Non-Course Honors Experience Guidelines

All Honors Experiences, except Honors courses, require University Honors Program (UHP) approval.  Students should initiate the approval process, via the Honors Experience Proposal form (PDF) before they begin the Honors Experience.

Research
Creative Expression
Internships
Community Involvement & Service Learning

Research

With UHP approval, an undergraduate research project may be used to fulfill an Honors Experience if it is:

1. A learning experience that contributes to the student’s understanding of how knowledge is created through the application of theories and investigative methods in any discipline or field.  The research project may be of the student’s own design, or it may be a faculty-initiated project in which the student has substantial responsibility for carrying out the work and interpreting and reporting the results, commensurate with the student’s experience and level of expertise; and
2. Supervised by a University of Minnesota faculty mentor holding any type of appointment (including clinical, emeritus, adjunct, research associate, assistant or associate professor, etc.), or by the leader of a government, industry, or academic or non-profit research group; and
3. One semester in duration (or equivalent), representing a minimum time commitment of 45 hours over
   the course of the semester; an
4. Paid or unpaid; for-credit or non-credit; completed under the auspices of the Undergraduate Research
   Opportunities Program (UROP) or not; and
5. Not a term paper or other regular requirement for a lecture course or seminar.

Creative Expression

With UHP approval, a creative expression project may be used to fulfill an Honors Experience if it is:

1. A learning experience that contributes to the student’s understanding of how ideas and concepts can be communicated through various forms of creative expression. The project may be of the student’s own design, or it may be a faculty/mentor-initiated project in which the student has substantial responsibility for carrying out the project and its resulting work, commensurate with the student’s experience and level of expertise; and
2. Supervised by a University of Minnesota faculty mentor holding any type of appointment (including clinical, emeritus, adjunct, research associate, assistant or associate professor, etc.), or by a mentor from an approved arts organization; and
3. One semester in duration (or equivalent), representing a minimum time commitment of 45 hours over the course of the semester; and 
4. Paid or unpaid; for-credit or non-credit; completed under the auspices of the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) or not; and
5. Not a part of regular requirements for a course or seminar; and
6. Designed to include a final performance or creation.

Internships

With UHP approval, an internship may be used to fulfill an Honors Experience if it is:

1. Associated with an organization relevant to the student’s academic or career interests and/or future career goals, with an opportunity to connect learning in the classroom to real-world projects; and
   
2. Comprised of clearly-defined, value-added projects benefiting both the organization and the growth and learning of the student; and
   
3. At least one semester in duration (or equivalent), representing a minimum time commitment of 45 hours to one organization or business over the course of the semester; and
4. Paid, volunteer, or for credit*; and
5. Supervised by a mentor within the host organization; and
6. Designed to include a mid-point and end-of-term evaluation.

*Students should work with their career services office to identify options for obtaining credit. Credit-bearing internships do not count as Honors courses.

 Community Involvement & Service Learning

1. With UHP approval, any of the following may qualify as an Honors Experience: Service-Learning: a service-learning course offered at the University of Minnesota for credit. A list of approved courses is located on the Career and Community Learning Center’s service-learning Web site. While credit bearing service-learning courses count as Honors Experiences, the credits do not count toward fulfilling the yearly minimum credit requirement for honors coursework.
2. Volunteering: a volunteer experience that allows the student to donate free time, services, and skills to help the community (campus, neighborhood, town, country, or global) on an unpaid, frequent, and on-going basis. Faith-based or politically-motivated opportunities are potential options as long as volunteer time is not spent recruiting. A minimum of 45 hours per semester is required.
3. Tutoring: a tutoring or teaching assistant position that is paid or unpaid. This opportunity serves to provide learning and enhancement of academic curricula for undergraduates or school-age children. A minimum of 45 hours per semester is required.
4. Leadership Role: a significant and sustained leadership role in a registered University of Minnesota student organization or University department or program. Qualifying student organizations must operate in alignment with University of Minnesota’s equal opportunity policy. A minimum of 45 hours per semester is required.