Programs

Academically talented students at James Madison University may participate in one of three honors program tracks.  All are designed to prepare students for graduate or professional school, enhance students' opportunities for rewarding careers and expand students' knowledge of themselves, others and the world. 


Track I

Honors Scholars

Approximately 200 high-achieving entering first-year students are admitted as honors scholars each year. Honors scholars participate in four years of honors study in a bachelor's degree program in any major. They take a core of general education courses designated honors, elect additional honors courses, honors seminars and honors-option courses and complete a senior honors project. Honors scholars are required to complete 27 credit hours of honors work and maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.25. 

Students who successfully complete this program graduate with distinction.  They receive the special Honors Scholars Award and are designated Honors Scholar on their transcripts and diplomas, in recognition of their distinguished four-year program of excellence. 

Track II

Subject Area

Students may enter the program through recruitment or may apply on their own. The Honors Program works with the Office of the Registrar and with faculty for recruitment to identify future honors students from the academically qualified applicants who have completed one to three semesters at JMU. 

Letters are sent at the beginning of every semester to students on the Dean's or President's Lists inviting them to apply for admission to the Honors Program. Additional qualified students may be referred by a JMU faculty member.  Any student interested should contact the Honors Office for information.  Fall 2008 semester deadline to apply is September 5. 

The criteria for selection include:

  • Grade point average (JMU) of at least 3.25

  • Goal Statement - An essay of 200-300 words in which you discuss your educational and career goals and how being in the Honors Program at James Madison University may assist you in accomplishing those goals.  

Using the above criteria, application data, the essays are reviewed by the director and/or assistant director.  Occasionally, candidates may be invited to the Honors Office for a personal interview. Those applicants judged acceptable are sent notices informing them of their status as subject-area honors students. Spaces in this program are not limited.  All qualified applicants are admitted.  

Applications submitted and accepted by the 2nd Friday of the semester allow students to exercise the Honors Option in one or more classes that same semester and to enjoy priority registration for the following semester.  Applications submitted after the deadline will be held until the beginning of the next semester for approval.

Transfer Students
The Honors Program does admit students who have transferred to JMU. Those interested students should schedule an interview with the director. Candidates must complete a Subject Area Application and provide transcripts of previous college work. In judging the candidates' suitability, consideration is given to the type of institution (e.g., two-year, four-year, technical, etc.) from which the candidates transferred, previous participation in honors programs, the amount and type of honors work completed, the feasibility of completing the program requirements while remaining at JMU and the quality of the actual application to the JMU Honors Program. Any course substitutions or waivers based on previous honors work will require approval by the director.

Track III

Senior Honors Project (Project Only)

All honors students must complete a senior honors project.  However, non-honors students in their junior year with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.25 are eligible to enter the Honors Program to pursue independent research leading to the completion of an honors project during their senior year. The final product will normally be a thesis reflecting substantial scholarship or creative work that demonstrates originality and craftsmanship. The senior honors project allows students with initiative, originality and intellectual maturity to synthesize information they have learned in courses with their independent study of a topic of their choice. Students have the rare opportunity of working in close association with an advising professor who becomes a mentor in the finest sense of the word and with other professors who read and evaluate the project at all stages of its development. 

A degree with distinction in the major field is awarded to students completing this project with a grade of B or better.

For more information about the Senior Honors Project please click here.