The Honors Program offers high academic achievers opportunities to interact with other students who have similar academic standards, small classes to ensure individualized attention, faculty who are caring and supportive, a strong academic program, and an enhanced academic record. It also provides opportunities to supplement regular courses through specialized projects.
Awards and Honors lists
The Dean’s List is composed of those students who have completed a minimum of 12 semester hours in collegiate-level courses in the current semester with a grade point average of at least 3.750. (Dean’s list recognition is based on calculations made at the end of the semester and cannot be updated later to reflect grade changes, such as the removal of incomplete grades.)
The Merit List is composed of those students who have completed a minimum of 6 but fewer than 12 semester hours in collegiate-level courses in the current semester with a grade point average of at least 3.750. (Merit list recognition is based on calculations made at the end of the semester and cannot be updated later to reflect grade changes, such as the removal of incomplete grades.)
The Honor Roll is composed of those students who have completed a total of at least 18 semester hours in collegiate-level courses at VSCC with a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.750. Honor Roll recognition is based upon calculations made at the end of the semester and cannot be updated later to reflect grade changes, such as the removal of incomplete grades.
Benefits
The Honors Program offers many benefits to students besides Honors coursework, including the Honors Program suite in the humanities building which includes a student lounge and conference-style classroom. Honors students also have the opportunity to work with faculty and advising staff who can help them apply for transfer scholarships to use after graduating from Vol State.
Honors courses involve more student involvement in discussion, critical thinking and analysis, presentation of ideas, and writing. Because there are substantially fewer students in Honors courses, the faculty and students can interact more to promote intellectual curiosity, creativity, self-awareness, intellectual independence, open-mindedness, and the leadership abilities of highly motivated students. The goal is to encourage Honors students to strive for academic excellence and personal achievement.
As a member of the Honors Program, you will enjoy research opportunities that allow you to explore topics that interest you and gain valuable experience in your field of study. In addition, you will have access to networking opportunities with other high-achieving students and participation in Honors events.
In addition to these benefits, membership in the Honors Program is also recognized on your transcript and can help you stand out to potential employers. The Honors Program gives students an advantage when applying for scholarships and transfer admission to four-year colleges.
Requirements
In order to enter the program, high school students must have one of the following:
- a 3.5 GPA
- a composite score of 26 on the ACT
- two letters of recommendation from instructors
Enrolled Vol State students must have at least a 3.5 GPA or letters of recommendation from two faculty members.
The only requirements to stay in the Honors program are maintaining a 3.2 GPA and continuing to take Honors courses. However, to gain the Honors certificate, a student must do more than just twelve (12) hours of Honors courses. An Honors certificate also requires participation in some on-campus events as well as some off-campus ones. Remember that part of the goal of the program is creating not just high academic standards, but solid citizens as well.
Courses
Each semester, several Honors courses are offered, such as Psychology, Sociology, History, English, Communication, etc. In addition, each spring, Honors students pursuing the Honors certificate take the Honors Leadership course (HUM 275).
Honors-by-Contract
Honors-by-contract is taking a regular course and, through an agreement between a student, the Honors Director, and the instructor, making it an honors credited course. This Honors Contract should include some sort of project that enhances student learning in addition to the normal course requirements. Ideally, the instructor and the student arrive at the arrangement together and submit a contract to the Honors Director. Creative and challenging projects are encouraged, and some may be selected for public presentation and/or posting on the Honors Program website.
