The Fulbright College Program in International Studies has a proud record of Honors
accomplishment among its students. Since 2004, it has graduated over 100 Honors candidates
(close to 25% of all IS graduates) with 17 achieving the highest distinction of summa cum laude. Details of all these students, including their thesis titles and the names of their
faculty supervisors, can be found here. The purpose of this document is to provide you with information about achieving Honors
in International Studies, to answer any questions you may have about the Honors Program
and International Studies, and to serve as a ready reference for all IS Honors related
information.
For more information about your honors thesis and defense, please see the Honors Thesis
and Defense page on this website.
Frequently Asked Questions
You may enter the Fulbright College Honors Program either upon matriculation to the
university as a freshman or as a current Fulbright College student. If a current student,
it is recommended that you fill out a Fulbright College faculty endorsement card,
to be signed by a faculty member (not a graduate student). Endorsement cards are available
in the Fulbright College Honors Office in Old Main 517. Incoming students must have
an ACT/SAT score of 28/1240 and a minimum high school GPA average of 3.50. Current
University of Arkansas students must have a GPA average of 3.50 on all University
of Arkansas coursework.
Four-Year Honors students are designated Honors Scholars and join the Honors Program
as incoming freshman. They seek to achieve the highest academic and artistic attainment,
and are expected to pursue post-graduate education such as law school, medical school,
or graduate school. Over one third of all university credits for Honors Scholars are
completed in Honors courses, including a Four-Year Scholar’s Core, honors colloquia,
and research hours. All incoming freshmen who wish to join the Honors Program and
hope to pursue education beyond the undergraduate level are strongly encouraged to
participate in the Four-Year Scholars Program. Departmental Honors students are not
designated Honors Scholars and do not follow the Four-Year Scholar’s Core. They instead
follow the Fulbright College Core but must complete at least 12 hours of Honors coursework
in their undergraduate career. The Departmental Honors Program is designed for those
students who do not meet the initial requirements for entry into the Four-Year Honors
Program when matriculating into the University of Arkansas, or for transfer students
who arrive at the university with more than 24 credit hours. A student must declare
Departmental Honors at least three semesters prior to graduation. All Honors students,
whether Four-Year or Departmental, must maintain a 3.50 GPA average in all University
of Arkansas coursework to remain within the Honors Program, and must meet the various
annual milestones for program completion set by the Fulbright Honors Program. All
Honors students must also write an Honors Thesis. To graduate with Honors in International
Studies, this thesis must be written under the auspices of the International Studies
Program and not under a second major or second department.
Visit the Honors Program website for the most up-to-date information on dates, deadlines,
and forms. Generally speaking, the thesis proposal form, complete with your thesis
director’s signature and approved proposal, must be submitted in March of the year
prior to an expected Spring or Summer defense and in October of the year prior to
an expected Fall defense. For example, if you anticipate defending and graduating
in the Spring Semester 2017, your thesis proposal form would be due in March 2016;
if you anticipate defending and graduating in the Fall Semester 2017, your thesis
proposal form would be due in October 2016. Exact dates within these months can be
found on the Fulbright Honors website link given above. Additional committee member
signatures are required in October of the year prior to a Spring/Summer defense and
in April of the year prior to a Fall defense. Date, time, and location of the defense
must be set by February prior to a Spring Defense, and the Defense itself must be
completed 2-3 weeks prior to graduation (see Fulbright Honors website for specific
dates). You must have a printed copy (not electronic) of your thesis to each member
of your committee one week prior to your defense.
In most circumstances, Honors theses are directed/supervised by a faculty member from
within their department, with a second (departmental) reader also drawn from within
their department, a third reader selected from outside their department, and a fourth
reader assigned by the Fulbright Honors Council. However, in recognition of the interdisciplinary
nature of the International Studies Program, an International Studies thesis may be
supervised by any faculty member who teaches a course within the International Studies
major, whether that faculty member be drawn from the History Department, the Political
Science Department, or some other Fulbright College department. The second (departmental)
reader, likewise, may be any faculty member drawn from any department who teaches
a course contained within the International Studies major. The third (outside) reader
does not have to teach any courses within the IS major. For the most up-to-date list
of courses contained within the IS major, see the Degree Requirements page.
Graduation and Honors Designation
To graduate with Honors in International Studies from Fulbright College, you must
complete the requirements of an honors curriculum (either Four-Year or Departmental),
must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.50, and must successfully research, write, and
orally defend an honors thesis. Only students who fully complete the Honors Program
will be assigned a level of honors distinction: cum laude, magna cum laude, or summa
cum laude. To graduate with each level, you must achieve the following minimum criteria:
Level
GPA
Honors Hours
Thesis Defense Score (out of a possible 9)
Summa Cum Laude
3.90
24
6.50
Magna Cum Laude
3.80
18
3.50
Cum Laude
3.50
12
1.00
To reach the Thesis Defense Score, each member of your Thesis Defense Committee will
assign a level for your thesis. Committee members do not have to assign the same level
and can disagree in their assignment. The committee’s recommendation will be a numerical
average, calculated by the Honors Office, to be used in determining your honors distinction,
along with your cumulative GPA and number of honors hours. The numerical designations
are as follows:
9 Summa + 8 Summa 7 Summa – 6 Magna + 5 Magna 4 Magna – 3 Cum + 2 Cum 1 Cum –
Thesis Defense Committee members are provided with the following narrative descriptions
in making their determinations:
Summa: A committee member is satisfied that the work is of the highest level of research,
analysis, writing, or performance, when applicable, and is of the caliber to be presented
at a regional or national conference; or submitted to a journal in the field; or performed
or displayed in the venue appropriate to the specific artistic discipline.
Magna: A committee member is satisfied that the thesis is a carefully researched, well written,
analytical (not simply descriptive) project that assesses the significance of the
research involved.
Cum: A committee member is satisfied that the project is worthy of honors and that corrections
that need to be made are minor.
No Honors: A committee member finds that the thesis is inadequate and feels that no honors should
be awarded; in this event the Honors Council will make a final determination on the
student’s status.
Honors Grants and Prizes
One of the great advantages of being an Honors student is your ability to access grants
to fund your thesis research and related study abroad. These include grants offered
by the Honors College and grants offered by Fulbright College. For current grant opportunities
through the Honors College, please see the Honors College Research Grants page. For other grant opportunities, check out the university's scholarships & fellowships page.