Honors College

Janet Donohoe, Dean
http://www.westga.edu/honors/
678-839-6636

The Honors College includes all Honors curriculum and activities, the Office of Undergraduate Research and is the clearing house for Presidential Scholarships and the Select Student program.

Honors College Curriculum and Activities

The Honors Program was initiated at West Georgia College in 1975. In 1999 the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia elevated the status of the program to Honors College thereby creating the first Honors College in the State of Georgia. Unlike the other undergraduate colleges, the Honors College does not award degrees. Instead, like almost all other honors colleges in the United States, the Honors College offers a distinctive curriculum featuring two types of courses - special sections of courses required in the core curriculum and junior and senior seminars. Because Honors classes are small, they typically provide more opportunities for discussion and more individual attention than is possible in the regular curriculum. Honors courses are designed to offer more opportunities for research in preparation for graduate or professional school; consequently, they are more challenging, and they do place more responsibility on the individual student. The Honors College is open to students in all undergraduate degree programs offered by the University.

Honors College Admissions Criteria

The Honors College invites all First-Year and Transfer students who have been accepted to the University of West Georgia through General Admissions to apply to the Honors College based on the below listed Eligibility Requirements.

Incoming First-Year Students

First-Year Student Admission to the Honors College is based on a holistic evaluation of your high school GPA, ACT or SAT test scores, and your Honors Admissions essay. Criteria listed below should be viewed as target criteria. While priority consideration will be given to students who meet or exceed the requirements, the Honors College Admissions Committee takes into consideration the totality of each student’s application.

Generally, students accepted into the Honors College meet at least two of the following criteria:

• 3.5 High School GPA
• 1250 SAT Composite/ Or 26 ACT Composite
• 680 SAT EBRW/ Or 28 ACT English
• 670 SAT Math/ Or 28 ACT Math
• 26 ACT ELA

New First-Year Students who are non-traditional applicants and therefore may not have any current SAT or ACT scores must wait and apply for the Honors College as a Continuing UWG student (See requirements below).

Transfer Applicants:

Transfer students who meet the following criteria may submit an application and an Honors College admissions essay.

• 3.2 Overall GPA
• 15 college credit hours earned

Transfer students who completed Honors coursework at other Honors Programs or Colleges may be eligible to have those Transfer Honors credits used for their UWG Honors College graduation requirements.

Continuing UWG Students:

A current University of West Georgia student who meets the following criteria may submit an application and an Honors College admissions essay.

• 3.2 Overall GPA
• 15 college credit hours earned

Current UWG students are encouraged to apply to the Honors College before completion of 45 credit hours in order to complete the Honors College graduation requirements.

For additional details and the Honors College application deadlines, visit the website here: https://www.westga.edu/academics/honors/admissions-criteria.php

Honors College Graduation Requirements

To graduate with Honors College distinction, students must (1) complete between 18-29 credit hours of Honors course work, depending on the number of credit hours completed at the time of the student’s application and semester of entry into the program (including at least 2 upper level classes); (2) complete an Honors thesis related to major (3) maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.2 in Honors College courses and in all other academic work; (5) participate in undergraduate research; (6) complete an e-portfolio.  For additional details, visit http://www.westga.edu/honors. Completion of this distinctive curriculum is a mark of scholarly excellence and is appropriately recognized on all official West Georgia transcripts and diplomas. Honors College graduates are also recognized at commencement ceremonies where they alone may wear Honors College cords of the University’s official colors of red and blue.

West Georgia’s Honors College is affiliated with the National Collegiate Honors Council and conforms to its recommended policies and practices. For application materials and any other information, please contact the office of the Honors College Dean, Honors House.

Honors College Learning Environment and Outcomes

The Honors College enables undergraduate students to realize their full potential through academic rigor and scholarship, leadership development and community engagement.

The Honors College of the University of West Georgia is designed for highly motivated students who have demonstrated superior academic achievement and express a desire to continue on that path. Students accepted into the Honors College become immersed in a learning community, where they are expected to be actively engaged in an ongoing, interactive learning process with like-minded faculty and peers, both in and out of the classroom. To support and nurture such an environment, Honors classes are small, seminar-based, and taught by faculty members approved by the Honors College. Honors course work differs from general course work in both breadth and depth of exploration of subject matter, and as much as possible, inclusion of primary sources of information. Honors students are expected to exhibit and further develop genuine emotional and cognitive engagement in the learning process and reflect on the meaning of what they are learning in their own and others’ lives, including a consideration of ethical ramifications when applicable. Ultimately, the goal of the program is to produce young adults who will become leaders and serve as transformation agents among their peers, in the campus community, and in the larger social world. To this end, all courses in the Honors College will incorporate one or more of the following learning outcomes:

• Students will demonstrate the ability to examine topics and issues from diverse perspectives.
• Students will demonstrate the ability to engage in higher order abstract, creative and critical thinking.
• Students will demonstrate the ability to explore, and if feasible, experiment with possible applications of their learning toward the solution of “real world” problems.
• Students will demonstrate the ability to explore and conduct discipline-specific independent research and creative activities using a variety of resources.
• Students will demonstrate superior oral and written communication skills.

UWG Honors College Academic Integrity Policy

Students in the Honors College at the University of West Georgia are expected to have exceptional academic integrity, based on honesty, trust, respect, fairness, and responsibility. Participation in the Honors College is based on academic performance, and all forms of cheating call into question the legitimacy of a student’s grades. All Honors students are expected to adhere to the University’s Honor Code and Policies of Academic Integrity. See Academic Honor  section, or Connection and Student Handbook. Participation in the UWG Honors College is a privilege, as Honors students receive many advantages. Any violation of the University’s Honor Code may result in “penalties up to and including” dismissal from the Honors College. All final decisions will be made by the Dean of the Honors College.

Select Students

The Select Student Program is intended for students who have demonstrated superior scholastic achievement and who wish to pursue advanced course work in an individualized curriculum in their majors under the guidance of their department chairs. A student who attains a 3.75 or above grade point average in the first 40-60 academic hours of credit at West Georgia is eligible to apply for the program. A Select Student must maintain a minimum cumulative average of 3.2.

A student seeking Select Student status must be recommended by his major department chair or the Honors College Committee and approved by the Office of the Honors College Dean. Students must make application to the department chair by the time they have earned 90 hours and obtain approval of specialized curriculum. A student completing the program will have Select Student designation recorded on the transcript. A Select Student may:

• take advanced courses without prerequisite;
• take designated courses which allow credit by validation for lower level courses;
• elect to substitute other courses for three credit hours of physical education activity courses;
• design with the chair of the major department a special course of study to meet major requirements.

Presidential Scholarships

Presidential Scholarships are funded by donations to the University managed by the University of West Georgia Foundation. They are intended primarily to reward incoming freshmen who have demonstrated superior academic ability in high school and potential for academic success at the University. These scholarships are renewed annually for four years or eight semesters, provided that the students continue to meet established Honors College academic criteria and remain on track to complete the Honors College curriculum requirements. For more detailed information, please contact the Honors College, Honors House, 678-839-6636.

National Scholarships and Fellowships

The Office of Undergraduate Research and the Honors College support all UWG students in application for national scholarships and fellowships, including Fulbright, Gilman, Goldwater, Madison, Truman, and Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU). We work with students through the entire application process, from identifying national awards that fit their goals, to writing application essays, to obtaining appropriate letters of recommendation.

 Undergraduate Research 

All undergraduate students have the opportunity to participate in undergraduate research. Undergraduate research is defined as an inquiry, investigation, or creative endeavor by an undergraduate student that enhances the student’s knowledge or advances the student’s creative abilities and contributes in a meaningful way to the student’s chosen discipline. Collaborative research projects allow students to further explore their areas of interest through hands-on work with faculty members. Undergraduate research is not limited to laboratory and scientific settings, although there are many opportunities for research in these areas. New discoveries and contributions can also be made in literature, social sciences, education, business, creative arts, and nursing, which also provide exciting avenues for experiential learning. There are also interdisciplinary opportunities, and students may explore research endeavors in areas outside of their major and/or minor.