Curriculum
The Honors College curriculum begins with a fall first-year course
taught by six (or more) core faculty, with numerous in-class and plenary
lectures by UVM faculty and visiting scholars, writers and artists from a variety of
disciplines and professions. The course, "The Pursuit of Knowledge," draws on the expertise of the
university's faculty and visitors to the course in areas such as the natural sciences, mathematics, economics, creative writing, music, medicine, and more. In the spring of the first year, students apply some of what they learned in "The Pursuit of Knowledge" to one of a series of special topics seminars that are grouped together under the title "Ways of Knowing." Most of these seminars fulfill one of the university's two diversity requirements.
As students progress through the Honors College, they narrow their focus, enrolling as sophomores in honors seminars developed to focus on faculty members' special research topics. Through undergraduate research grant programs and honors course work, students also may work closely with faculty in laboratories, out in the field, or in other research hubs (like the library) as they begin to develop their own special areas of interest.
In their junior and senior years, students focus more intensely on their fields of study in their home schools and colleges. In the junior year, they work on developing research methods and identifying research questions that will prepare them for an independent research or creative project--the six-credit Honors thesis--they will undertake in their senior year. If applicable, they also continue their involvement in their departmental honors programs.
Last modified August 08 2012 09:27 AM