hello! i'm an incoming first-year who wants to know the difference between Latin Honors and Departmental Honors. is one better or easier to attain than the other? is it possible to pursue one of these honors and still reach other academic goals, such as double majoring or studying abroad, while of course maintaining a healthy balance? thanks so much!
Hello~
Thanks for your question. Graduating with Latin Honors means that you obtain the designation of cum laude, magna cum laude, or summa cum laude on your bachelor’s degree. Graduating with departmental honors leads to the awarding of your diploma with the notation honors, high honors, or highest honors in your major subject.
In order to be eligible for Latin Honors, you need to take one (4-credit) course in each of the following seven major fields of knowledge: Arts, Foreign Language, Literature, Historical Studies, Mathematics and Analytic Philosophy, Natural Science, and Social Science. Additionally, you must maintain a minimum grade point average, which varies year-by-year depending on the overall grade distribution of those eligible in the senior class. Approximately 25% of graduating class is awarded Latin Honors on their bachelor’s degree.
Eligibility for Departmental Honors is determined by each department or program of your chosen major. To obtain Departmental Honors, you need undertake an honors thesis project in your senior year. To do so, you obtain an honors thesis adviser (outside of your normal major adviser) who oversees your progress and serves as your primary thesis reader. Additionally, you are required to enroll in an honors course which can be distributed in the following ways: a one-semester, fall only course ( 8 credits), or a yearlong course (8 or 12 credits). If you double-major, you can only undertake Departmental Honors in one of your majors. This is a great option if you have a passion for research and want to spend your senior year completing an in-depth, independent project. Completing an honors thesis is especially beneficial if you plan on attending graduate school.
Whichever route you decide to pursue (or not pursue ) depends on your academic goals and interests. Upon entering Smith, I personally knew that I wanted to pursue Latin Honors, so I made a point to fulfill all of the distribution requirements within my first four semesters of college. I am a double-major AND I will be spending my junior year abroad, so I was able to schedule these courses around my major requirements due to very careful planning with my major advisers. It is not necessary to decide on whether you want to pursue Departmental Honors until the spring semester of junior year, so I have a little bit of time left to reflect!
I hope you find this helpful!
-Claire ‘20