Advising and Academics FAQ, University of Cincinnati

University Honors students are assigned to an honors academic advisor by college or, in the case of the College of Engineering and Applied Science and McMicken College of Arts and Sciences, by major. Please see the UHP academic advising webpage to find out which UHP staff member is your advisor.

When should I be meeting with my honors academic advisor?

Students who entered the program in or after Fall 2011 are required to meet with their University Honors advisor once per year. Advisors will send information regarding each year's required meeting directly to students. Of course, students may meet with their advisor as often as needed. All other University Honors students are encouraged (but not required) to meet with their advisor every year.

Your honors advisor is a good resource to discuss your Honor standing, potential Honors experiences, creating your experiential learning proposals, and general questions or concerns regarding life at UC. For scheduling questions, you first stop should be your departmental or college advisor as he/she will have specific knowledge about courses available as well as major requirements. For a list of advisors by college, please consult the Registrar’s website: http://www.uc.edu/registrar/advising/find_adv.html. For additional information on the role of advising in Honors, please visit this link: http://www.uc.edu/honors/academics/advising .html

What are the English course requirements for the University Honors Program?

Students who enter the University Honors Program in or after Fall 2012 are not required to complete an honors section of first year English composition. Students who entered the University Honors Program prior to Fall 2012 were expected to successfully complete English 101H and English 102H –OR- English 112 in their first year at UC. If you are unsure of your requirements, please see the requirements page and contact your honors advisor.

Do I have any service hour requirements?

You do not have a service hour requirement for the University Honors Program. However, if you have earned a Cincinnatus award and have questions about the Cincinnatus program, please call 513-556-3400 or email cincinnatus@uc.edu. Please keep in mind that Cincinnatus and University Honors are two different programs.

What is the process of submitting an honors experience proposal?

On this page you can find the honors experience proposals. Throughout the academic year the UHP has deadlines for submitting honors experience proposals. The intent here is two-fold: to keep you organized and working towards honors experiences and to give us an opportunity to meet as a staff and give you quality, timely feedback on your proposals. Once you have submitted a proposal, UHP advisor will review it and offer any feedback we have. After the proposal is complete (sometime this includes a few revisions), a student will go on to complete the experience and document in their learning portfolio.

What is the GPA requirement for the University Honors Program?

Ultimately for graduation, you must earn a GPA of 3.4 or higher. During your first year at UC you should have a minimum 3.2 cumulative university GPA at the end of summer quarter; a 3.3 cumulative university GPA at the end of summer quarter in your second year; and a 3.4 cumulative university GPA at the end of summer quarter in your third and subsequent years.

For planning purposes, please consult one of the GPA Calculators on this page to help determine forecasting of grades and GPA: http://www.uc.edu/ucuaada/advising.html

What is the graduation process? What is the difference between University Honors Scholar vs. Distinguished University Honors Scholar?

For information on graduation, please click here.

How can I receive money for a project I am working on? Are there any tuition based scholarships from University Honors?

We have grant funds available to students completing honors experiential learning projects and honors seminars with experiential learning components. For experiential learning projects, students are asked to include a detailed budget in their experiential learning proposals. This budget will be reviewed for an honors grant.

The University Honors Program does not offer any tuition based scholarships.

What happens if I fall behind on my honors requirements?

The best strategy to keep from falling behind on your honors requirements is early and frequent communication with your honors advisor. We will audit students’ records each summer to make sure you are meeting the requirements. If you are not meeting the requirements, you may be removed from the UHP. If you fall behind, you should meet with your honors advisor and discuss next steps. If you fail to meet with your advisor after being notified of missing requirements, you will be dropped from the program.

I’m interested in a National Fellowship or University Scholarship, what should I do?

If you are a student seeking a scholarship, the best place to look is your college or major department and the Office of Student Financial Aid. Many of the colleges offer scholarships that you can apply for once you are a student at UC. Please check with Student Financial Aid, your major department or college, and UC’s scholarship search for more information.

If you’d like to apply for a nationally competitive fellowship or scholarship, please visit UC's Office of Nationally Competitive Awards.

I would like to take 19 credit hours this semester, how do I go about doing that?

Please contact your college for more information. Also, be aware that taking over 18 credit hours costs additional money.

How do I get a grade replacement?

For information on UC’s grade replacement policy, please visit this site: http://www.uc.edu/registrar/policies_and_procedures/grade_replacement.html

What is Gateway to University Honors and when do I need to take it?

Gateway to University Honors (HNRS1010) is a one credit hour course required for all honors students to take during the fall semester of their first year at UC. This course helps students understand the major components of the honors program and plan for future experiences.

What are my University Honors requirements this year?

Please visit our requirements page for more information.

When should I be documenting in my learning portfolio? What should I include?

You should be updating your learning portfolio on an on-going basis. You should document all required courses (Gateway to University Honors and, for students who entered the program prior to Fall 2012, honors English courses) and honors experiences, including both honors seminars and experiential learning projects. When documenting, you should include any proposals for experiences that aren’t seminars, a reflection on the experiences, and documentation. Documentation should include 2 artifacts from a course or experience (artifacts can be papers, photos, or other artifacts that have meaning to you from the experience).

How do I know if my honors course counts as an honors experience?

Most honors courses are approved for honors credit, however not all honors designated courses count as an honors experience (there are a few exceptions). Be sure to check the ‘courses approved as honors experiences’ course list on the Honors site and if you are still unsure, please contact your Honors advisor.

How will semester conversion impact my University Honors standing and experiences?

Students will carry any earned honors experiences into semester conversion. Learn more.

