Honors In Research
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Honors In Research
Please note: Students who entered the Honors Program before Fall 2005 may choose between these requirements or the older version.
The Honors program is designed to enhance the education of undergraduates with superior motivation. The program’s objectives are to stimulate curiosity for continued learning through the integration of the students in academic research and inquiry in close collaboration with appropriate faculty members.
In the course of this program, it is expected that the student will: (i) learn the background and methods of the discipline; (ii) identify an interesting and tractable problem or question for study; (iii) learn to draft a proposal defending the relevance and appropriateness of specific research efforts; (iv) demonstrate appropriate skills in working on that problem in a manner appropriate to a professional in the discipline; (v) analyze and interpret the results of their efforts; and (vi) present these results as a thesis and in an approved public forum.
Anticipated progression through the program:
Throughout the student’s matriculation, satisfactory progress will require maintenance of a 3.25 GPA and accomplishments of the various benchmarks described below. Failure to maintain this progress will result in removal of the student from the Honors program.
Freshman Year
It is expected that a student in the Honors program will identify a faculty mentor in the spring of the freshman year. Information and assistance on how to do this will be provided by the Academic Student Affairs Office, the students’ academic advisor, and by the College’s undergraduate honors club (CALS Honors and Undergraduate Research Society {CHARS}). Initially the commitment by both mentor and student is to work together in a manner appropriate to the discipline. This might involve assigned reading, beginning laboratory or fieldwork or a mixture thereof. Certainly it should involve frequent interactions with the mentor and/or with other members of the research group associated with the mentor.
This arrangement must be documented by a letter from the student to the Academic Affairs office that identifies the mentor and the general area of study, countersigned by the faculty mentor. The Academic Student Affairs office should receive this letter by April 15. In exceptional circumstances, students may start this mentor relationship during their sophomore year by petitioning the Academic Student Affairs Office.
It is anticipated that many student-mentor relationships will continue until graduation, but if a student’s interests change, he or she should consult with their academic advisor or the Academic Student Affairs Office about switching to another mentor.
Sophomore Year
Students will continue the mentoring arrangement begun in the freshman year. The goal during this period is to begin to understand the background for a particular issue or question, and to simultaneously begin to develop the tools to study this issue. In experimental sciences, this would involve reading the scientific literature, but with a primary emphasis on developing laboratory skills through interaction with the faculty and other scientists. In the social sciences, it would also involve literature reading, as well as beginning the types of data acquisition and analysis or other personal involvement appropriate to the discipline. Near the end of the year, the student should present his or her results to an appropriate body through one of a variety of mechanisms such as a poster session at a local meeting or symposium, or an oral presentation to the mentor’s research group. The mentoring arrangement can be documented by credits in a 299-like course, though this is not a requirement.
By the end of the sophomore year, the student must submit a 1-2 page letter to the Chair of the CALS Honors and Undergraduate Research Committee in 116 Agriculture Hall, countersigned by the mentor, that describes the following: the student’s progress and accomplishments, the mechanism used to satisfy the requirement for presentation of the results to a larger community, and a brief description of the plans for the following year.
Junior Year
The student will continue to work with their mentor. Students in the biological sciences are also required to take the CALS Honors Interdisciplinary Junior Seminar (CALS-Interdisciplinary 388, 1 cr) in the fall, which will discuss the scientific community (papers, etiquette, grants), ethics, grad school applications, and preparation of research proposals. The goal of this course is to provide an environment external to the student’s research experience that will help them grow as scientists. Students in disciplines where the specific focus of this course is not appropriate must submit requests to the Academic Affairs office describing an experience that would provide appropriate professional growth. This might be in the form of an existing course or some completely different experience and should be the result of discussions between the student and both the student’s mentor and academic advisor.
A goal during the junior year will be the identification of a specific problem or interest that the student will focus on during his or her senior thesis work. This might be a continuation and refinement of the work the student had already been doing, but certainly must be defined through consultation with the mentor.
The primary focus of the senior year will be the student’s development and the utilization of their skills to accomplish a senior thesis project. To verify that successful accomplishment of such a project is likely, the student must submit a five-page document, countersigned by their mentor, to the Chair of the CALS Honors and Undergraduate Research Committee in 116 Agriculture Hall that contains the following information: A brief summary of past research accomplishments, a short background to the focus of the senior thesis, and an outline of the proposed research. This document must be received by April 15 of the student’s junior year (or November 15 for students graduating in the fall). The committee will either accept the proposal or identify concerns that must be addressed by a specified date, if the student is to receive a degree with honors.
Senior Year
The student will continue their research, produce a thesis and present the results of his or her work in a public forum, such as the CALS symposium, the University Undergraduate Research Symposium, or a professional meeting in their discipline.
All CALS Honors students will also enroll in two semesters of Senior Honors Thesis (681-682) or equivalent for 2-4 cr. each semester in the department of their faculty mentor. Students will also take CALS Honors Interdisciplinary Senior Seminar (CALS-Interdisciplinary 488, 1 cr) in the fall, which will be a faculty-led colloquium to discuss issues including the following: the results of student projects, career choices and planning, and the ethics of research and the possible societal impact of scientific results. An emphasis will be on students developing their ability to communicate their results and their implications to colleagues from other disciplines. As a consequence, students from all disciplines should be served by this course.
Electronic submission of the student’s thesis, countersigned by the mentor, to the online CALS Honors and Undergraduate Research Program Collection at Steenbock Library will serve as final documentation of the students work. The thesis should document the following: (i) The demonstration of a problem or question, with sufficient background about that problem to inform the reader; (ii) Evidence of demonstrated skill in research methods; (iii) The critical analysis of the proper interpretation of results or experiences; (iv) A summary of the impact and results of the research on the original question or issue that was analyzed.
For more information contact CALS Undergraduate Programs and Services at (608) 262-3003