California State University, Long Beach
Policy Statement
00-08
Obsolete Policy
University Honors Program
This policy statement was recommended by the Academic Senate on
February 17, 2000
and concurred in by the President on February 22, 2000.
(This policy statement supercedes Policy Statement 82-09.)
The University Honors Program exists to meet the needs of high-performing
students who want an enriched undergraduate program. It offers three
options.
General Honors Plan I (minimum of 30 units) is designed for entering
freshmen and consists of a minimum of 21 units of lower- and upper-division
General Education courses (which include UHP 100 and UHP 150), UHP
300 (a non-General Education course), and a culminating 6-unit senior
thesis/project in the student s major (UHP 496, Research Participation,
and UHP 498, Senior Thesis/Project).
General Honors Plan II (minimum of 18 units) is designed for upper-division
transfers from community colleges and consists of nine units of
upper-division General Education courses, UHP 300 (a non-General
Education course), and a culminating 6- unit senior thesis/project
in the student's major (UHP 496, Research Participation, and UHP
498, Senior Thesis/Project).
Honors in the Major (minimum of 9 units) is designed for students
who elect not to take General Education courses as a part of the
University Honors Program or who decide to enter the Honors Program
too late to do so; Honors in the Major consists of a minimum of
one upper-division Honors-specific course in the student s major
department and a culminating 6-unit senior thesis/project (courses
in the major department equivalent to UHP 496 and UHP 498).
Students in General Honors whose major department offers an Honors
in the Major Program may apply to participate in both programs,
in which case the General Honors thesis requirement would be satisfied
through the Honors in the Major option.
Admission. Admission to the University Honors Program
is based upon high school grade-point average, SAT or ACT scores,
community college or CSULB grades, and faculty recommendations,
as appropriate. Admission standards are designed to restrict participation
in the program to the top 10 percent of CSULB students. Students
who fail to maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.00 will be withdrawn
from the program. Also, students who fail to register for courses
in the University Honors Program for two consecutive semesters will
be withdrawn from the program.
Approval of Courses. The identification and staffing
of courses to be offered as a part of General Education for students
taking General Honors Plan I or Plan II are decisions made by the
Director of the University Honors Program, following consultation
with the Honors Advisory Council. Proposals for Honors in the Major
the creation of Honors-specific courses and the management
and staffing of the senior Thesis/Project must be approved
by (1) the department curriculum committee and department chair;
(2) the College Curriculum Committee; (3) the Director of the University
Honors Program, following consultation with the Honors Advisory
Council; and (4) the University Planning and Educational Policies
Council.
Definition of Honors Courses . Honors courses whether
sections of pre-existing General Education courses modified to meet
the needs of students in the University Honors Program or special
courses created for use with Honors in the Major are different
from most undergraduate offerings both in content and in the way
they are taught. Honors courses are designed to be more demanding;
they include a heavier emphasis on theory and address more complex
issues. The assigned readings are normally scholarly works, both
books and articles, rather than textbooks. Class time is devoted
to discussions designed to give students the opportunity for independent
interpretation and analysis. The emphasis is on written papers or
projects, not standardized testing. Assignments are constructed
to accommodate individual student interests and concerns. In short,
the presumption is that students in the University Honors Program
are able to embark on more challenging and creative assignments,
are less dependent upon the assistance of their instructors in understanding
assigned readings, and are motivated to function at a more advanced
stage of critical analysis when considering the validity of a given
work.
Definition of Senior Thesis/Project. The senior thesis/project
is intended to provide the opportunity for personal intellectual
growth. It can take the form of an original research effort or it
can be a deeper exploration of a subject or topic a student wants
to know more about, for example, an author, an historical event,
a political or social movement, or a public policy. It can also
be a project that is demonstrated, performed, or exhibited. Accordingly,
the form that the research/preparation (UHP 496) and
writing/demonstration/performance/exhibition (UHP 498) may take
will vary with the student s major. The end product may be either
a fairly lengthy paper (literally, a senior thesis) or demonstration,
performance, or exhibition accompanied by a briefer explanatory
statement. The Director of the University Honors Program will determine
the appropriate format for the senior
thesis/project in consultation with the faculty member supervising
the student's work.
Advisory Council. The University Honors Program shall
have an Advisory Council composed of the Director (ex officio, non-voting);
eight members of the faculty, two from the College of Liberal Arts
and one from each of the other colleges, selected by the respective
college councils, preferably from among faculty who have taught
in the program or supervised senior theses/projects; and two students,
one seeking General Honors and one seeking Honors in the Major,
selected by the faculty members of the Advisory Council. Terms shall
be for two years in the case of faculty and one year in the case
of students, and
members shall be eligible for re-appointment. The Advisory Council
shall conduct a minimum of one meeting each semester.
EFFECTIVE: Fall 2000 |