The Honors College at UMBC

The Honors College is for students who seek exceptional intellectual stimulation and challenge. Students are offered a rich liberal arts experience through honors classes, interactions with visiting scholars, internships, study abroad and study-travel programs, and other extracurricular opportunities. One of the hallmarks of the program is specialized attention. Each semester, students receive individual formal advising from Honors College staff who are also available for consultation throughout the year. Membership in the Honors College is intentionally kept small. Limited to an enrollment of 500, the college seeks to have 125 first-year students matriculate each fall.

Students admitted to the Honors College undertake general honors study in honors versions of regular classes and specially commissioned honors seminars. Honors seminars, the subjects of which from semester to semester, cover a wide variety of interdisciplinary topics. These courses are specially designed with regard to Honors College values to supplement the UMBC curriculum. Honors courses have limited enrollment and afford participants the opportunity for close interaction with distinguished members of the UMBC faculty.

The Honors College encourages the development of advanced-level honors curricula and assists honors students in developing their programs, applying to graduate or professional schools, and gaining financial support for research and graduate study. Recent Honors College graduates have been accepted into programs at Princeton, Yale, Stanford, University of Pennsylvania, Oxford, Cambridge, Duke, Harvard, NYU and Georgetown, among others. Students who complete the Honors College curriculum graduate with a Certificate of General Honors, which is noted on their transcript.

Honors Orientation

Incoming Honors College freshmen attend a special honors orientation along with students in the specialty Scholars Programs. The program provides students with the opportunity to meet other new students, as well as faculty, staff and current students. They learn about university requirements and, with the help of faculty and peer advisors, begin to plan their academic careers. They participate in an introductory seminar that acquaints them with the collaborative approach to learning that is characteristic of most courses in the Honors College. A parent orientation also is scheduled.

Advisement

The faculty and staff of the Honors College are available to honors students for advising concerning academic programs, course selection, study abroad, special graduate scholarships, independent study and research options and graduate or professional school admissions. All Honors College students are encouraged to visit the Honors College on a regular basis for informal conversation with the staff and other students. Honors students must schedule an advising appointment in the Honors College each semester prior to advanced registration.

Honors Courses

Many honors courses involve more in-depth treatment of topics covered in the regular class sections, while others resemble graduate seminars in their small size, depth, intensity of scholarship, and in the special character of the relationship engendered by working closely with faculty members and other students. Honors classes are generally limited to no more than 25 students. Each semester the Honors College offers 40 to 50 courses in the Honors Forum, honors sections of regular classes, regularly scheduled honors courses and specially commissioned honors courses.

The Honors Forum

In their first year at UMBC, entering Honors College members enroll in Honors 100, which meets weekly in the fall semester. The Honors Forum introduces students to the academic method and to the pursuit of excellence through honors education. Students interact with campus researchers and creative artists, participate in service learning and leadership development, gain research and study skills applicable to all their future academic endeavors, and reflect upon what it means to be a full member of an academic community.

Honors Sections of Regular Classes

These are often introductory level courses, such as Ideas and Images in American Culture (AMST 100H), Concepts of Biology (BIOL 100H), and Introduction to World Literature and History (ENGL 206H), but there are also some 300- and 400-level honors sections for advanced undergrads in the Honors College. The honors section explores a topic at greater depth, introduces material not covered in the regular course, requires an added amount of writing and features considerable dialogue among students and faculty.

Regularly Scheduled Honors Courses

Some honors courses, such as HONR 390: Reflections on Community Service, HONR 410: Honors Internship and HONR 490: Senior Honors Project are scheduled regularly. Courses of particular interest to students at a research university are HONR 210 and 211, The Great Books Seminars.

Honors Seminars

These seminars are taught by Honors College Faculty Fellows and are focused on a particular problem, such as Art and the Cultures of Childhood; Science, Mathematics and Technology in the Ancient World; Death and Dying; and Literature of the Holocaust. These seminars are often interdisciplinary, and sometimes team-taught by faculty members from different departments.

Honors in the Major

Many UMBC major programs have developed honors tracks for graduating with departmental honors. All members of the Honors College are encouraged to pursue their majors with honors where the opportunity exists. Departmental honors courses count toward Honors College requirements as well.

Special Opportunities

Living-Learning Community

Study Abroad

Study-Travel Programs

Grants and Scholarships

Special Scholarship Programs

Application to the Honors College

Admission to the Honors College is highly selective; the college seeks to enroll a maximum of 125 new students each fall semester. For consideration, the applicant must complete the university’s application, as well as submit the following to the Honors College:

The Honors College application

An essay

Answers to a series of questions about interests and experiences

A letter of recommendation from a teacher specifically addressing the candidate’s suitability for honors study.

Scholarships

Applicants may be considered for the following Honors College scholarships:

The Honors College Fellows
Awarded to Honors College applicants who demonstrate the highest degree of achievement and academic curiosity. Fellows receive a fixed-dollar, four-year award covering incoming tuition, mandatory fees, room and board.

The Honors College Scholars
Awarded to outstanding freshman students and transfers, these scholarships provide $1,000 per year.

Academic Requirements

Honors College students must earn a 3.25 GPA each year and complete two honors courses per year. In addition to HONR 100 and a college-level writing course, a minimum of six honors courses with grades of “B” or better are required for the completion of the Honors Certificate. Honors courses must be taken across the undergraduate disciplines. All students who successfully complete the Honors College academic requirements and graduate with a cumulative 3.25 GPA or higher are granted a Certificate of General Honors. The Certificate is awarded at an Honors College Medallion Ceremony at the time of graduation and is recorded on the student’s academic transcript.