Departmental Honors

The college of Arts & Sciences awards the following: Cum Laude for a GPA of 3.60; Magna Cum Laude for a GPA of 3.75; Summa Cum Laude for a GPA of 3.90.

In addition to this, the German Studies Department confers Honors and High Honors on its outstanding graduates based on the result of the senior paper, and the student's performance in his/her German courses plus an Honors paper of 15 pages. Students who wish to graduate with Honors should register for German 481, 482, 483 (Honors Senior Thesis) instead of 491, 492, 493, (this may be, and often is, an expanded German Studies or German Literature Paper,).

Students must apply for consideration for Honors in the fall of their senior year. To qualify for Honors, a student needs to have a 3.4 overall GPA, and a 3.6 GPA in German.

The topic of the Honors Paper must be approved by the advisor and first reader nine months prior to graduation. The outline and bibliography are to be submitted by December 1, the first draft by March 1, and the final typed copy that follows the MLA Style Sheet or the Chicago Manual of Style by April 15. (For Honors candidates, the April deadline is firm.)