Honors Courses

Honors Gen Ed Breadth Courses

These core Honors courses fulfill USU’s General Education Breadth requirements, as well as Honors requirements, offering Honors students transformative, memorable educational experiences as they investigate the “big questions” at the heart of USU’s General Education curriculum. These courses actively engage students in hands-on research and discovery, critical thinking and self-reflection, clear and effective communication, and collaboration and community engagement.

Honors Gen Ed Depth Courses

These core Honors courses fulfill USU’s General Education Depth requirements, as well as Honors requirements, offering students the opportunity to explore in depth a topic that can be approached through a variety of different disciplinary lenses. These courses are typically team-taught or designed to introduce students to a range of perspectives on the course topic. Like all Honors courses, they actively engage students in hands-on research and discovery, critical thinking and self-reflection, clear and effective communication, and collaboration and community engagement.

Honors Research Courses

Research is a key Honors learning outcome, and these courses start students on the path to scientific, social, humanistic, artistic, and other forms of discovery that put learning into practice. These research courses can start students on the path to Honors Mentoring Agreements and Capstone Projects—and they can open up possibilities for future work.

Departmental Honors Sections

The program regularly offers Departmental Honors Sections, which are Honors-designated versions of existing departmental courses that may fulfill major requirements. These sections are intentionally designed for Honors students to build community, deepen academic engagement, and enrich the classroom experience, all while helping students earn relevant credit and Honors points.

Honors Excel Courses & Honors Mentoring Agreements

Undergraduate Honors students may complete an Honors Mentoring Agreement (HMA) associated with the completion of a graduate course at USU. With faculty permission, Honors students may enroll in existing graduate courses, allowing them to explore the option of graduate school and work with top USU faculty and graduate students. Students must complete all assignments on time and pass the course to earn Honors points.

Please note that students earn Honors points for Honors Excel courses only if they submit an approved/signed HMA proposal before the course begins and HMA completion documentation upon finishing the course. The final product for Honors Excel HMAs can be a required course project.

Honors Capstone Courses

All students complete a capstone experience. In two-year programs students build an Honors Capstone Portfolio that highlights their academic work and professional development. In four-year programs students complete an Honors Capstone Project, a long-term project on the topic of their choice. Capstone courses assist students in completing these requirements.

Honors Study Abroad

Understanding and making a difference in the local, national, and global community is an important part of Honors learning outcomes, and the program offers funding for any significant study abroad experience, as well as several specially designed opportunities for Honors students to study and earn together around the world. Please see specific descriptions for language skill requirements, if any.