Program Policies

Admission

There are two ways to get into the program: Entering students my apply to the Honors Program if they score both 1100 on the SAT and graduate with a 3.20 GPA on a 4.0 scale.  Students scoring 3 or better on each of three AP examinations of the College Board are also eligible to apply.  Continuing and Transfer students may apply to enter the Honors Program if they have at least a 3.2 overall GPA in university course work and are either enrolled in or have completed an Honors course.  Honors courses in the core are open to all students who meet the published prerequisites.

Transfer Students

Students transferring into Armstrong may graduate with the designation "Graduate of the AASU Honors Program" if they meet the following requirements: finish with a final GPA of 3.2 or above; complete a satisfactory Honors in the Major Project; and earn grades of B or better in the designated number of courses from the Honors in the Core curriculum.  Students transferring with 60+ credit hours will be required to take only one such Honors in the Core course.  Students entering with 30-59 hours must take two Honors in the Core courses.  Students with 15-29 credit hours must take three Honors in the Core courses.  Students transferring with fewer than 15 credit hours must take four Honors in the Core courses (as do all other Honors Program students).

Honors in the Core

Students must earn at least the grade of B in a minimum of four approved Honors courses (variations of this requirement apply to students transferring to AASU.  If students choose to repeat courses, the subsequent grade will replace the previous grade, even if the subsequent grade is lower.

Honors Project

Honors students may choose one of the following options for the Honors Project:

• Honors in the Major: Under this option, students must comply with departmental requirements.  In addition to meeting departmentally specified minimum GPA and other criteria, students must conduct a project.  Upon completion the project must be supervised by one faculty advisor and a second faculty member in the student's major department.

• Interdisciplinary Honors Project: Under this option, students must complete a research project investigating topics in disciplines for which AASU offers a minor or topics in multiple disciplines.  Students' projects must be approved and supervised by a committee of at least three faculty from the departments of the discipline(s) students intend to research, and at least one of the faculty members must represent the student's major department.

• Honors in Service and Leadership: Under this option, students must complete a project that serves the community and requires demonstration of leadership skills.  Students' projects must be approved and supervised by at least one faculty member whose expertise lies in the kind of service students intend to pursue.  The proposal and the completed project must be approved by the Director or Co-Directors of the Honors Program.