College Honors

Your independent research, scholarship, and creative work are supported by our nationally-recognized Honors Program, which was cited as one of two model programs in the nation by the federal Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE).

Honors may be undertaken as early as your junior year though most projects are conducted during the senior year.  As a candidate for Honors, you'll obtain the endorsement from your department and complete three to five credits (two, in special cases) of advanced study under the supervision and guidance of an interdisciplinary faculty committee.

• Application process and eligibility guidelines

At the end of your project, you'll defend your thesis or creative project or have it critiqued before a qualified outside examiner, modeling the dissertation defense of many grad programs. Often, Honors projects can jump start you into a meaningful career or top-notch grad program.

Recent Honors Projects

Biochemistry

• Synthesis of phosphonic acid utilizing lesquerella oil as a starting material
  

Biology

• Analysis of global antibiotic resistance
• Function of intersectin 1 (ITSN1) on embryo development of Xenopus laevis
• In vivo imaging of Xenopus laevis development using an ultra-compact MRI
• Transcription analysis of UV-irradiated Dictyostelium Discoideum through RNA sequencing

Chemistry

• Synthesis and characterization of iron catalyst precursors to support redox-active ligands
• Synthesis and properties of novel 1,3-Dioxolane and 1,3-Dioxane champhorylsulfonyl oxaziridines

Computer Science

• STEM outreach program for middle school students (presented at the Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education Conference)

Creative Writing

• E-book containing creating writing, digital photographs, audio clips, and a memoir to create a coherent and in-depth exploration of a grandfather's life

Environmental Studies

• Walt Disney's contributions toconservation and environmental thought in the U.S.

Music

• Cross-cultural comparison of female musicians using music for social and political action

Music / Anthropology and Sociology

• Musical qualities of motherese and how it may help infants develop an understanding of emotional expression

Neuroscience

• Regenerative properties of neurons in marine peanut worms (Sipuncula)

Psychology

• Exploring social changes in the lives of terminally ill people