Academic Honors
Aware that students may achieve high scholarship in a variety of ways, the University faculty has formulated the following programs of recognition:
Honors Students
The University’s Honors Students constitute a community of scholars who have achieved at the highest academic levels and hold outstanding promise for continued academic growth.
Students with outstanding high school records may become Honors Students through admission to the University as Honors Scholars. These students are eligible to take Tutorials and Honors Seminars and may participate in special programs for Honors Students. Students who achieve at least a 3.5 cumulative grade point average while a student at Ohio Wesleyan may also apply to be Honors Students through the Office of Academic Affairs and are then entitled to participate in Tutorials, Honors Courses, and other Honors programs.
The Dean’s List
Students who achieve a superior academic average each semester will be placed on the Dean’s List. Academic qualifications for inclusion on the Dean’s List require at least a 3.50 semester grade point average for all courses attempted and for a minimum of three unit (or 1.25 unit) courses with grades assigned.
Honors in Course
“Honors” are awarded in a course for satisfactory completion of some project beyond the normal requirements of the course. The project must have been initiated by the student and approved by the instructor as a project worthy of honors. The student will register the project within the first five weeks of the semester with the course instructor. Provided the student has a grade of B or better in the course, and provided the instructor considers the completed project worthy of honors, an H will be appended to the student’s grade for the course. Time limitations on the completion of an honors project must conform to the general rules for completion of course work. Honors in Course cannot be applied to the Graduation with University Honors or Departmental Honors designations.
In exceptional cases, an instructor may, after consultation with the Office of Academic Affairs, award honors to a student who has not formally registered with the instructor, but who has completed a project of such merit as to warrant the award of honors.
Graduation with University Honors
To graduate with University Honors, one must:
- Achieve at least a 3.5 cumulative grade point average by graduation.
- Complete at least four semester units of work in Honors Program courses, selected from among the following areas:
Tutorial and Independent Study Projects. (Two units of credit required.) Honors Students may count two tutorials or one tutorial and one independent study/directed readings or two independent studies/directed readings toward graduation with University Honors. Participating students are eligible for grants to help offset expenses such as research, travel, expendable equipment, and project materials.
Honors Courses: (Two units of credit required) Courses for Honors Students are available each semester. Some of these may be interdisciplinary while others may be honors sections of regular courses. “Honors in Course” does not qualify as an honors seminar. Honors courses used for University Honors requirements may not be taken Credit/No Entry.
- Pass a written comprehensive examination in the major department or program before the end of the fifth week of the spring semester of the senior year. Students should notify the department before the end of fall semester that they intend to take the exam.
- Students intending to graduate with University Honors must obtain appropriate forms from the Office of Academic Affairs and then file an “Application to Graduate with University Honors” with the Office of Academic Affairs no later than the end of the twelfth week of the fall semester of the student’s senior year. They must also file with the Office of Academic Affairs, a “Certification of Honors Earned” no later than the twelfth week of the spring semester.
A student who satisfies these conditions is graduated with University Honors. The student’s name is listed in the commencement program along with the department or program. The student’s permanent record will also show Graduation with University Honors.
Graduation with Departmental Honors
Graduation with Departmental Honors requires an independent project, an oral exam on the project, and a comprehensive exam in a student’s major department during the senior year.
This program is open to any student who meets one of the following criteria:
- The student has attained a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 in the major after the fall semester, junior year, as well as an overall grade point average of 3.00 OR
- The student does not have the grade point averages specified above but does have the support of his or her major department and has successfully petitioned the Academic Policy Committee.
A project will involve two semesters of work, for which the student may earn up to two units of independent study credit (course 490). (These credits may not be used to fulfill the requirements for Graduation with University Honors.) The major department has the option of requiring the student to take specific courses or of modifying existing departmental courses or requirements for students seeking Graduation with Departmental Honors.
Students have two possible timetables for pursuing Graduation with Departmental Honors—the Junior Cycle and the Senior Cycle. Each is designed to accommodate the scheduling variations in a student’s undergraduate academic career: apprenticeships, study abroad, independent research project schedules, and the like. Students should select the option that fits their needs as well as the schedule of their supervising professor.
To apply for the program, the student should obtain the appropriate forms from the Office of Academic Affairs and, in consultation with the supervising professor, submit the completed forms to the Dean for Academic Affairs. Completed applications should reach the Dean’s office no later than the twelfth week in the fall semester of the student’s junior year for the Junior Cycle, and no later than the twelfth week in the spring semester of the student’s junior year for the Senior Cycle.
The student’s project must include a written report suitable for permanent inclusion in the library. The student must submit the completed project to an Examining Committee no later than one month before the end of classes during the fall semester of the senior year (Junior Cycle) or one month before the end of classes during the spring semester of the senior year (Senior Cycle). The Dean of Academic Affairs will be responsible for selecting this Committee. It will consist of four faculty members—two from the major department, one from a cognate department where appropriate, and one from a department not related to the major. After the oral examination on the project, a bound copy of the report and an abstract must be submitted to the Office of Academic Affairs.
The student must also pass a comprehensive exam that includes written and oral components. The written exam must be completed before the end of the fifth week of the spring semester of the senior year. The chairperson of the major department will be responsible for administering the written exam. The department chairperson will inform the Examining Committee that the student has successfully passed the written exam. No later than one week before the end of classes, the Examining Committee must certify to the Dean of Academic Affairs and to the Registrar that the student has successfully passed the comprehensive exam. Any department may require an alternative method of evaluation that will be developed in consultation with the Examination Committee.
A student who satisfies these conditions is graduated with Honors in the Department of… . The student’s name is listed in the commencement program along with the department or program. The student’s permanent record will also show Graduation with Departmental Honors.
Graduation with Distinction
Students who attain the following grade point averages will graduate with the corresponding recognition:
- 3.90 summa cum laude
- 3.75 magna cum laude
- 3.50 cum laude
This distinction in scholarship is noted both on the diploma and in the commencement program.
Honorary Societies
Alpha Kappa Delta — Sociology
Chi Gamma Nu — Chemistry
Delta Phi Alpha — German
Eta Sigma Phi — Classics
Kappa Delta Pi — Education
Mortar Board — Junior/Senior Scholarship
Mu Phi Epsilon — Music
Omicron Delta Epsilon — Economics
Omicron Delta Kappa — Junior/Senior Scholarship
Phi Alpha Theta — History
Phi Beta Kappa — Senior Scholarship/Character
Phi Eta Sigma — Freshman Scholarship
Phi Sigma — Biological Sciences
Phi Sigma Iota — Foreign Languages, Comparative Literature
Phi Sigma Tau — Philosophy
Phi Society — Sophomore Scholarship
Pi Kappa Lambda — Music
Pi Mu Epsilon — Mathematics
Pi Sigma Alpha — Political Science
Psi Chi — Psychology
Sigma Beta Delta — Business
Sigma Gamma Epsilon — Earth Science
Sigma Iota Rho — International Studies
Sigma Pi Sigma — Physics
Sigma Tau Delta — English
Sigma Xi — Sciences
Theta Alpha Kappa — Religion
Theta Alpha Phi — Theatre
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