Note: Students admitted by departments or programs to Disciplinary Honors Programs are not required to have completed or participated in Core Honors. Students who complete both Core Honors and at least one Disciplinary Honors program earn Comprehensive Honors and receive an Honors diploma. All students admitted to Disciplinary Honors programs become part of the University Honors Program and are eligible for UHP research and study-abroad funding (usually competitive). Students who complete a Disciplinary Honors program receive the notation “Honors in [Discipline]” on their transcripts and diplomas. All Honors courses (Core and Disciplinary) are marked by an H after the number on students’ transcripts.

All Disciplinary Honors Programs at Marquette must meet the following requirements. The Outcomes are intended as a guide for proposal development and approval. All new Disciplinary Honors Programs must be approved by the UHP Director and Faculty Advisory Board before they are submitted to the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs via CourseLeaf.

Requirements for Disciplinary Honors Programs

Requirements for Students

• A minimum of 6 credits of Disciplinary Honors coursework (which may include thesis or research credits)
  • Disciplinary Honors credits may or may not count toward the student’s major, at the discretion of individual Disciplinary Honors Programs

• As part of that coursework, completion of an Honors project (research project, thesis, creative or professional project), which is presented to faculty in the University through a poster, oral presentation, thesis, defense, or other means appropriate to the discipline
  • Usually, Honors student research will be designated by a credit-bearing course (e.g. 4956 courses in labs).
  • Students engaged in summer research projects or programs in their departments may register for a 9000-level (non-credit-bearing) course and, after demonstrating their completion of at least 200 hours of research, may substitute this course for up to 3 credits of Disciplinary Honors coursework.
• 2.0 cumulative overall GPA for entry to Disciplinary Honors program
• 2.0 cumulative major GPA for graduation with Disciplinary Honors degree
  • Individual departments may add program-specific requirements for higher entrance and graduation GPAs.

Requirements for Programs

Appointment of a Disciplinary Honors Director and, depending on enrollment numbers in the major, a program committee, responsible for:

• advising students in the program
• working with the department to administer the Disciplinary Honors curriculum
• coordinating faculty mentorship of Honors projects and departmental evaluation of those projects

Student Outcomes for Disciplinary Honors Programs

After having completed a Disciplinary Honors program, students should be able to demonstrate orally and/or in writing:

• Deeper and broader knowledge of their fields than what is expected in the standard major curriculum in their departments
• The ability to communicate effectively about major issues or problems in their discipline with both experts and non-experts
• The ability to analyze critically both scholarly and non-scholarly information and arguments in and about their discipline
• The ability to design, execute, and present a research or professional project in their discipline
• The ability to articulate and adhere to the ethical practices required in research or professional or creative projects in their discipline
• A disposition to put their intellectual and personal talents to use to address the world’s needs

Institutional Goals of Disciplinary Honors Programs

• Increased participation in undergraduate research for both students and faculty
• Improved student preparation (more widespread, more standardized) for undergraduate research
• Increased student competitiveness for graduate and professional school and professional employment
• Increased student applications for and awards of national and international prestigious fellowships