Honors Program

Membership in the Honors College at Missouri State consists of both general honors, which applies to general education coursework, and a program distinction in your major.

You may stop after completion of the general honors, and still receive all privileges of the Honors College, as long as you maintain the required 3.25 GPA.

Program distinction

Once you have completed the general honors requirements, you may choose to earn program distinction in psychology through further honors coursework. To earn program distinction in psychology, you must meet all the requirements of the General Honors Degree, and complete the following requirements:

  • Be a member in good standing of the Honors College.
  • Earn and maintain a cumulative 3.25 GPA and a 3.25 GPA in psychology courses.
  • Complete at least 12 hours of honors course work in the psychology programs.
  • Complete a senior project in psychology within your junior or senior years. Complete PSY 510 before starting your senior project, or take PSY 510 concurrently with starting your senior project.
  • Complete all requirements for a B.S. or B.A. in psychology and at least 38 or 39 hours in the major.
  • Take PSY 510 and PSY 498, which will count toward the 12 hours of honors courses in the psychology programs.

If special circumstances exist that prevent you from fulfilling the requirements for program distinction, you should discuss the circumstances with your honors advisor and the head of the program. This may result in a modification of the requirements for program distinction. However, any modification will require you to complete the equivalent of at least 12 hours of honors credit in psychology, a senior project in psychology and at least 38 to 39 hours in the major.

Course PSY 510

If you are planning to complete a senior honors project, you either must complete PSY 510 first or have concurrent enrollment in PSY 510 and PSY 498 senior honors project directed research. It is strongly recommended that you complete PSY 510 first.

PSY 510 is offered every fall semester and is limited to about 15 students. This course is open to both honors and non-honors students. It will introduce you to designing, administering, analyzing, and reporting your own research. Ideally, it can also serve as a means of testing and refining your senior project. Prerequisites for PSY 510 include PSY 200 and 302.

Steps for completing a senior project is required for graduating with program distinction in psychology. Work on your senior project can begin as early as the first semester of your junior year, but the project must be completed before graduation. In the psychology programs, the senior honors project is credited as PSY 498, which can be taken for 4-5 credit hours.

Senior project completion steps

  1. Notify your honors advisor of your intent to work toward program distinction prior to registration during the spring of your sophomore year.
  2. Consult with your project advisor, who is to be a faculty member in the psychology programs, about the nature of your honors project.
  3. Complete the psychology programs' Senior Honors Project PSY 498: Directed Research/Contact Form detailing your senior project.
  4. Gain approval of your typed proposal from your project advisor and the department head.
  5. Enroll in PSY 498.
  6. Complete the psychology programs' Human Subjects Review Committee proposal, and the University Human Subjects Review Committee proposal or the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee proposal, if necessary, prior to data collection.
  7. Conduct your proposed senior project and provide a written report of the project in APA format for the completion of the requirement.

Honors components

Adding an honors component to an existing course requires a written agreement between you and the faculty member who teaches the course. Official forms for this agreement are available from the Honors College office or from your honors advisor. This form must be completed and approved by the head of the psychology programs before it is submitted to the Honors College office and prior to registering for the course.

For each component completed, you receive an additional hour of credit in the course, an H is added to the course number, and you receive honors credit for the full course. For example, PSY 304 for 3 hours becomes PSY 304H for 4 hours. No more than two components may be counted towards the honors degree.

Recommended courses for adding an honor component include:

  • PSY 304
  • PSY 331
  • PSY 359
  • PSY 521

Additional work is involved in an honors component and usually consists of one of the following:

  • Practical or laboratory experience
  • Library use
  • Writing