Students in all degree programs are eligible to participate in Hawkeye's Honors Program with a cumulative GPA of 3.25 or higher.
The Honors programs consists of two components: xxx-924 Honors Project and xxx-926 Honors Seminar.
Honors Project (xxx-924)
Credits: 1
The Honors Project course provides an opportunity for honors students to work/study on an individual basis with a faculty member.
The topic or focus of the project is negotiated between the student and supervising faculty member.
The prefix (xxx) is replaced with the desired discipline prefix (as in PSY-924, NUR-924, etc.).
These honors projects are very flexible by their nature in that they may be:
- Undertaken within one’s major or not
- Repeated
- An add-on to an existing
- Completely outside the course offerings
The project may be:
- A research project
- A service learning experience
- A project within the Phi Theta Kappa yearly honors themes
Format (and final structure) of honors projects is deliberately left open to foster creativity and adaptability to discipline needs.
The final product of the Honors Project could be a:
- Paper
- Written report of experience
- Literature review
- Research paper
- Art pieces
- Musical composition
- Web page designs
- Action project
- Social science survey
- Group study session report
- etc.
Honors projects can be undertaken in both Technical division or Arts and Science division.
Honors projects are modular in that they may be extended to a second semester.
Honors projects are eligible to be undertaken in any term (full 16-week, second 8-week term, summer, and Minimester).
Examples of past Honors Projects designed by student and faculty together include:
- Travel to Ireland, journaling and writing
- Travel to the American west, journaling and writing
- Advanced Art projects
- Language courses
- Special topics in philosophy (or any subject)
- Phi Theta Kappa service projects
Honors Seminar (xxx-926)
Credits: 3
The Honors Seminar takes place in a traditional classroom setting. The course allows intensive study of a broad topic of interest selected by a faculty member as approved by the Honors Committee and provides greater depth, breadth, and opportunities for engagement than many standard courses.
Honors Seminars that have been offered include:
- Civil Rights Tour
- Foodology
- Banned Books
- Confronting Evil
- Rock and Roll
- Introduction to the Humanities
- Body and Mind
- PTK Leadership (a self-guided, online course)
Phi Theta Kappa (PTK)
At Hawkeye, the Honors Program and our Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) chapter are closely aligned and designed in a way to be flexible to support students in many different, changing circumstances, with different schedules, and with different needs.
Students can receive course credit for Phi Theta Kappa service projects in a variety of ways, depending on their needs and circumstances.
If you wish to participate in service projects, design projects or courses with faculty, or otherwise make something more of your education at Hawkeye, we will support you.