College-Level Honors Plans • Deparment-Level Honors Plans

Honors students at Texas A&M University may pursue any of the over 150 degree plans available to undergraduates.  As part of their fulfillment of degree requirements, honors students select a combination of honors and non-honors courses that best fits their needs and interests. To be eligible to enroll in an honors course, a student must have a cumulative GPR at Texas A&M of 3.5 or higher. For information of honors eligibility of freshman enrolling in their first semester, please click here.

Honors coursework may lead to an honors designation upon graduation on the university level, and/or the college level, and/or the departmental level. Students honors designations are placed on their official Texas A&M University transcripts, and those students receive several special recognitions at their graduation ceremonies.

A student may complete one or more of the three university-level honors plans: Foundation Honors, University Honors, and University Undergraduate Research Fellows Program (honors senior thesis). Students interested in pursuing these plans should consult with an Honors Academic Advisor early and often. Students are also advised to begin taking honors courses as early as is possible and to consistently enroll in honors courses, at least one a semester.

Foundation Honors

The requirements for the Foundation Honors distinction are directly tied to the Texas A&M University Core Curriculum, as outlined in the Undergraduate Catalogue.  Completion of Foundation Honors requires a minimum of 19 credit hours, distributed as follows:

A limited amount of honors credit may be given for Advanced Placement or transfer credit; at least 12 hours of the honors credit must be taken in residence at Texas A&M University. For specific information on AP honors credit, consult the Honors Handbook.  Transfer honors credit is considered on a case-by-case basis.

University Honors

To receive the University Honors distinction, a student must complete 36 credit hours of honors coursework.  In completion of this honor, many students engage in Honors Course Contracts and Honors Independent Study.  The distribution requirements are as follows:

12 credit hours

Upper-division honors courses (i.e. 300 & 400-level)

The remaining hours are general electives and may come at any level in any field of study.

In addition, the 36-hour overall requirement is reduced to 33 for students who participate in at least three hours of Honors Independent Study.  As with Foundation Honors, students may apply a limited amount of Advanced Placement or transfer credit towards the requirements; students must complete at least 24 credit hours of honors coursework in residence.   For specific information on AP honors credit, consult the Honors Handbook.  Transfer honors credit is considered on a case-by-case basis.

University Undergraduate Research Fellows Program

(Honors Senior Thesis)

The Program: The University Undergraduate Research Fellows Program at Texas A&M University provides exceptional seniors with the chance to ?test drive? graduate school. Each Research Fellow works under the supervision of a faculty member (a ?Fellows Advisor?) as the student conducts her or his own independent research project over the course of an academic year (Fall and Spring Semesters). Normally, a Research Fellow enrolls in 3 credits of Honors Independent Study (491 or 485 or 497) each semester for a total of 6 honors credits.

What a Research Fellow Does: Each student participates in a series of meetings, which include several research presentations by each student. The Program culminates with each student?s honors senior thesis. After the honors thesis is approved, it is published with other theses and dissertations in the Digital Repository Library at Texas A&M University (TxSpace) and is accessible through LibCat. Students who complete the program graduate with honors and receive Research Fellows distinction at graduation and on their transcripts.

Who May Apply: Honors students normally apply during their junior year (60 or more credit hours). Applicants must be ?Honors Candidates.? That is, they need to have completed 9 credits of honors courses at Texas A&M University and have a cumulative GPR of 3.5 at Texas A&M. The application deadline is normally at the end of February each year.

For more information on Fellows , please click here