Departmental Honors

The Honors Program is open to all departmental majors with a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.5 in departmental courses and an overall G.P.A. of 3.25 or better. Students with lower GPAs may petition for admission to the program, but these grade-point averages must be achieved before graduation in order to qualify for Honors. Students who wish to do Honors should plan to take Classics 191 in their junior year, although this is not a formal requirement. To qualify for graduation with Departmental Honors, students must (1) have a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.5 in departmental courses and an overall GPA of 3.25 or better; and (2) complete Classics 198A and 198B with a grade of A- or better. To qualify for graduation with Departmental Highest Honors, students must (1) have a cumulative G.P.A. of 3.85 in departmental courses and an overall GPA of 3.65 or better; and (2) complete Classics 198A and 198B with a grade of A.

Honors students are expected to have experience at writing a seminar paper (Classics 191 or an equivalent undergraduate seminar) before beginning their Honors thesis. Students must enroll in 198A and 198B in consecutive quarters, in which they write a thesis under the direct supervision of a faculty member. Students may take 198A and 198B concurrently or be exempt from Classics 198A only by approval of the Faculty Undergraduate Adviser and supervising faculty member. In Classics 198A (two units; In Progress grade) students submit an annotated bibliography and preliminary outline of their thesis. In Classics 198B (five units; Letter grade only) students submit at least one initial draft and final revised version of their thesis. Only Classics 198B may be applied for the upper-division Classical Civilization requirement in departmental majors.

Students who are interested in Departmental Honors should consult with the Faculty Undergraduate Advisor in the beginning of their junior year for advice on potential topics, faculty supervisors and program requirements.