Current Honors Students

Congratulations on being an honors student! Here you’ll find useful information regarding your progress as you complete the honors program. Study the forms below to determine when you’ll need to submit these forms.

WhatsApp: As an UTRGV Honors College student, we strongly encourage you to join the Honors College group chat on WhatsApp. Send an email to honors@utrgv.edu to receive the link.

Forms

The following forms are provided as you progress through your honors college undergraduate career. In the Honors College, honors credits are earned through course-designated honors courses (usually having a suffix label of .01H) or through honors-by-contracts (HBCs). The great majority of the honors tracks consist of satisfying HBCs. As you progress through your honors career, keep track of your honors credits through the Honors Progress Form. Recall that 21 credits of honors coursework is required along with having achieved a letter grade of “A” or “B” in the course; an optional thesis (4 credits) brings the total to 25 credits of honors coursework.

Information Table
Earning honors credits thru Honors-by-Contract (HBC)	HBC Description	HBC Form Due: Friday, February 7, 2025 by 5pm
Keeping track of your Honors credits	Progress Form short version Progress Form long version	Honors Tracks
Informing the Honors College of your Graduation	Graduation Form Due: Monday, March 3 by 5pm

Students in the UTRGV Honors College follow our basic honors curriculum, the Rafael and Carmen Guerra Honors Program, which includes specialized tracks for pre-medical and pre-law students, and for students in the College of Business and Entrepreneurship.

Rafael and Carmen Guerra Honors Program (Basic Honors Curriculum)

9 credits of lower-division honors courses - Choose from Honors Humanities sequence (HONR 2387 Honors Humanities I; HONR 2388 Honors Humanities II), or honors-by-contract for lower-division courses.
3 credits of honors practicum (HONR 3380 – description here)– A required departmental internship, research assistantship, service-learning project, or experiential-learning activity may be substituted with the addition of an honors component. Please notify honors@utrgv.edu to obtain approval for registering.
9 credits of upper-division honors courses – Typically these will be upper-division honors-by-contract courses within the student’s major, although honors study abroad may also count.
Students also have the option of doing an honors thesis, which includes a total of 4 credits (HONR 3187 for 1 credit and HONR 4387 for 3 credits). A required departmental capstone experience may be substituted with the addition of an honors component.
Students who are core-complete or nearly so when admitted to the Honors College must take the Honors Humanities sequence, and substitute an additional upper-division honors-by-contract course for the remaining three required lower-division honors credits.

Honors track for Early Assurance Programs (VaqueroMD and PACT)

9 credits of lower-division honors courses –
3 credits of honors practicum (HONR 3380 - description here) – A required internship, service-learning activity, or shadowing may be substituted with the addition of an honors component
9 credits of upper-division honors courses –
- Students in the BMED program refer to the file linked above.
- For all other students: Biological Communication (BIOL 4400), two upper-division Honors-by-contract; students in this category are also strongly encouraged to do an Honors thesis, which includes a total of 4 credits (HONR 3187 for 1 credit and HONR 4387 for 3 credits).
Students in the pre-medical track are also strongly encouraged to pursue the minor in Medical Humanities.

BMED Honors Track

(use the “Adopted HC" attachment as guidance).

9 credits of lower-division honors courses
- Six HBC credits selected from combining any two of the following BMED courses:
  - BMED 1301,1302,2301, or 2302
- Three credits from MEDH 2311 Introduction to Medical and Health Humanities
  - Taken as the honors course MEDH 2311-Honors or as a regularMEDH 2311 courses with an HBC component
3 credits of Honors Practicum (HONR 3380 - description here) A required departmental internship, research assistantship, service-learning project, shadowing or experiential-learning activity may be substituted with the addition of an honors component. The course cannot be substituted without explicit permission from the Department Chair of the Health and Biomedical Sciences (HABS) and the Dean of the Honors College. Please notify honors@utrgv.edu to obtain approval for registering.
9 credits of upper-division honors courses
- Six HBC credits of upper-level 3XXX or 4XXX BMED courses
- Three credits from MEDH 4301 Medical Humanities: Critical Perspectives
  - Taken as the honors course MEDH 4301-Honors or as a regular MEDH 4301 course with an HBC component
Honors Thesis (Optional) Students are also strongly encouraged to do an Honors thesis, which includes 4 credits (HONR 3187 for 1 credit and HONR 4387 for 3 credits).
- HONR 3187 & HONR 4387 can be substituted with BMED 3223 and BMED 3224 (Experiential Learning I & II courses) which require oral presentations at the end of the academic year, and written lab records or reports submitted to the research mentor throughout the year.

