Honors Program
What is the Political Science Honors Program?
The Department of Political Science offers honors for students who have demonstrated high academic achievement. This is a means for the department to recognize the academic work of its students.
What does a student need to do to receive Political Science honors?
- Have an overall CU GPA of 3.0 or higher
- Have a 3.5 or higher GPA in Political Science
- Submit a major research paper prepared for any upper division Political Science course to a member of the faculty of the department
- Research paper must be read by at least two of the department's faculty
- If the faculty deems the paper to be of sufficient merit, and the GPA requirements are met, honors will be awarded.
How does the student's GPA affect the level of Political Science honors?
- Political Science GPA 3.5 - 3.69 . . . . . . . . Graduation with Distinction
- Political Science GPA 3.7 - 3.89 . . . . . . . . Graduation with High Distinction
- Political Science GPA 3.9 or higher . . . . . . Graduation with Highest Distinction
What is the procedure for the awarding of Political Science honors?
- The first faculty member (whether or not the person is teaching a course) who is approached by a student to be the first reader of a proposed research paper for honors will forward a notice to the chairperson of their intent to be a first reader of the student's paper.
- The note to the department chair will include the faculty's name who will be the first reader, a recommended person to be the second reader, and the student's full name and student ID number.
- The chairperson will place the note in a file for the expected graduation date and contact the second reader for the paper. When that person agrees to be a second reader it will be noted in the file.
- When the student formally submits the paper to the first reader, the student will be required to submit a second copy to the second reader.
- After each reader reads the paper, they will send a note to the chairperson as to its acceptability for the honors designation.
- All papers of this nature must be completed, read, and a grade submitted to the chairperson by the first day of finals week.
- The chair will notify the first reader, and that faculty member can notify the student.
- The chairperson will notify the Student Success Center that the student has qualified for honors. The Student Success Center will then determine if the GPA meets the honors requirement for the department at one of three designations-Distinction, High Distinction, Highest Distinction.
"The life of man is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) English philosopher