The Core Curriculum and Extracurricular Enrichment Program modify existing Honors College requirements. Dedicated Honors College Core Curriculum will include:
Augmented Curriculum (15 Credit Hours + 2 Hours Honors-Enhanced Courses): The Augmented Core Curriculum modifies standard course content, requirements, or performance expectations for the honors student in order to merit honorific designation. The specific nature of the augmented curriculum is to be determined by the Honors College Director and Honors Committee following the guidelines of the National Collegiate Honors Council. This curriculum will replace some of the General Studies Core requirements. Students will be required to have an augmented curriculum for twelve General Studies credits throughout the first two years of their program. During the first year a writing intensive Honors Seminar (HONR 101 and HONR 102) will be required that would satisfy the ENGL 101 and ENGL 102 requirements, representing six credit hours. The Great Books curriculum, HONR 201 and 205, requirement would satisfy the General Studies requirements for Literature and Humanities/Fine arts, representing six credit hours. Finally HONR 210, Speech and Debate, would satisfy the General Studies requirements for Speech and Communications.
Honors-enhanced courses would likely be taken during the junior and senior years of the students program. With the approval of the Honors College Director, a program-specific course can be converted to an honors-augmented course through the addition of a one-credit honors-enhanced recitation (entailing specific enhancements to student meetings, assignments, activities, or curricular scope). The nature and type of augmentation for each individual course will be determined by the instructor in consultation with the Honors College Director and Committee. Equivalency credits will be awarded at the completion of the program by the director. Students must successfully complete all augmented curriculum courses with a minimum grade of B to receive honors credit. Faculty and students will be required to complete and sign an Honors Course Enhancement Form to give the Honors College Director prior to the start of the semester for each augmented course if it is not offered already as a General Studies Honors section.
- HON 101 (3 credit hours): Honors Seminar I – substitute for ENGL 101 (approved)
- HON 102 (3 credit hours): Honors Seminar II –substitute for ENGL 102 (approved)
- HON 201 (3 credit hours): Great Books I –substitute for World Lit
- HON 205 (3 credit hours): Great Books II –substitute for Humanities/Arts requirement
- HON 210 (3 credit hours): Speech and Debate –substitute for COMM 201/205
- Two Honors-Enhanced courses Junior Year (2 credit hours)
International Experience, Internship(s), Service-Learning Project (3 Credit Hours): The study abroad, internship, or service-learning project should be completed in conjunction with the honors student’s academic program. Students will be expected to complete at least three curricular credit- hours of the following before completion of the program and conferral of the honors degree designation: 1) an academic study abroad program/Soliya Connect 2) a professional internship in a business or community organization, or 3) a service-learning project. These credits cannot be earned through the Senior Honors Project. The academic study abroad program must be approved by the Office of International Initiatives. The professional internship or service-learning project must be approved by 1) the student’s academic advisor, 2) the internship organization or agency, and 3) the Honors College Director. A clearly written prospectus of skills learned, tasks accomplished, or outcomes desired for the internship or service-learning project must be submitted. Student performance for the project or internship must be commensurate with the expectations of the program. The study abroad, internship, or service-learning project should be completed in conjunction with the honors student’s academic program.
Senior Honors Project (3 Credit Hours): The Senior Honors Project should be completed in conjunction with the honors student’s academic program. Students will design and implement a senior project, i.e., a clinical, service, or research project, that reflects the highest standards of student achievement and should represent graduate or professional work in the field of study. The project will be conceived in consultation with the faculty on record for the respective course and submit their proposal to the Honors College Director for approval prior to the semester in which the student graduates. (The Honors College Committee will set guidelines to assist the student and faculty in the design of these projects). Students will take the project in their major discipline of study. Students must meet all the prerequisites in order to register for the senior research course and have completed their pathways evaluations with their academic advisor. Only 400 level courses fulfill the requirement for the Senior Honors Project (e.g. any 490/495/499).
Honors Extra-Curricular Enrichment Program: The Honors College at Bluefield State requires ongoing extra-curricular enrichment as part of its rigorous enhanced education program. The following program outlines a flexible point system that enables students to realize the mission statement of the Honors College program while complementing their educational experience at Bluefield State College. Ongoing participation in the Honors College will require the student to achieve annually twenty-five (25) Honors Points to be documented and submitted annually in an Honors Point Portfolio. These points may also be acquired through summer and intersession activities officially documented and reported to the Honors College. There will be a total of six qualifying Honors Point categories. They are the following: 1) Honors College Events and Colloquia; 2) Intellectual Breadth and Depth; 3) Local and Global Civic Engagement; 4) Diversity and Intercultural Awareness; 5) Academic and Professional Development; and 6) Health and Well-Being. Please note that events and points used for one category cannot also be counted for another category.