University of Michigan-Flint Honors Program

Admission Requirements

Entering freshmen who have been accepted into the University of Michigan-Flint may submit a separate application for the Honors Program, available online at www.umflint.edu/honors. 

Selection is based on a variety of factors including strength and diversity of curriculum, extracurricular activities, a writing sample, grade point average, and class rank. 

A GPA of at least 3.5 is recommended; submission of SAT/ACT scores is optional.

Requirements

• HON 155 - Discovery Seminar I: Rhetoric and the Humanities (6)
• HON 156 - Discovery Seminar II: Creative Arts and Scholarly Research (6)
• HON 251 - Ideas and Inquiry I (3)
• HON 252 - Ideas and Inquiry II (3)
• HON 299 - Professional Development (3)
• HON 393 - Engagement Project (3)
• HON 494 - Off-Campus Study and Thesis Preparation (1)
• HON 496 - Honors Thesis (3)
• HON 498 - Senior Honors Seminar (3)

Admission Requirements

Sophomores students at the University of Michigan-Flint and students with sophomore standing who transfer into the University of Michigan-Flint may submit an application for the Junior/Senior level of the Honors Program available online at www.umflint.edu/honors.

Selection is based on a variety of factors including strength and diversity of curriculum, extracurricular activities, a writing sample, grade point average, and two letters of recommendation.

A GPA of at least 3.5 is recommended.

Requirements

• HON 299 - Professional Development (3)
• HON 393 - Engagement Project (3)
• HON 494 - Off-Campus Study and Thesis Preparation (1)
• HON 496 - Honors Thesis (3)
• HON 498 - Senior Honors Seminar (3)

Honors Elections

Honors Elections are independent study projects completed in conjunction with any course except HON 155 , HON 156 , HON 251 , HON 252 , and HON 498 .  

• Four year program students are required to complete a total of five honors elections.
• Two elections must be outside the student’s major area of concentration.
• One election may be a service election.
• Junior/Senior transfer students are required to complete two honors elections.

To complete an honors election, the student develops an independent study project involving about 15 hours of extra work in conjunction with any regular course.  The student approaches the professor early in the semester and plans a study project.  The student and the professor agree upon a timeline and sign an Honors Election Contract.

Honors election projects serve to supplement in depth or in breadth the regular content or experience of the course. They may include the following:

• a short essay, lab report, book report, or research paper.
• an additional assignment for the course.
• a performance review.
• an oral presentation.
• a performance.
• field work or report on field work.
• a conference paper or poster presentation.
• a study of another culture attached to a foreign language course.
• any project considered appropriate by the instructor as a means to extend the breadth or depth of the course.

Honors Elections do not receive a grade.  Instead, the work is evaluated as satisfactory or unsatisfactory by the instructor and reported to the Honors Program Administrative Assistant by e-mail.  The evaluation is not used in arriving at a grade for the course.  See the Honors Handbook and the Program website for further information.

Service Elections

A service election requiring a minimum of 30 hours of service may be fulfilled by volunteering service hours for the Honors Program or in conjunction with any service-oriented club or organization in the university.

Off-Campus Study and Thesis Preparation (HON 494)

The core of the Junior/Senior phase of the program is the Off- Campus Study Experience. Students begin preparing for this project in their junior year, with the aid of their Honors Advisor. Students submit a proposal for their Off-Campus Study project, and a budget estimating expenses as part of HON 494 .

Students are eligible for up to $3000 in expenses from the Honors program and may apply for additional support through other University offices in order to cover the costs of traveling and conducting research. Students are encouraged to travel to other states and other countries in order to benefit from a new and different context.

Sites for the Off-Campus Experience may include:

• university campuses
• research institutes
• hospitals or other similar institutions
• places of business
• political offices
• a site in the field for work in biology, anthropology, archeology, or health care
• an appropriate site agreed upon by the student, the Honors advisor and the Honors Director

Possible projects may include:

• original research either in the field or in a laboratory, generally working with a professor at another university campus or on site
• an internship connected with the student’s area of specialization
• a summer program in the United States or abroad
• foreign language study or immersion to gain proficiency in the language
• travel connected with the student’s research, creative project or performance
• an appropriate project agreed upon by the student, the Honors advisor, and the Honors Director

Senior Honors Seminar

Students generally enroll in the Senior Honors Seminar, HON 498 , in the winter semester after they return from their Off- Campus Study Experience. The seminar allows Honors students from different disciplines to come together to share ideas and perspectives from a cross-disciplinary perspective.

Foreign Language Requirement

The foreign language requirement is fulfilled in one of the following ways:

• Completion of a 200-level course in any foreign language currently offered at the University of Michigan-Flint.
• Satisfactory completion of an oral and written comprehension examination administered by a UM-Flint foreign language faculty member.