Honors FAQ's
No. You may choose to live where you are most comfortable.
Honors courses feature challenging assignments designed to cultivate advanced opportunities for critical thinking, writing, speaking, problem-solving, and researching-- both individually and in small groups. Some courses are team-taught by faculty in different academic departments, while others are taught singly but with an interdisciplinary or global focus. Honors students lead class discussion often and challenge themselves and each other to exceed academic goals. See Course Descriptions for details on specific courses and the requirements they satisfy.
Honors Research substitutes for capstone in the major. Since capstone research is the culmination of all majors at Westminster, the honors capstone research process gives honors students the opportunity to dive deeper into their major field of study. Honors students complete 8 semester hours of research under the advisement of an honors board of three faculty members, two representing the major discipline and one representing a field outside the student’s major. See Course Descriptions for additional information.
It depends on the class and your work pace. On average, students spend about 1-2 hours completing the assigned readings for each class session. When a paper or exam is due, you can expect that time to increase. Students typically write two to four papers for honors courses and spend a minimum of 5-7 hours writing each one.
The list of specific benefits is available here. More generally, honors students at Westminster benefit from team-taught, interdisciplinary courses and study abroad experiences that challenge them to push one another to their academic and personal best. These immersive learning experiences cultivate advanced analytical skills at the same time that they spark meaningful friendships.
Yes. If you earn a 3.7 or above in the fall semester of your first at Westminster, you will be notified in the spring semester that you may apply to begin the program in your sophomore year.
Once you have been admitted to All-College Honors at Westminster, you will need to maintain a 3.4 career GPA. Should your career GPA drop below 3.4, you will be placed on academic probation for the following semester. Students who earn a semester GPA of 3.4 or above during the probationary semester will be removed from probationary status and reinstated to the program in good standing. Thereafter, students must earn a semester GPA of 3.4 or above in each subsequent semester or maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.4 or above or they become academically ineligible for Honors.