required coursework
Faculty advisors and students with questions should reach out to the Program's directors: Rebecca Schindler - rschindler@depauw.edu or Amy Welch - awelch@depauw.edu
FIRST-YEAR SEMINAR: HONR 101
Fall Semester First-Year Seminar - This course fulfills the FYS all DePauw students are required to take in their first semester.
READING COURSES: HONR 200
Honor Scholar Reading Course, 0.25 credits - A mini-course focused on a specific topic, usually a single book, that provides the basis for a critical exploration of emerging intellectual ideas in science, math, the humanities, or social sciences; global/local socio-economic challenges; historical issues; or trends in art and/or music.
Note 1: These courses are offered fall and spring; students may take them any time from spring of their first year through the end of sophomore year. Open to all DePauw students, although priority is given to students enrolled in the Honor Scholar Program. Honor Scholars may take a Prindle course in place of one of their HONR 200 courses, but need to inform the Program Directors. Classes of 2025, 2026, and 2027 are exempt from the Reading Course requirement, but certainly still welcome to participate in the courses.
Note 2: Lateral Entry students take two reading courses starting either in the spring of first-year or both in the sophomore year.
Note 3: HONR 200 is exempt from credit-overload.
AREA SEMINARS:
HONR 300A: Arts & Humanities Seminar (AH)
HONR 300B: Science & Math Seminar (SM)
HONR 300C: Social Sciences Seminar (SS)
Students take one seminar in each area: Arts & Humanities, Science & Math, and Social Science. It is recommended that students complete the three area seminars before their senior year. However, on occasion, it is necessary for students to complete one seminar in the senior year.
Note 1: Each area seminar counts towards DPU's general education distribution requirements. HONR courses are exempt from the rule that students must use 6 different programs/departments to complete the distribution areas (despite the e-services warning).
Note 2: On occasion and with approval of the program directors, students may substitute a non-HONR course for ONE of the area seminars. This may be an approved course taken through an off-campus study program (for example, at The University of Glasgow) or another course taken at DePauw, such as an upper-level seminar in an interdisciplinary program. Required courses for departmental majors generally will not be considered.
Note 3: Some departments/programs may count HONR courses as electives for their majors/minors. Students should confer with their major/minor advisors.
SENIOR THESIS PROJECT:
HONR 401: Honor Scholar Senior Tutorial 1
HONR 402: Honor Scholar Senior Tutorial 2
The capstone experience of the Honor Scholar Program is the opportunity to design, implement, and complete a two-semester independent thesis project. This may take the form of an analytical project or a creative project (see guidelines on Moodle) but all thesis projects must be interdisciplinary in some way.
Note 1: While most students complete the capstone project in the senior year, students may opt to do the thesis project from Spring of the junior year to Fall of the senior year (please see thesis guidelines (available on Moodle) for this option).
Note 2: Students who are off-campus in the fall semester of the senior year are exempt from registering for HONR 401. However, in order to be in good standing to register for HONR 402, students are expected to meet all expectations for completion of HONR 401.
Note 3: Regarding course credit for 401/402: students may enroll for HONR 401 as an overload course, that is, it does not count against the 4.5 maximum credits per semester. Students MUST register for HONR 402 for credit in order to complete the Honor Scholar Program.