Honors College
Honors Vision Statement
The Honors College is committed to extending opportunities for achievement in undergraduate education to the best students across the University. The College works toward this goal by promoting a supportive and academically and culturally diverse environment in which students can pursue excellence in research, creative work, community service, and personal and professional development. By creating a center for academic excellence, the Honors College not only fosters the development of the next generation of academic and community leaders, but also advances the University’s broader mission of improving the level of education for all students. In keeping with the broader educational mission, the Honors College houses Interdisciplinary Studies, which is dedicated to promoting experiential, problem-based research and pedagogy for all students in the University.
Honors Affiliations
The UT Arlington Honors College is a member of the National Collegiate Honors Council and the regional Great Plains Honors Council.
Standards for Admission
The Honors College is dedicated to creating a student body with broad interests, varied talents, and diverse cultural backgrounds. Admission is competitive.
Entering freshman Honors applicants (those with fewer than 30 college hours) must have either a score of 1270 on the SAT (combined Math and Evidence-Based Reading and Writing) or a score of 27 of the ACT, or have graduated in the top ten percent of their high school class, or have graduated with an unweighted high school GPA of 3.5 on a scale of 4. If none of the above criteria are met, applicants may submit an essay for consideration. All applicants are required to submit a resume. For additional information and application materials, see the Honors College website: https://www.uta.edu/honors/prospective/apply/
Continuing UT Arlington and transfer Honors applicants (those with more than 30 college hours) must have an overall undergraduate GPA of 3.35. If none of the above criteria are met, applicants may submit an essay for consideration. All applicants are required to submit a resume. For additional information and application materials, see the Honors College website: https://www.uta.edu/honors/prospective/apply/
Requirements for Completing an Honors Degree
Honors degrees are granted in the disciplines of the University’s eight undergraduate schools and colleges – Business; Education; Engineering; Liberal Arts; Nursing and Health Innovation; Science; Social Work – as well as programs in CAPPA and Interdisciplinary Studies. To graduate with an Honors degree, a student must be a member of the Honors College in good standing, have an overall GPA of 3.2 or higher, and complete the degree requirements in an academic major.
Honors students will be required to earn 18 Honors Points, plus a Capstone Project to receive an Honors Degree. Points will be earned through a combination of Course Points and Experience Points that are to be determined by each college.
Course Points
Students will enroll in Honors-designated courses or contract existing courses. A point value will be assigned to Courses based on credit hours. Each college will set their own course requirements.
Honors courses satisfy Honors, departmental, college, and University requirements. The Honors College provides departmental advisors with equivalency/substitution information.
Honors students may earn Honors credit for non-Honors courses taught by full-time faculty, subject to the terms of the Honors College Contract. To receive Honors credit, the student must complete regular course requirements with a grade of A or B, as well as an independent Honors assignment as agreed upon by the instructor and the student.
Experience Points
Students may participate in co-curricular Experiences to earn Honors Points. A point value will be assigned to each experience based on duration or rigor of the experience (most will be assigned 1 point). Each college will approve their own list of allowable experiences. Each unique experience may be used only one time.
Honors Capstone Project
In addition to earning the required number of Honors Points, students will complete a Capstone Project to receive an Honors Degree. Each college/department/major will determine which of the following “tracks” their students can select. Although not all students will be required to write a thesis, all students will be required to produce a deliverable. Students will present their Capstone Project at an Honors Symposium in either an oral or poster presentation.
Research
- Traditional Honors thesis; research conducted with a faculty mentor
International
- Project developed through study abroad or service learning abroad
Professional
- Project developed through completing and internship, co-op, or practicum
Creative
- Creation of original creative work/activity; especially for students in the fine arts
College Specific Capstone Project
- Determined by each college
The flexibility of the Honors requirements makes it essential that students maintain close contact with both their departmental mentor and advisor and the Honors advising staff. Students must meet with an Honors advisor during each of their first three years, but are strongly encouraged to meet with the advising staff on a regular basis.
Probation Policy
Honors students whose cumulative GPA falls below 3.2 will be placed on probation. They must meet as soon as possible with an Honors advisor and are required to restore their GPA back to 3.2 or higher in the following semester.
Privileges for Honors Students
Honors College participation provides a number of tangible and intangible benefits to its students:
- Honors Degree designation on diploma and transcript
- Priority course registration
- Small class size
- Courses taught by award-winning faculty
- Honors scholarship opportunities
- Honors study abroad programs and scholarships
- Honors learning community
- Paid undergraduate research fellowship opportunities
- Special privileges with the University libraries
- Access to Honors listserv, Honors College blog, and the electronic Honors newsletter, Veneratio
- Special Honors academic and social everts
- Honors Bridge to Graduate School Fellowship opportunities
- Membership in the Honors College Council
- Use of the Carolyn A. Barros Reading room (library and computer laboratory) and free printing
Honors College Programs and Services
Honors Study Abroad
The Honors College Study Abroad Program offers short-term opportunities for students to acquire new knowledge and understanding of the people, events, movements, ideas, and products of cultures other than their own; to link historical events and developments with those of the twenty-first century; and to understand the contributions of other peoples and regions to American institutions and culture. Rigorous instruction and intensive on-site learning in countries as diverse as Ireland, Scotland, Italy, France, the Czech Republic, Greece, England and Costa Rica are hallmarks of the Honors study abroad experience. Scholarships are available from both the Honors College and the Office of International Studies (Note: the Honors College Study Abroad Program typically involves short-term travel and as such cannot be used for the study abroad option for the Honors Capstone Project, although credit from the program may be used to meet the coursework requirement for the Honors degree.)
AP Summer Institute (APSI)
The Honors College at UT Arlington, in conjunction with the College Board, annually presents the UT Arlington AP Summer Institute. Each year more than 1000 new and experienced middle and high school teachers receive invaluable training from College Board-certified instructors to prepare them to teach AP courses. Courses are offered in Art, English, Science, Language, Mathematics and Social Studies.