Departmental Honors Option:

The Department of Spanish and Portuguese encourages Spanish majors to consider adding an honors option to their plan of studies. The Spanish Honors Program provides students with an exciting opportunity to develop an area of special interest in consultation with faculty members. There are many reasons to opt for Honors besides the intellectual challenge. An Honors Student is offered a foretaste of graduate school, while enhancing his/her academic standing as an undergraduate. The B.A. diploma will carry the citation "With Honors" or "With High Honors". The Honors distinction enhances chances for nomination for the Dean's Senior Scholar Award and is a solid recommendation for acceptance into the UMCP Language House. These are just a few of the benefits which participation in Honors offers you.

Eligibility:

Students must have an overall GPA of 3.0 and a GPA of 3.5 in the major to be accepted into the Departmental Honors Program. To remain in the program, students must also maintain an overall GPA of 3.0 and a GPA of 3.5 in the major. Transfer students with equivalent academic standing at an accredited institution must also meet these eligibility requirements. Under exceptional circumstances, these acceptance requirements may be waived by the Honors Director. Students may drop the Honors Program without losing any credits acquired. It is strongly recommended that progress towards the honor option program begin by the junior year.

Program Requirements:

1) At least two upper-level courses must be taken in the "H" version.
2) In addition to those courses regularly taken for the major, the Honors student will enroll in Spanish 479 (Honors Thesis), for a total of 6 credits, split over two semesters.
3) Oral presentation of Honors Thesis in front of departmental committee.

Procedure:

1) Contact the Departmental Honors Director (below) to communicate your intent to pursue the honors option after receiving the approval of a professor who will sponsor your candidacy.

Dr. Eyda M. Merediz
Jiménez Hall 2215H
(301) 405-6451
emerediz (at) umd.edu

2) Select two upper-level classes (ideally during different semesters) that you would like to apply towards your honors credits. This means that you must have a separate working agenda from the rest of class and engage in an individual research project. Then, take the following steps:

a. You must have the consent and approval of the professor teaching the class by submitting a written proposal of your research plan.

b. Download the “Honors Option Contract Proposal.” Fill in the information and sign it. Also have the professor with whom you are working sign the form.

c. Submit this contract along with your written research plan and a copy of the course syllabus to the Departmental Honors Director during the first two weeks of the semester.

3) You will write an Honors Thesis during your senior year. These are the preparation steps:

a. Register in Span 479, an independent Honors Thesis course during the last two semesters of your undergraduate career (Total Credits 6).

b. Before entering your senior year, contact a faculty member with whom you have or hope to establish a mentor/mentee relationship. You will propose a topic of study in close consultation with the faculty member and begin to research your project.

c. You must turn in the final draft of your thesis during your last semester (December 1st or May 1st). This will allow sufficient time for scheduling an oral presentation before the last day of classes. The presentation takes place in front of a committee, consisting of your thesis director and two other members of the faculty. Grading will consist of either "honors" or "high honors".

d. In order to have the possibility of graduating with "high honors", you must complete the oral presentation requirement.