Honors College

Honors College

The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Honors College, which is part of the statewide Commonwealth Honors Program, is open to qualified undergraduate students from every college and academic department in the University. The mission of the University Honors College is to provide a flexible curriculum, scholarly activities across diverse fields, and close mentoring, which promote curiosity, imagination, engagement, and academic excellence within a supportive and inclusive community. The Honors College empowers high-achieving undergraduate students to expand beyond the classroom to face the challenges of today and the future. Students who fulfill the requirements of the Honors College graduate as Commonwealth Scholars, a statewide recognition of exceptional academic achievement. The Commonwealth Scholar honor is bestowed at the annual Honors Convocation ceremony in April, and is noted on the student’s diploma and transcript.

Mission Statement

Through our flexible curriculum and close mentoring, the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Honors College promotes curiosity, imagination, engagement, academic excellence, and original scholarly activities across diverse fields. Within a supportive and inclusive community, we empower high-achieving undergraduate students to widen their focus beyond the classroom and face the challenges of today and the future.

Admission to the College

First-year applicants

First-year applicants to UMass Dartmouth are invited to join the Honors College on the basis of high school records and standardized test scores (if available) that predict university performance at the Honors level (including a minimum GPA of 3.5). There is no separate application process.

Transfer (from another institution) applicants

Transfer students who successfully participated in the Commonwealth Honors Program (CHP) at other colleges and universities in the Massachusetts public system of higher education are automatically eligible for membership in the UMass Dartmouth Honors College. The University Honors College accepts up to 12 honors transfer credits from other institutions participating in the Commonwealth Honors Program. Transfer students who did not previously participate in a Commonwealth Honors Program may also apply to join the UMass Dartmouth Honors College. Admission into the Honors College is normally limited to students who have 60 or fewer university credits, including advanced placement test credits. The 60-credit limit does not apply to transfer students who successfully participated in the Commonwealth Honors Program at other Massachusetts institutions of public higher education.

Internal (UMass Dartmouth) applicants

Students already studying at UMass Dartmouth may apply to join on the basis of their academic performance at UMass Dartmouth. Admission into the Honors College is normally limited to those students who have 60 or fewer university credits, including transfer and advanced placement test credits. Students may visit the Honors College website www.umassd.edu/honors for the internal application to join the Honors College as an internal applicant.

General Requirements

For students entering as a first-year student or as a transfer in Fall 2020 and thereafter*, the minimum requirements for graduation as a Commonwealth Scholar are:

Complete a minimum of 24 credits, including:

21 credits of honors coursework with a grade of B or better, including HON 301: Research Across the Disciplines
At least 3 credits of APEX work (Academic Project or Experience), under UMassD faculty supervision, culminating in a public presentation. The APEX is an independent project usually completed in the senior year for which students typically receive 3 to 6 credits.
Maintain a cumulative grade point average of 3.2 or higher

Honors courses are offered in a wide variety of departments. Courses taken for Honors credit may be applied to university, college, and/or departmental requirements, as appropriate, just like non-Honors courses. Students may also contract (a maximum of two courses) with individual instructors to enrich non-Honors courses for Honors credit.

*For students who entered the Honors College prior to Fall 2020:

The minimum requirements for graduation as a Commonwealth Scholar are:

A minimum of 15 credits of honors coursework completed with a grade of B or better, in addition to the honors thesis or project;
The 15 credits include completion of Honors 301: Research Across the Disciplines;
An independent honors research thesis or creative project, usually completed in the senior year, for which students typically receive 3 to 6 credits; and
A cumulative grade point average of 3.2 or higher

The APEX:

The APEX (Academic Project or Experience) is the culmination of your Honors education. The APEX is an original, independent project or experience that builds on everything that you have learned over the past several years. It represents an opportunity to demonstrate critical thinking skills, ability to work independently, and capability to communicate clearly to a broad audience.

There are three “Tracks” that you can take to complete the APEX. You are free to choose any track, and your Honors faculty and advising team will support you in developing an APEX plan. The three tracks are:

Traditional Research: For this track, “research” is broadly defined and can include scientific experiments, critical literature evaluations, human subject research, etc.

Performance/Expression/Creative Work: This track is often appropriate creative endeavors such as public art installations, musical performances, art exhibits, screenplays, and poetry and fiction writing. Marketing or business plans are also appropriate.

Applied/Service: The Applied/Service track is for students who are doing work in the community or in another applied setting. Projects within this track could include internships, clinical placement, volunteer work, or other work done in a “real-world” setting.

Every student is assigned a professional honors advisor upon enrolling in the Honors College. Honors students are strongly encouraged to visit with their honors advisor on a regular basis, preferably at least once each semester, to insure that they are aware of the requirements and are making satisfactory progress toward meeting those requirements in conjunction with their major requirements. Honors students are also encouraged to meet with their major advisor. The Honors advisor will collaborate with major advisors as necessary to assure students are meeting all program requirements.

The Benefits:

Joining the University Honors College has many perks beyond the obvious academic benefits, including:

Early registration for all classes, honors and non-honors
Small classes
Honors living-learning community in the residence halls
Option to live in upper-class housing as sophomores
Leadership opportunities on the Student Council
A wide variety of extracurricular activities, including free museum admission, event tickets, and more
Presentation of scholarly work at on-campus and off-campus conferences
A built-in social network of like-minded peers
The chance to develop professional relationships with faculty and other experts