Honors Requirements
Requirements for Honors in the Department of Communication: The Honors Program in communication gives an opportunity for a student to achieve an additional level of intellectual growth and a satisfaction of accomplishment. A student engages in independent research and writing, under the supervision of a member of the communication faculty, and participates in special honors classes, seminars, and colloquia.
Faculty recognize outstanding achievement by a student by recommending that the bachelor’s degree in communication be awarded with the distinction “Communication Scholar Cum Laude.” Higher distinctions may be awarded to truly outstanding students based upon the whole of their academic program and quality of honors research.
To enter the Honors Program, a student must possess a 3.5 minimum grade-point average on all academic work and receive the recommendation of a faculty member in communication to the Honors Council of Fulbright College. A student may pursue an independent research program of a historical, critical, descriptive, or experimental nature, within any of the areas of rhetorical or communication theory, history of public address, interpersonal, small-group, or organizational communication, persuasion, argumentation, political communication, freedom of speech, communication education, or in any closely related areas of inquiry. A student interested in mass communications, broadcasting, or film may choose to pursue either a research project or a creative study. In addition to satisfying the general college and departmental requirements for a bachelor’s degree, a student must satisfy departmental honors requirements, which include the following:
- Become an honors candidate no later than the junior year of study. Students are encouraged to establish honors candidacy as early as possible.
- Enroll in COMM 3991H no later than the junior year of study.
- Enroll in COMM 499VH a minimum of one hour of credit each semester after the completion of COMM 3991H and until completion of the honors thesis,
- Achieve a 3.5 minimum grade-point average in communication,
- Complete 12 hours (which may include 6 hours of thesis) in Honors Studies, and
- Write and successfully defend before a faculty examining committee a thesis based on the investigative or creative project undertaken in COMM 499VH.
For a full description of the Honors Program and its requirements, consult with the Undergraduate Director in the Department of Communication.