Nov 05, 2024  
2024 2025 Academic Catalog 
    
2024 2025 Academic Catalog

The Honors College


The Honors College collaborates with the academic Colleges and their programs to provide an enriched curriculum and co-curricular opportunities. The University of Bridgeport Honors College is designed for undergraduate students from all majors with a record of achievement who are interested in excelling academically, cultivating leadership skills, or learning experientially through civic engagement. The College’s mission is to create a community of like-minded, motivated students and provide them with an exceptional academic and student-life experience that will foster independent learning and inspire them to tackle the challenges of scholarship, citizenship, and leadership.

Honors students can take advantage of a dynamic and supportive environment with opportunities for community building, personal/professional development, service, and cultural exploration. Undergraduate students in good standing in the Honors College are granted early course registration, ensuring a spot in some of the university’s most sought-after courses. They also have access to the Honors Lounge to study and collaborate with peers and are invited to annual social events, including a fall reception and spring banquet. Completion of the Honors College leads to special recognition at graduation.

The Honors College contains three areas of focus for students to choose from: Honors Scholar, Honors Citizen, and Honors Leader. Each requires six classes. In the Honors Citizenship and Honors Leadership tracks, three of the required classes are non-credit bearing and record participation in campus leadership roles and civic engagement events.

Eligibility

First year accepted students with a cumulative high school GPA of 3.0 or higher will be enrolled in the Honors College. Undergraduate transfer students with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher at their previous institution can also apply to join the Honors College. Students must be transferring fewer than 60 credits. Current undergraduate students with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher can apply for the Honors College before completing 60 credits.

First Year Honors College Students

  • Applicants with a high school GPA of 3.0 or better are automatically admitted to the Honors College and upon eligibility for registration, enrolled in HONR 101F : First Year Seminar. In HONR 101F, students learn about the Honors College’s three separate tracks and are advised on choosing whether to continue as an Honors Scholar, Honors Leader, or Honors Citizen.
  • Upon completion of HONR 101F and having earned the necessary GPA their first semester, Honors College students declare their Honors Program affiliation in Spring semester of their first year.
  • Students deciding not to continue in the Honors College can end their affiliation without penalty at the end of their first semester.

Honors Citizen

  • The Honors Citizen track is designed for students concerned about social issues and interested in civic engagement. Honors Citizens are motivated by a desire to learn about their communities, themselves, and their values through experiential learning.
  • Honors Citizens are required to take HONR 255C: Fundamentals of Community Engagement and are encouraged to take it Spring semester of their first year.
  • Honors Citizens are required to maintain a 3.0 GPA and earn at least a B in all HONR classes.
  • Honors Citizens are required to take the non-credit course, HONR 385CX., three times. The course does not involve formal instruction but records student participation in two volunteer and Civic Engagement activities per enrollment period.
  • Honors Citizens are required to take HONR 392: Campus Citizenship Project, a class that culminates with the organization and staging of a collaborative civic engagement event to address a specific community or social issue.
  • In sum, the typical Honors Citizen student takes six HONR classes: HONR 101F: FYS, HONR 255C: Fundamentals of Citizenship, HONR 392: Campus Citizenship Project, and, three separate semesters, HONR 385CX, a non-credit bearing class used to document volunteer and Civic Engagement activities.

Honors Scholar

  • The Honors Scholarship track is designed for students motivated by academic exploration and achievement. Honors Scholars welcome challenging coursework and the opportunity to develop intellectually.
  • Honors Scholars are required to take HONR 265S: Fundamentals of Scholarship. They are encouraged to take it Spring semester of their first year.
  • Honors Scholars are required to maintain a 3.5 GPA and earn at least a B in all HONR classes.
  • Honors Scholars are required to take HONR 395: Senior Thesis or HONR 397: Independent Study. With the guidance of a faculty member, they will write an honors thesis or complete an independent research project, and create a poster to submit to UB Rise, the annual showcase of student and faculty research, innovation, scholarship and entrepreneurship.
  • In sum, Honors Scholars take six HONR classes: HONR 101F: FYS, HONR 265: Fundamentals of Scholarship, and HONR 395: Senior Thesis or HONR 397: Independent Study, and three other HONR classes of their choice.

Honors Leader

  • The Honors Leader track is designed for students interested in campus life, community-building, and cultivating leadership skills. Honors Leaders are motivated by a desire to learn about themselves and others through service learning.
  • Honors Leaders are required to take HONR 245L: Fundamentals of Leadership and are encouraged to take it Spring semester of their first year.
  • Honors Leaders are required to maintain a 3.0 GPA and earn at least a B in all HONR classes.
  • Honors Leaders are required to take HONR 386LX three separate times to record their participation in leadership roles on campus, including but not limited to:

         Residential Life Representative

         Commuter Assistant

         Orientation Leader

         FYS Peer Mentor

         SSS Peer Mentor

         Student Ambassador

         Alternative Spring Break

         In-Residence Student Success Mentor

         Student Programming Board

         Student Government Association

         Greek Life Officer

  • Honors Leaders are required to take HONR 391: Campus Leadership Project. Coursework culminates in the creation of a new campus organization, event, or activity or significant revisioning of an existing one.
  • In sum, Honors Leaders take six HONR classes: HONR 101F: FYS, HONR 245L: Fundamentals of Leadership, HONR 391: Campus Leadership Project, and, three separate semesters, HONR 386LX, a non-credit bearing class used to document student leadership activity.

College of Science and Society

College of Engineering, Business, and Education

College of Health Sciences