Minor in Medical Humanities

Students in the pre-medical track are also strongly encouraged to pursue the Minor in Medical Humanities which consists of 18 credit hours. Note that since MEDH 2301 and MEDH 4301 are required in the BMED Honors Track, then students have 12 remaining credit hours to seek the Minor.

Students in the BMED program should consult with the HABS Department Chair and with the Dean of the Honors College to work out the details of their honors pathway. To schedule an appointment to meet with the HABS Department Chair, please call (956) 882-7383.

Note: BMED students in the Honors College will be required to sign Honors-by-Contracts (HBCs) with BMED professors for Honors credits for all BMED coursework.

Honors pre-law track

9 credits of lower-division honors courses – Choose from Honors Humanities sequence (HONR 2387 Honors Humanities I; HONR 2388 Honors Humanities II), or honors-by-contract for lower-division courses.
3 credits of honors practicum (HONR 3380 - syllabus here) – The Political Science or Criminal Justice internship courses may be substituted with the addition of an honors component.
9 credits of upper-division honors courses – This must include at least two upper-division courses from the legal studies minor taken as “honors-by-contract.”
Students on the Pre-Law honors track are also strongly encouraged to do an Honors thesis, which includes a total of 4 credits (HONR 3187 for 1 credit and HONR 4387 for 3 credits).

Honors-by-contract (hbc) provides Honors College students an opportunity to earn honors credit by integrating an honors experience into a non-honors course. It also allows Honors College students to use courses within their degree plan to satisfy Honors College curriculum requirements, freeing them from having to take extra courses for that purpose. The contract is the product of a collaborative agreement between the student and the professor on the structure and expectations of the honors level work to be completed.

Characteristics of an honors contract:

Different work, not just extra work.
Focus on enriched content/skills in terms of depth and/or complexity, not just increased volume.
Mutual benefit for student and instructor.
Faculty mentorship including regularly scheduled meetings.
Calendar of due dates for elements of honors work.
Clearly stated modes of assessment (e.g., report, journal, paper, presentation, performance, other deliverable etc.)

To develop an honors contract:

Think creatively about what you would like to learn.
Meet with your professor as early in the term as possible to discuss ideas for a contract.
Work with the professor to write a brief (250 words maximum) description of the work you will do and how it will be assessed.
Consult with the Honors College if you or your instructor have any questions about the process.
Download the form, fill it out, sign it electronically in Adobe Acrobat, have your instructor sign it electronically in Adobe Acrobat.
Submit the form, the description of the contract work, and a copy of the course syllabus to honors@utrgv.edu.

Credit for an honors contract:

Complete the honors contract plus the regular course requirements with an A or B.
Have your professor submit the Honors-by_Contract Evaluation Form to honors@utrgv.edu during final exam week.
Notify your professor and the Honors College dean if you wish to cancel the contract before the last day of classes.
If regular course requirements are fulfilled but the honors contract is not, you will receive regular course credit but not honors credit.

The Archer Fellowship Program was established by The University of Texas System in conjunction with former U.S. Representative Bill Archer as a way to bring highly motivated and accomplished students to Washington, D.C., for a comprehensive academic and professional experience. Selection is based on a competitive application process, and each cohort of Archer Fellows is comprised of the best and brightest students from across the UT System. For more information, visit UTRGV's Archer Program web site.

Eligibility Requirements

Required to apply and at the time of participation

Overall GPA: 3.0 or higher
Previous work or internship experience
Campus leadership and/or community involvement

Required by semester of participation:

Junior or senior status
24 hour completed in-residence
Completion of basic government requirements

Please contact the Honors College for any questions regarding the Archer Program. We may be reached at 956-665-3145 or at honors@utrgv.edu, and are located in ELIBR 3.110.

Each of the scholarship opportunities described here is highly competitive, and only the top applicants from all across the United States are chosen. Please keep that in mind when considering this information.

Fulbright U.S. Student Program -The Fulbright US Student program funds a year abroad for recent college graduates. Applications are due in early October every year, for awards to begin the following summer or fall. There are two main types of awards:

Open Study/Research Awards. Applicants design their own projects and will typically work with a mentor/advisor at a foreign university or other institution of higher education.
English Teaching Assistantships. Applicants are placed in classrooms abroad to help local teachers of English. Applicants must apply to a specific country.

