Honors Fellows Distinction

The Honors Fellows distinction is the university-level transcript distinction available to continuing students who enrolled at Texas A&M between Fall 2012 and Summer 2025. Please note: incoming first-year students applying to the Honors Academy for Fall 2025 will be pursuing a different program than the Honors Fellows distinction described below. The new Honors Academy will feature a minor that students pursue alongside their major course work.

To meet requirements for the Honors Fellows distinction, Honors Students must:

Maintain a 3.5 cumulative GPR and a 3.25 GPR in honors coursework*
Meet minimum co-curricular participation requirements.
- University Honors freshman requirements are met by participating in the Honors Housing Community first year experience seminar. Satisfactory participation is defined as 80% or better successful completion (see syllabus).
- Continuing University Honors students (sophomores and above) need to meet Honors Student Council participation expectations, currently defined as attending two events per semester.**
Demonstrate progress toward Honors Fellows distinction requirements by taking at least six hours of honors coursework per year.
Annually update their Honors ePortfolio.

Continuing Honors Students who fail to meet any of these requirements will be given a semester of probation to correct any deficiencies. While in the probationary semester, a priority registration time will not be assigned. Honors Students who fail to meet requirements after a semester of probation will be dismissed from the program. Students who have been dismissed may submit an appeal for an extra semester of probation by using this form.

Additionally, students must remain in good standing with the university and not be found responsible for Aggie Honor Code violations, or they may be subject to removal from the program.***

*Freshmen who are not meeting co-curricular participation requirements will be subject to probation for GPR in the Spring semester. Freshmen who do not have a 3.5 cumulative GPR at the end of their first academic year will be placed on probation during the upcoming Fall semester.

**Continuing students who will be away from campus for a semester of study abroad or internship should arrange an alternative way to participate. Meet with an honors advisor ahead of time to discuss alternatives, such as submitting a blog post or hosting a Donuts & Discussion about your experience.

*** See Student Rule 16 for details.

Distinction Requirements

Honors Fellows

To receive the Honors Fellows distinction at graduation, Honors Students must:

Earn a total of 30 Honors points (each credit hour of Honors coursework equals 1 point). 21 points must come from TAMU courses* distributed as follows:
- Breadth - 9 hours in the Core Curriculum, ICD, or W courses, as specified in the student’s catalog
- Depth - 12 hours in upper-division (300/400-level) courses or graduate courses taken for undergraduate credit
- Practical Application - Register for UGST 497 both semesters of your capstone. Your capstone is worth 6 points whether taken for credit or not.
- Additional honors points to bring the total to 30 points
Maintain 3.25 GPR in honors coursework and 3.5 GPR overall
Maintain reflective ePortfolio and participate in the evaluation process.

Students should keep their Undergraduate Degree Planner up-to-date with the Honors courses they plan to take.

Honors Students are encouraged to meet with an Honors Advisor on a regular basis to ensure they are meeting program and distinction requirements.

* Credit by exam courses cannot be used to satisfy distinction requirements. Honors course credit taken at other schools also cannot typically satisfy distinction requirements. Consult with an Honors advisor about appealing to have Honors credit from other schools satisfy distribution requirements without counting toward the 30 point total.

ePortfolio

Submit your ePortfolio here

The ePortfolio is an online comprehensive collection of information about a person, like an enhanced multi-dimensional résumé. Often jobs or graduate programs require samples of work and--with your ePortfolio--you will already have begun to build this repertoire and will have gained experience organizing and presenting your work.

ePortfolio Expectations

We expect you to update your ePortfolio annually. Our hope is that you find ways to individualize this and tailor it to your needs. If you have a requirement to build an ePortfolio for a class or for your major, we encourage you to adapt this to your needs instead of duplicating effort. To meet our expectations, your ePortfolio should provide answers the following questions: What? So What? Now What?

What? - Interests, Opportunities, KSA

What are my interests and what opportunities do I see to pursue those at Texas A&M?
What are my long-term plans? How are these connected to my core values?
What classes, lectures, organizations, communities, events or experiences such as study abroad, undergraduate research, service, or internships have been meaningful to me? How have these reinforced my goals, refined them, or changed them?
What knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA) have I built to this point in my undergraduate career?
What papers or projects am I proud of and willing to show off?
What kinds of recognition have I received for my accomplishments?
What kinds of leadership roles have I taken on?

So what? - Reflect on why these experiences matter to you

Do I think that I am being well-served by these experiences?
How am I learning and growing as a result?
Am I meeting the TAMU Undergraduate Learning Outcomes?
What has surprised me in my undergraduate education?
What has caused me to feel excitement or accomplishment?
What has caused me to feel concern or disappointment?
How have I grown in my awareness of issues/questions/or problems in my intended field?

Now what? - Connect experiences & interests to your plans

How do I see the various aspects of my education, both in and out of the classroom, coming together to help me achieve my goals?
What gaps in my knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA) do I need to fill?
How is (or how will) my capstone project help me build confidence in my knowledge, skills, and abilities as I embark on a career?
How will I celebrate my successes?
How will I respond to setbacks and disappointment?
What are my next steps in pursuing my long-term goals?

These questions are provided to guide your reflective efforts. There is no expectation that you answer all of the guiding questions, or that you organize them in separate sections. You are encouraged to structure your ePortfolio in whatever format best fits your needs. It will be especially helpful to give examples from your classes or student organizations that illustrate your answers.

Assessment


Schedule	Expectation	Feedback
Rising Sophomores	Developing to Sufficient	Self-assessment
Rising Juniors	Sufficient to Proficient	Advisor assessment
Rising Seniors	Proficient to Exemplary	Peer assessment

You should plan to complete your annual update by late spring/early summer each year since reviews typically happen in the summer.
Click here to download a PDF of the ePortfolio assessment rubric.

Examples

You can describe courses you have taken and make note of professors you connected with. You can keep track of work experience, groups you participate in, and awards you have won. An ePortfolio is also a great way to describe what research you are working on, study-abroad photos, a reflective journal, and anything else you have put effort into and would like to document and share.

Below are some examples that we have been given permission to share:

Students

Advisors

Austin Ford

Resources

Here are additional resources that can help you understand the value of your ePortfolio: