The heart of the History Honors Scholar Program is the thesis, which gives students an opportunity to undertake in-depth historical research and writing on a topic of their own choosing. In doing this, they are mentored by faculty in the History Department and part of a cohort of other engaged and talented students undertaking their own research projects. The final version of the thesis will be required to be between 7000 and 10000 words, not including notes and bibliography. This is approximately the length of articles published in academic history journals. Students will also present their work.

The program runs on an annual basis and participants take two, three-credit courses during a single academic year. In the Fall semester, students take History 4934 “Honors Historiography and Research Methods.” In this course, students develop their thesis topics and work on researching them in primary and secondary sources. In the Spring semester, students take History 4997 “Honors Thesis Seminar”. In this course, students complete their research and write, revise, and present their final thesis. Both of these courses are required for program participants and there are no substitutions possible. Completing History 4997 and the honors thesis fulfills the “Capstone” writing requirement for History Majors. History majors need to separately fulfill the “Intermediate” writing requirement for major, typically before they participate in the History Honors Scholar Program.

Students who are double majors (including those in the Secondary Education/Social Studies and History joint degree program), students with minors, transfer students, students studying abroad, and other types of students have all participated in the History Honors Scholar Program in recent years. Interested students in such situations are encouraged to contact the program director as early as possible to discuss how they might fit the thesis program into their academic plans.

The History Honors Scholar Program is a departmental honors program. It is separate from the University Honors program. History majors interested in the History Honors Scholar program are not required to be part of the University Honors program, but they can be and the two programs are complimentary. Every year, the History Honors Scholars program includes some students who are in the University Honors program and some who are not.

Writing an honors thesis is a challenging and rewarding endeavor. Applicants for the History Honors Scholar Program should normally have an overall GPA of 3.4 or higher and a GPA of 3.4 or higher within history courses. Most students who participate in the program do so in their junior (60 or more credits earned) or senior (90 or more credits earned) years.

Admission to the program requires the recommendation of a History faculty member and is at the discretion of the History Department.

For more information or to apply to the History Honors Scholar Program, contact the program director Associate Professor Travis Glasson.

Graduating students in the Honors Program participate in an Honors Symposium in the late spring of their graduating year. At the symposium, students will present a 10-minute-long synopsis of their honors thesis to the community of History majors and faculty. The presentations describe their thesis journey: how they formulated their thesis problem, what kinds of sources they used to investigate their problem and their reflections on their arguments and findings.

Honors students can apply for financial support to cover research-related activities (such as visits to archives, travel to present scholarly papers etc.) up to $2,000 through the Undergraduate Research Incentive Fund. There are also funds available in the Diamond Research Scholars program. Honors students are also encouraged to submit their completed theses to the Library Prize for Undergraduate Research.

The History Department will host an HONORS box lunch at the opening of each semester to encourage the growth of a vibrant community of undergraduate scholars.