The Rhodes, Gates-Cambridge, and Marshall scholarships are similar in that all three provide opportunities for students who have recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree to study for a year in the UK. The main difference is that the Rhodes Scholarship only provides for study at Oxford University, and the Gates-Cambridge Scholarship only provides for study at the University of Cambridge, while the Marshall Scholarship provides opportunities for study at a large number of British universities. Students typically begin their application in the spring or summer prior to their year of graduation.

The Rhodes Scholarship. Applications open in June and are due in the fall for programs of study beginning the following academic year.
The Gates-Cambridge Scholarship. Applications open in early September and close in early October for programs of study beginning the following academic year.
The Marshall Scholarship. Applications are due in late September for programs of study beginning the following academic year.

Barry Goldwater Scholarship - The Goldwater Scholarship provides scholarships to college sophomores and juniors who plan to pursue careers in research in the natural sciences, mathematics, and engineering. (Students planning to pursue careers in clinical practice are not eligible.) Applications open in early September and close in late January.

Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans - The Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans supports graduate and professional education for New Americans (immigrants or children of immigrants). Students apply in the year in which they are applying to graduate or professional school programs. Each fellowship supports one or two years of graduate study in any field. Applications are due in late October.

Rafael and Carmen Guerra Scholarships: This fund has about $50,000 per year in available funds. Award sizes typically range from $500 to $1500.
Jesse H. and Mary Gibbs Jones Scholarships: This fund has about $50,000 per year in available funds. Award sizes typically range from $500 to $1500.
R.C. and M.G. Fish Scholarship: $1000 per year for up to five entering freshmen.
J.M. Haggar Sr. Scholarship: $1000 per year (renewable) for up to five continuing students.

NOTE: You do not need to apply for these awards. The Honors College awards these scholarships internally.

Eta Omicron Nu (HON) is the student organization for the UTRGV Honors College. Every member of the UTRGV Honors College is eligible and encouraged to participate in HON activities. HON holds meetings once or twice a month during the Fall and Spring semesters. Meetings will be held online and members are informed in advance when a meeting is to be held.

HON seeks to give back to the community that has supported it from the beginning, strongly believing that participating in community engagement through volunteering is an optimal way to promote progress in one's environment.

HON members strive to represent UTRGV, the Honors College, and themselves in a way that inspires others and showcases the best aspects of Vaquero life. Follow the HON Instagram feed @honorsgetsitdone.

HONR 2387 - Honors Humanities I

An interdisciplinary offering that emphasizes the broad scope of Western civilization, from ancient Greece through modern times. The course would stress the integration of the arts and humanities into a broad view of Western civilization. This course would cover the content of HONR I and II freeing HONR II to become a non-Western Humanities class. This course is important so that UTRGV students will have a global understanding of the complexities of the world the will inherit. (Online)
3.000 Credit hours
3.000 Lecture hours

HONR 2388 - Honors Humanities II

An interdisciplinary course that emphasizes the broad scope of non-Western civilizations, including Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and the Americas. The course stresses the integration of arts and humanities into a broad view of non-Western civilizations fundamental for UTRGV student's understanding of the global world in which they will engage. (Online)
3.000 Credit hours
3.000 Lecture hours

HONR 3187 - Honors Seminar Independent Study

This course is for students who plan to do an honors thesis. It aids the student in choosing a topic for research, in hypothesis generation and study design, and inb preparing a research proposal. The final project for the class is the student's honors thesis proposal. (Online)
1.000 Credit hours
1.000 Other hours

HONR 3380 - Honors Practicum

Allows students to gain practicum experience within their respective disciplines through an internship, research assistantship, or service learning project. (Online)
3.000 Credit hours
3.000 Other hours

HONR 4388 - Honors Study Abroad

This course provides opportunities for Honors College students to participate in study abroad to promote interdisciplinary learning, contextual insight, cultural appreciation, and critical thinking skills for outstanding future contributions to society and the world. (Both campuses)
3.000 Credit hours
3.000 Other hours

HONR 4387 - Honors Independent Study

Supervised completion of research and writing of thesis or creative project, with periodic meetings for coordination, instruction in methodology and discussion. The final project for the course is the student's honors thesis and honors thesis defense.
3.000 Credit hours
0.000 Lecture hours
3.000 Other hours

HONR 4680 - Honors Archer Internship

This course offers a full time internship for students in the Archer Fellowship Program in Washington D.C. providing opportunities for high level internships augmenting student coursework while participating in the Archer Program. Students participate in 32-40 intern hours per week. Prerequisite: Acceptance into the Archer Fellowship Program.
6.000 Credit hours
6.000 Other hours