University Honors: University Honors is a centralized program and requires the completion of the specific curriculum established by the University Honors Program. Students are allowed to completed the 12 semester hour Experiential Learning requirement of University Honors by completing Honors in the Major.

Honors in the Major: Honors in the Major is a collegiate honors program and is administered separately by each UI undergraduate college.

Faculty Coordinator for Honors in the Major: This faculty member oversees standards and requirements for Honors in the Major in a particular department or program, coordinating Honors in the Major and communicating with the department, faculty mentors, and professional advisors.

Faculty Mentors: Faculty mentors directly oversee a student’s Honors in the Major thesis, research, or another specific activity required by the department or program.

Professional Academic Advisors: Professional academic advisors have the access to MAUI records needed to add crucial information in the student record related to Honors in the Major. The professional academic advisor moves the status in the MAUI database of the student from Pursuing Honors in the Major to Initial Approval and then to Final Approval. This access to the data base is restricted by the Registrar and access must be requested because of its sensitive nature.

University Honors and CLAS Honors in the Major are administered separately.

1. A student’s progress and completion of Honors in the Major is communicated to the Registrar and University Honors using the MAUI database and related reports.
2. University Honors staff no longer verify that CLAS students have met the requirements for Honors in the Major and CLAS faculty and students no longer need to give this information to University Honors. (In the past, this verification was done so that students completing Honors in the Major could apply these hours to the University Honors experiential learning 12 semester hour requirement; students may still apply HM to this requirement, but this information is now shared through the MAUI student record system and related reports.)
3. Students no longer submit the thesis to the University Honors program.
4. CLAS does not require the submission of a thesis and does not collect theses in a central collegiate location. CLAS does not require departments and programs to keep theses, but many do.
5. Students may submit the thesis for publication at the UI Iowa Research Online Repository. This is not required but permission is required from related faculty and from the student before the thesis may be published. Learn more about this process.
6. A CLAS student’s completion of the Honors in the Major requirements are verified by faculty and staff in these roles:

• The Honors in the Major faculty coordinator.
• The faculty mentor overseeing the completion of the thesis, research, or other project.
• The professional academic advisor affiliated with the related major.

For faculty coordinators

• Informs students about procedures for Honors in the Major (HM).
• Gathers information on students planning to graduate in the upcoming year with HM, sharing this with the professional advisor.
• Reminds faculty and students of related deadlines and procedures.
• Verifies that a student’s HM requirements have been met immediately after semester grades have been submitted, updating the faculty mentor and professional advisor.
• Informs new faculty HM coordinators and faculty mentors about changes in procedures.

For faculty mentors

• Shares the student’s progress on the thesis, project, or research with the coordinator and professional advisor, particularly at the beginning of the project and near its completion and near the end of the student’s final or penultimate semester.
• Reminds the student of key deadlines and procedures.
• Submits any final grades related to the thesis or project while also sending any final information about the completion and success of the thesis/project to the coordinator and advisor as soon as possible.

For professional academic advisors

• Gathers information on students planning to graduate in the upcoming year with HM, sharing this with the faculty coordinator.
• Adds and updates students’ progress of earning HM in the MAUI database, with these flags added by the advisor at each appropriate step (the last three affect other processes in the system so timely addition is critical):

  • Interest in Honors in the Major (i.e., student express interest in earning HM)

  • Pursuing Honors in the Major (begins working on HM requirements)

  • Initial Approval Status (is on track to complete all HM requirements)

  • Final Approval Status (has successfully completed all requirements)

• Communicates with the faculty coordinator, the faculty mentor, and the student about progress and related procedures or deadlines.
• Contacts Registrar for help, if needed, particularly if the student is not in Pursuing Honors status when the student has applied for graduation (curt-graff@uiowa.edu).
• Verifies/double checks student’s completion of all HM requirements to ensure accuracy; once a student is in Final Approval Status, the Registrar will award HM.
• Review additional information for advisors.

1. Honors contract courses (i.e. requests by students to add Honors status to a “regular non-honors course”) are now approved through a workflow form and must be submitted before the deadline for the Application for Graduation. Learn more about honors contract courses.
2. A student must be in Initial Approval status before or by the first four weeks of the semester in which the student will graduate in order to have Honors in the Major status added to the student’s entry on the commencement program. Contact 120 Schaeffer if a student has missed the deadline to see if the student can be added (clas-undergrad@uiowa.edu).
3. The deadline for asking for thesis publication on the UI Research Online is the Friday before final examination week begins. If a student misses this deadline, contact those listed below.
4. Students may come to 120 Schaeffer Hall to receive a white cord for commencement signifying Honors in the Major has been earned (8:00 to 4:30, M-F). Students should no longer be sent to University Honors for the white cord.

Departments without a professional academic advisor may ask for access to the MAUI database; complete the MAUI Online Access Request Form. In the Other Access Request textbox, you may enter academic.curriculum.admin Other and for Workflow Routing, please enter Cornelia Lang in CLAS Undergraduate Programs.

Questions about procedures related to Honors in the Major may be addressed to CLAS Undergraduate Programs, clas-undergrad@uiowa.edu, 120 Schaeffer Hall, 319-335-2633.