disciplinary Core courses:
   These courses fulfill Common Curriculum requirements in Fine Arts, Math, Humanities, Social Sciences, the Natural Sciences, First-Year Seminar, and Ethics Common Seminar. At registration you will find these courses under the Honors section of the class schedule. Descriptions of the courses vary and are in the "New Course Description" section of the schedule.
2. Honors Reading Groups, Individual Learning Projects, and Honors Options:
   These courses and experiences are offered at the request of students. Instructions are available here under "Honors Opportunities." The appropriate forms are submitted to the Honors Program Director for action. The number of Honors Option courses is normally limited to one.
3. Senior Thesis:
   The Senior Thesis is a chance for you to work in a one-on-one relationship with a faculty member to develop a scholarly or creative project. COLG 396, Thesis Proposal, taken the semester before you write your thesis, will guide you through the development of an idea and plan to accomplish the project.  You will enroll in COLG 398 during the semester that you work on the thesis itself. For more information please visit the All College thesis website  or contact Lindsey Gunnerson Gutsch.

Additional Honors Opportunities

Here are some further opportunities extended to Honors students. While they are not required, they greatly enrich a student's overall experience in the Honors Program.

Honors Reading Groups

An honors reading group is a wonderful way to bring people together to discuss great books and intriguing ideas. Students can earn honors credit (0-1 credit) for having a group. Four such discussion groups can count for one of the required honors courses students need to graduate with All-College Honors (students can take the course for 0 credit if a credit would entail an overload fee for the term).

Ideally, groups should contain 4-8 members. Group members should select readings with a goal of spending somewhere between 12-15 hours in actual discussion during the semester. Readings should be meaningful, the kind of readings that can inspire good, serious thinking about important matters.

Once students have the members of the group and the readings, they must find a professor willing to serve as the moderator of the group by sharing in these readings and discussions. At this point, one member of the group should send an e-mail to Beth Wengler detailing (1) the book or books to be read, (2) the professor who has agreed to serve as the moderator, (3) the names of the students involved, (4) whether each student has chosen 1 or 0 credits, and (5) how many Honors credits each student in the group has completed by that point. The deadline for getting this information via e-mail to Beth Wengler will be end of September (Fall term) or February 15th (Spring term). Students will be signed up for either Honors 270 "Directed Reading" (if most of the people have completed 12-15 Honors credits) or Honors 370 "Directed Reading" (if most have more than 15 Honors credits).

The Honors Option

Honors Option Application Form

The ideal Honors Option is based on a desire to do some independent work in a Non-Honors course. The point is not merely to get Honors credit; the real point is to provide for a meaningful academic experience that goes above and beyond the standard course requirements. The Honors Option application form must indicate that the student has the approval of the supervising faculty member, and it must be returned via e-mail to the Honors Director by the date specified. Both the student and the professor will receive word of this approval or rejection within two weeks of the established deadline for submission. Ordinarily, students can count only one Honors Option toward the required number of Honors courses to complete the program.

At the completion of the semester, the Honors Director will forward a request for evaluation for Honors Option credit to the instructor. The instructor will grant or reject Honors Option credit for the submitted work. No grades are given for the Honors Option work. The work done (or not done) for Honors Option credit will not affect the regular course grade.

All College Thesis

The All College Thesis involves close work with a faculty advisor from the student's major department in conducting research and writing a thesis or executing a creative project. Ideally, the student completes most of the thesis in the fall of the senior year. By early March the student submits a final draft of written work to the departmental defense committee. A public defense is held in April of the senior year. Prerequisite for the thesis is COLG 396 (Thesis Proposal) for 0 or 1 credit taken during the Spring term of the student's junior year.