The Honors Distribution

While your major will provide you with in-depth education in a particular field, your honors experience will also ensure that your education has breadth. Honors students are exempt from general education requirements for undergraduates. Instead, honors students complete the Honors Distribution, which asks you to select courses from each of the following groups:

Humanities (Group I) Social Science (Group III)
English and Arts (Group II) Mathematics and Natural Science (Group IV)

To maximize your opportunities and capitalize on your developing interests, it is recommended that you spread these courses among the four or five years of your program here, rather than take them all at once. When a course you have selected for your distribution requirement is available as an honors section, you are required to take that section. In addition, any course can be turned into a “Honors Section” through an approved Honors Credit By Contract form.

Credits earned by Advanced Placement (AP) test scores, transfer credits, bypass credits, and credits earned while in high school through Ohio's CCP program may be used to satisfy parts of the distribution requirement. However, at least one “traditional” college class must be completed in each of the 4 groups; therefore, credit obtained through, for example, AP, bypassed, CLEP, IB courses, cannot totally fulfill any one Honors Distribution group. Note that CCP courses are traditional college courses, even if they are taken while the student is in high school.

For Students Entering UA Fall 2018 or Later

Students in the Williams Honors College are required to take 25 semester credits according to the following distribution:

Humanities (Group I) 6 credit hours
English and Arts (Group II) 6 credit hours
Social Science (Group III) 6 credit hours
Mathematics and Natural Science (Group IV) 7 credit hours

Students must enroll in 17 credit hours of coursework designated as “Honors Sections”.

For Students Entering UA Prior to Fall 2018

Students in the Williams Honors College that entered prior to Fall 2018 are required to take 38 semester credits according to the following distribution:

Humanities (Group I) 6 credit hours
English and Arts (Group II) 9 credit hours
Social Science (Group III) 6 credit hours
Mathematics and Natural Science (Group IV) 9 credit hours

38 or more total credits are required – that is, at least 8 credit hours in addition to the minimums required in each of the above groups.

Forms

  • Honors Distribution Worksheet: Please use this fillable form to work out you plan of study for the Honors Distribution.
  • Honors Distribution (entering prior to Fall 2018): (.docx)
  • Transient Permission (for courses being applied to the Honors Distribution): (.doc)
  • Honors Credit By Contract: Please use this form to complete the contract.  Contracts must be turned in by the third week of the semester in which the course is taken.
  • Dismissal Form (.pdf)

Honors Distribution Summary

Group I

Humanities

  • 6 or more credits in courses offered in these departments:
    PAFS:254
    PAFS:257
    PAFS:258    		 Black Experience
    WMST Woman's Studies
    PAFS Pan-African Studies
    CLAS Classical Studies
    ANTH:251 Human Diversity
    ANTH Archaeology
    HIST History
    HIST Humanities in the Western Tradition
    HIST:285-291 World Civilizations
    LATN Latin
    PHIL Philosophy
    ART:100
    ART:101    		 Survey of History of Art I & II
    MUSIC:351
    MUSIC:352    		 Music History I & II

Note: The same Archaeology or Human Diversity course cannot be used in both Group I and Group III.

Group II

Language Arts

  • 3 credits of English at a level of 3300:112 or higher, or 3 credits Technical Report Writing (3300:222), and
  • 3 additional credits in courses offered in any of the other departments:
    MODL Modern Language (Arabic, Chinese, Japanese)
    ARAB Arabic
    CHIN Chinese
    FREN French
    GERM German
    ITAL Italian
    JAPN Japanese
    SPAN Spanish
    ART Art
    MUSIC Music
    MUSICAP Applied Music Lessons
    COMM Communications
    SLPA: 101, 102, 201, 202 Sign Language
    THEA Theatre
    DNCE Dance

Note:

  • Modern Languages (ARAB, CHIN, FREN, GERM, ITAL, JAPN, LATN, SPAN) : Courses must be at an appropriate level as determined by previous courses taken, UA placement tests, Advanced Placement scores, or interview. Beginners should take at least two semesters in order to obtain some useful proficiency.
  • MUSIC – Music: Courses within MUSEN, Music Organizations, are not included. Private music lessons are included.
  • COMM:106 – Effective Oral Communication: not accepted for Honors Distribution credit. Instead, 7600:105 Introduction to Public Speaking-Honors is permissible, but not regular sections of that course.
  • SLPA – Sign Language: At least two semesters should be completed.

Group III

Social Science

  • 6 or more credits in courses offered in these departments:
    SOWK:240 Human Relations
    ANTH Anthropology
    ANTH Archaeology
    ECON Economics
    GEOG Geography and Planning
    POLIT Political Science
    PSYC Psychology
    SOCIO Sociology

Note: The same Archaeology or Human Diversity course cannot be used in both Group I and Group III.

Group IV

Mathematics and Natural Science

  • 3 credits in Mathematics, Computer Science, or Statistics, and
  • 4 or more credits in Natural Science lab courses, offered in these departments:
    BIOL Biology
    CHEM Chemistry
    ANTH:151 Human Evolution
    GEOL Geology
    MATH Mathematics (135 or higher)
    STAT Statistics
    CPSC Computer Science
    PHYS Physics

Note:

  • A science lab is required.
  • MATH – Mathematics: You may select 3450:135, 140, 145, or a higher course.
  • CPSC – Computer Science: These course are not included: 3460:125, 126, 127.
  • BIOL – Biology: Two-semester sequence with laboratory is recommended.
  • CHEM – Chemistry: Two-semester sequence with laboratory is recommended.
  • ANTH:151 Cannot be use for both Group I and Group IV.