Programs of Study
Curriculum
Students in the University Honors Program take a total of 27 credit hours of Honors courses throughout the four undergraduate years, courses which replace the regular Common Curriculum requirements. Honors students are exempt from most of the introductory Common Curriculum courses and plunge instead into meatier material. The Honors curriculum includes courses in behavioral and social sciences, English, fine arts, history, mathematics, natural sciences, philosophy, and religious studies. As part of our Jesuit tradition, the courses are value-centered and aim at establishing interdisciplinary connections.
Students who participate in the full University Honors Program do an Honors Independent Project over the course of their junior and senior years. This original undergraduate research or creative project is undertaken with the guidance of a faculty sponsor. The written portion of the project is kept in an electronic archive in the University Library. Seniors give a public presentation of their work in the spring (An Academic Festival). Students who complete the minimum 24 credits of required Honors courses but do not elect to do this special project receive Honors Certificate Program recognition on their transcript and diploma.
Proposals for new Honors courses or for significant additions or alterations to courses are placed before the University Honors Advisory Board (UHAB). Upon passage by UHAB, proposals are then forwarded to the appropriate curriculum committee, and then to the University Courses and Curriculum Committee for final approval.
Other Honors Options at Loyola
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Departmental Honors
- In addition to the University Honors Program and Honors Certificate Program, several departments at Loyola have departmental honors programs, which usually consist of special research projects in the senior year and require GPAs of 3.5 in the major. Students can participate in both the University Honors Program and the honors program of their major. Interested students should contact their department chair for further information.