What suggestions do you have for interacting with my faculty?

Cultivating a working relationship with faculty members is very important. Try to stop by faculty office hours, further discuss course material outside of class, and talk to faculty about the pursuit of research opportunities, internships, recommendation letters, etc.

How do I go about seeking a recommendation letter?

When seeking a recommendation letter, consider the criteria for the recommendation and who you know that could best write about you. This may be a faculty member, a staff member, or even your honors advisor. Be sure to ask for a recommendation letter well in advance of the due date. The more time we have to consider your strengths and accomplishments, the better the letter. In addition, consider requesting this letter in person as it will give the recommender time to ask you pertinent questions about your background and interests as well as give you an opportunity to share your resume. As honors advisors, we are more than happy to write a recommendation letter for you.

What happens if my GPA falls below the required minimum?

For students admitted into the University Honors Program in 07A or after:

Students are required to have a minimum cumulative university GPA of 3.2 or above at the end of their first (freshman) year.

Students are required to have a minimum cumulative university GPA of 3.3 or above at the end of their second (sophomore) year.

Students are required to have a minimum cumulative university GPA of 3.4 or above by the end of their third year (pre-junior for students in 5 year programs, junior for students in 4 year programs). Students must then maintain a cumulative university GPA of 3.4 or above throughout the rest of their UC career in order to remain in and graduate from the University Honors Program.

Students who fall below the required minimum at any time will be removed from the University Honors Program.

For students admitted into the University Honors Program in or prior to 07U:

Students are placed on probation with the University Honors Program when their cumulative university GPA falls below a 3.2. Students are reviewed at the end of each academic year and those below a 3.2 are placed on probation (if it is still possible to get their GPA to a 3.2; if it is not possible for a student to get their GPA to a 3.2, they are removed from the program). Failure to remove probationary status (i.e., attain cumulative university GPA of 3.2) will lead to removal from the University Honors Program.

Students who have been on probation for two academic quarters and who have not raised their GPA to a 3.2 or above are removed from the University Honors Program. These students have the right to request reinstatement after achieving a 3.2 cumulative university GPA. Reinstatement is not guaranteed.

Are there any other reasons that I may be removed from the University Honors Program?

University Honors students are expected to consistently make progress towards graduating from the program. Students who are not making sufficient progress towards University Honors graduation and/or who are not meeting University Honors requirements will be removed from the program.

Students entering the program in and after 10A are required to complete one honors experience per year. If they do not complete an honors experience in their first year, they will be removed from the program.

Can I earn honors credit for a graduate course(s) that I have taken while an undergraduate student at UC?

Students admitted into the University Honors Program between 99A and 07U can earn honors credit in such a situation. You must be registered for the course for graduate credit and complete the same requirements as the graduate students in the course. You must bring this to the attention of the University Honors academic advisor in order for the honors credit to be awarded.

Students admitted into the University Honors Program in 07A or after should contact the honors advisor to learn whether or not a graduate course can count towards their University Honors requirements.

I placed into English 112 (15ENGL112). Can English 112 count towards University Honors requirements?

Yes, English 112 is an advanced level of English Composition and is treated as an honors class.

Students who entered the University Honors Program in 07A or after can take English 112 in place of English 101H and 102H (unless otherwise directed by your college).

Students who entered the University Honors Program in or prior to 07U will earn 3 hours of Honors credit upon completion of English 112 and another 3 hours upon completion of English 113.

I have AP, IB and/or PSEOP credit. Can it count towards my Honors requirements?

For students admitted into the University Honors Program in 07A or after:

AP, IB or PSEOP credit for 15ENGL101 fulfills the requirement to take 15ENGL101H. AP, IB or PSEOP credit for 15ENGL102 fulfills the requirement to take 15ENGL102H. No other AP, IB or PSEOP credit can count towards University Honors requirements.

For students admitted into the University Honors Program between 99A and 07U:

Up to 6 hours of AP, IB and/or PSEOP credit can count towards students' total hours of honors credit. AP credit is automatically recorded. Students with IB or PSEOP credit must contact the honors advisor to ensure that their honors credit is recorded.

If I take an honors seminar or other honors course for a pass/fail grade, can it count towards my University Honors Program graduation requirements?

No. Courses taken pass/fail do not count towards University Honors Program graduation requirements.

I am a graduate student. Can I participate in the University Honors Program?

No. Students who are in graduate school are not able to participate in University Honors. The University Honors Program is for undergraduate students only.

I am a UC student but am not in the University Honors Program. Can I take an honors class?

A student who is not in the University Honors Program may register for an honors class only if the following requirements are met:

The student has approval of the instructor.
The student has a minimum cumulative University GPA of 3.4. (First quarter freshmen who do not yet have GPAs are not permitted to enroll in honors classes.)
The priority registration period for UHP students has been completed and there is space available in the class.
The class is not an honors section of ENGL2989 or ENGL2089, or HNRS1010 (these classes are open to University Honors students only).
The student is an undergraduate. Graduate students are not eligible to enroll in honors courses.

If you meet the above requirements and need permission to register for an honors course, please contact an honors academic advisor.

How will semester conversion impact my participation in the University Honors Program?

For information on semester conversion and the University Honors Program, please consult this page: http://www.uc.edu/honors/academics/semesters.html

I want to study abroad with the Honors program, do I need to be in good standing?

Yes. Honors students wishing to participate in an honors study abroad must be in good standing with us in order to participate. Students below the GPA requirement for your year of study will not be able to participate. Please contact your honors advisor with questions.