Honors Program
Honors at Central College provides a distinct yet flexible four-year plan that encourages student creativity, intellectual engagement and leadership. Beginning broadly, honors at Central gradually focuses by helping students move toward greater independence, more advanced work in a discipline and increased leadership responsibilities.
First-year students with an ACT score of 28, and either a high school grade point average of 3.75 or a ranking in the top 5 percent of their class, are eligible to participate. Students who have completed one or more semesters at Central, and who have achieved a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 may participate in honors at Central.
The Benefits
- Life skills that put you ahead of the game: special classes and opportunities which encourage you to think, plan and articulate creatively and critically.
- Opportunities for leading campus-wide programs on significant issues.
- Opportunities for developing leadership skills.
- Membership in a special community that values divergent thinking. Students in honors at Central are offered exclusive opportunities to meet speakers and host guests of the college, and to travel to special off-campus events such as plays, performances, readings, museums and galleries.
- Mentoring relationships with faculty in your area of interest.
- Opportunity to work with a designated fellowship coordinator who will assist in gathering timely information and providing guidance in preparing applications for graduate and professional schools, and other post-graduate programs and scholarships.
- Honors designation on your transcript. This prestigious award is an important indicator of your abilities and will be looked upon favorably by professionals, employers and graduate schools.
The Main Features
Participate in the following segments of the Honors Program at Central:
- First-year honors courses in various disciplines offer intellectual stimulation in an interactive, seminar-style approach.
- Interdisciplinary honors seminars provide multidisciplinary approaches to various issues or concerns which may culminate in a public presentation designed to serve the whole campus.
- Honors enriched credits in 200-400 level courses offer honors students the opportunity to work closely with a professor to pursue a topic related to the course at a more advanced level.
- A senior honors project, carried out within the student’s major department, culminates in a public presentation.
Honors Designation on Your Transcript
Students who have maintained a 3.5 grade point average and completed a senior honors project will be awarded an honors designation on their transcript.
Goals of Honors at Central
- To foster intellectual curiosity, to promote academic excellence throughout Central College, and to sustain this community of scholars.
- To provide an avenue for those with significant leadership potential to serve both the college and the community at large.
- To foster mentoring relationships between students and faculty.
- To make students aware of alternative career paths, courses of study, and programs that engage their individual gifts and talents.
- To help students prepare for graduate and professional school, academic fellowships and scholarships.
Supporting the mission of Central College
In upholding our mission, we strive to enable students to reach their highest potential. Honors at Central is directed toward academically talented students and works specifically to sustain them.
The program is coordinated by the Honors Committee, a three-member faculty committee.
Contact them at:
The Honors Committee
Office of Academic Affairs
Telephone: 641-628-5314
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