We currently have 160 students in the University Honors Program representing majors in the college of arts & sciences and the schools of business, religion, music, nursing, theatre and dance.
An honors course generally covers the same material as a traditional course, but honors sections are smaller and more often use a seminar format.
The goal of an honors course is to make the subject matter more thought-provoking and challenging. Students have the opportunity for more discussion and variety in classroom experiences.
No. Professors in the honors program do not assume a student knows a subject well before he/she walks into class.
No. To graduate with honors you must complete 24 hours of honors credit in general education or degree courses. The 24 must include the honors liberal arts seminar and junior-senior seminar.
Yes. A student not in the University Honors Program may enroll in an honors course with the approval of the honors committee.
However, honors students have priority enrollment in these courses, and a non-honors student may enroll only after all of the honors students have first had the opportunity to select these sections.
Honors students are understandably concerned about their grades. In addition to scholarship concerns, many plan to go on to graduate or professional schools or work in highly competitive fields.
In the honors program, you are not competing with your peers. We assume all of you are excellent students, and the honors faculty is there to help provide superior education. You will also have an additional .25 per credit hour added to your GPA for each honors course.
Your application to the Honors Program is separate from your application to the university.
Students must submit an application and write two brief essays. The Honors Committee will review the essays based on substance and content, grammar, development of ideas, organization, and originality.
Applications are available online.
For students on campus, applications are available from Dr. Karen Youmans in the Honors Hall (Gold Star, 1st floor, north wing). Her phone number is 405-208-5680.
There is a one-time $50 fee for the honors liberal arts seminar.
No, the 24 hours required for graduation with honors count toward your general education or degree requirements.
Unless a student is also participating in another learning community, like the President’s Leadership Class, or a student is living at home with their parents, honors students will be assigned a room in Banning Hall, the honors dorm for first-year students. The cost of living in the honors residence is the same as other residence halls on campus. The honors dorm offers you the opportunity to enjoy both social and academic events held in the residence hall lounge.
- Smaller classes
- An opportunity to work with many of OCU's finest professors
- An association of bright, interesting students
- Early semester enrollment
- Lectures and other special events for honors students
- You'll have the opportunity to attend regional and national conference meetings where honors students from across the region and country present their research in the form of papers, poster presentations and workshops; mix and mingle with each other; and have a lot of fun
- Each Honors course has a .25 GPA boost
Upon completion of your 24 hours with an overall GPA of 3.5, you will be eligible to graduate from Oklahoma City University cum honore, a plus in your future whether you further pursue academics or begin your career.
Yes, students are involved in most if not all student organizations from Greek life to Student Affairs to discipline-specific honor societies.
