Semester: Fall Spring Summer

Honors Option Contract

Semester:

Sem Year

Current Date:

Submit this form to the Honors College main office by the official deadline as stated on the Honors website.
This form represents a contract between the student and the instructor for the completion of an Honors Option in the selected course. A full Honors Option proposal(see below) must be submitted by the deadline as stated on the Honors College website (usually the end of the fourth week of the semester).
This form must be typed. Handwritten forms will NOT be accepted.
STUDENT INFORMATION
Name: / Student ID:
Last / First
Email: / # of credits completed: / Expected graduation: / SpringSummerFall Semester Year
List major(s): / List minor(s), concentrations:
COURSE AND INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
Class (ex. HIST 395): / Title: / Class # (ex. 78652): / Credits:
Instructor (Last, First Middle Initial): / Instructor email: / X Lab Class Yes No
PREREQUISITES

You must have completed a minimum of 30 credits of college coursework to enroll in an Honors Option. Except in rare circumstances, Honors Options will not be approved if you are a first-year student in your first semester at JMU. This rule does not apply to transfer students.
Must be a 200-level course or above.
The Honors Option course must be taken for a letter grade.
Cannot be a course currently offered as an Honors course.
Supervision by a tenured, tenure-eligible, or RTA faculty member is preferred.
You are limited to six hours (two courses) per semester.
Honors Options completed in General Education courses will count towards Honors Elective credits only.
It is recommended that you apply the Honors Option to a 3 credit hour course (rather than 1 or 2 credits).

PREFERRED CHARACTERISTICS OF HONORS OPTIONS
At least two of the following characteristics MUST apply to your Honors Option:

Allows you to pursue a particular topic of interest to you in significant depth.
Furthers knowledge/skills in your major or minor.
Extends knowledge/skills from an Area of Emphasis.
Enables investigation of potential capstone project topics.
Furthers your progress towards developing a capstone project.
Enhances knowledge/skills related to your academic and career goals.

PROCEDURE

You and the faculty member meetafter class registration to begin discussions on a set of requirements that would qualify the course for Honors credit.
Signed Honors Option Contract must be received in the Honors College main office by the end of thesecondweekof the semester in which the class is taken. Under rare circumstances, option contracts may be accepted after this published due date each semester. However, the Honors College does not guarantee approval of Honors Option Contracts submitted after this due date. You do not need to include information on the topic/theme/structure of your proposed Honors Option on this form.
Your Honors Option proposal, which includes a detailedproject description, timeline and/or custom syllabus, must be received in the Honors College main office by the end of the fourth week of the semester in which the class is taken. Proposals must be a minimum of 1 page in length and must include a section that addresses which of the preferred characteristics listed above apply to your Honors Option. Proposal must be signed by the faculty member.
Before the drop-add date within a semester, you and your faculty member(s) will be contacted by the Honors College for a mid-semester report on progress.
If progress is not being made on your Honors Option, you should formally drop the Honors Option by notifying the Honors College before the drop-add deadline within a semester. You can drop an Honors Optionone timeduring your time at JMU without penalty.
You mustsubmit all work associated with the Honors Optionto the Honors College by the last day of finals week.
At the end of the semester, the faculty member reports to the Honors College the successful completion of the Honors Option. The Office of the Registrar is then notified by the Honors College to award you Honors credit for the course upon successful completion.
If you fail to complete an Honors Option, or fail to withdraw from the option prior to the drop-add deadline, a grade ofno-creditwill be recorded in your Honors College file for that Honors Option. You are limited to a grade ofno-creditfor an Honors Optionone timeduring your time at JMU without penalty.

REQUIREMENTS FOR SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION

You must maintain regular independent meetings with the course’s faculty member (at least four times within the semester).
You must submit all work associated with the Honors Option to the Honors College by the last day of finals week.The professor’s deadlines for successful completion may be earlier; it is the student’s responsibility to ensure that all Honors Option work is completed on time.

REPORTING FINAL GRADE

Faculty member reports completion for credit (C), or unsatisfactory completion for no-credit (NC), or incomplete (I) to the Honors College.
The Honors College assumes that an Honors Option has been completed successfully in cases where faculty do not report their grades in a timely manner to the Honors College.

Instructor Signature:
Student Signature: