Frequently Asked Questions

• Incoming students must have an ACT/SAT of 28/1310 and a minimum high school grade point average of 3.85 to be automatically admitted to the COEHP Honors Program upon submitting an application. Students who do not meet the test score criteria, but who have a high school GPA of at least 3.90, can apply by submitting a resume and essay for review. Superscores are not considered for admission, only a single composite on the national exams.
• Current University of Arkansas students must have a minimum grade point average of 3.50 on all UA coursework to be eligible.
• Transfer students must have a minimum grade point average of 3.50 on all coursework to be eligible.
• Applications are not accepted from students within three major (fall/spring) semesters of graduation.

Please visit our Admission Requirements page for additional information.

Please visit our Apply page to submit your application to the COEHP Honors Program.

The Fellowship application is a create-your-own, where the student must provide all the necessary materials to the Honors College, detailed at its page.

There is no minimum or maximum amount of Honors hours a student must take each term. Most students will take no more than two Honors courses in any given semester. Overall, students in COEHP Honors must complete 18 hours of Honors credit, of which at least 10 hours must come from within the student’s major program of study. Academic advisors in the Boyer Center for Student Services will be able to list specific course requirements for each major.

No. There is only one Honors 'track' available for COEHP students.

Additional information can be found under Program of Study.

Yes. To graduate with Honors from COEHP, a student must write or create an Honors thesis/project. You will defend your thesis/project before a panel of two committee members. 

There are multiple types of experiences that can qualify for your Honors thesis/project:

• Research-Based
  • This option is the "traditional" thesis or case study format.
  • Your written product will take the reader through the path of your project from beginning to end, including hypotheses, literature review, methodology, data collection and analysis, results, and discussion.
  • The written product will be detailed enough that another researcher could replicate your study without any additional information.
  • Work with your faculty mentor to determine a research topic that is relevant and interesting to you.
• Practice-Based
  • Examples include internships, service-learning, and clinical experiences.
    • To qualify as an honors thesis/project, your experience must go above and beyond the general expectations for any internship/clinical/practicum courses required for or available to all students in your major.
  • Students selecting this option will still be expected to create a written report and presentation.
  • Begin by selecting a practice-based experience with your faculty mentor's assistance.
  • Your written product will include a review of relevant scholarly literature that focuses on the type of experience in which you will be participating, which will allow you to develop a theory behind the benefits of the experience.
  • Most importantly, you will write a reflection where you will summarize significant duties and responsibilities of your experience, significant challenges, lessons learned, and how the experience affects your future goals.
• Expanded Literature Review
  
  • A literature review is not an annotated bibliography, but a critical analysis of professional and scholarly literature above and beyond expectations for all students in the major.
  • While similar to the research-based thesis/project, in this option you will not conduct your own study, instead focusing on existing literature about your topic of interest.
    • This review would be more extensive than that done for the research-based thesis/project.
  • It is recommended that you include a minimum of 20-25 sources in your literature review, the majority of which should be primary sources.
  • Through a thorough review of the literature, you will be able to discuss the history of your topic and its development, the results of various studies that have already been conducted regarding your topic, and the current status of scholarly discussion on your topic.
  • You will also be able to identify flaws in the existing research and suggest possible solutions to these flaws.

No. The overall credit hour requirement to complete your degree is not higher for Honors students. You must complete at least 18 hours of Honors credit, but these hours are incorporated into your degree and are not “extra” hours.

It is possible for students in all undergraduate, on-campus programs within COEHP to graduate with Honors. Many students across diverse programs in the College graduate with Honors every year. Some students are concerned by the fact that their majors require a very specific set of courses to graduate. However, required Honors courses generally will substitute for their non-Honors equivalent.

To remain in good standing, students must maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.50 in their University of Arkansas coursework. Those who fall below this standard will be placed on Honors Warning for one semester. If a student fails to bring their cumulative GPA above 3.50 following the conclusion of the Honors Warning semester, they will be removed from the COEHP Honors Program, and their Honors courses will be removed from their upcoming schedule. Students whose cumulative GPA falls below 3.00 will be immediately removed from the COEHP Honors Program.

No. A benefit of maintaining good standing in the COEHP Honors Program is the ability to take Honors courses.

When searching for classes, Honors sections will always include an H as the second to last character. For example, EXSC 372H3 and BIOL 101H1 are Honors courses.

Honors courses in the College of Education & Health Professions are taught exclusively by our outstanding faculty members. Graduate assistants are not eligible to teach honors courses in COEHP.

Generally, no. The only exceptions are for students who complete BIOL 101H1 (Honors Principles of Biology lab) or BIOL 200H1 (Honors Microbiology lab) along with the corresponding non-Honors lecture. Since no Honors lecture is available for these courses, students completing the Honors lab will receive a total of 4 hours of Honors credit.

No. Please contact us if you have additional questions.

No. Please contact us if you have additional questions.

Required thesis/project forms can be found here.

There are two ways to submit the Proposal and Approval forms for your Honors Thesis/Project. You can choose the submission type that is easiest for you. Be sure the thesis/project mentor, thesis/project committee members, and student (if applicable) have signed the forms before submission.

• Upload here OR
• Email to coehphon@uark.edu
• Hard copies of thesis forms are no longer accepted

The Thesis/Project Evaluation Tool may optionally be used by the thesis/project mentor to evaluate the thesis/project and defense. It DOES NOT need to be submitted to the COEHP Honors Program.

The Author Agreement should be uploaded directly to ScholarWorks after being signed by the student and thesis/project mentor. Additional information, including step-by-step instructions, can be found here.

You will be asked to move your graduation and defense to the following term. Thus, it is very important for you to follow all stated deadlines and read your emails carefully and frequently. 

You inform the COEHP Honors Program of your intended term of graduation and defense. Then, you move your term of graduation by contacting the Office of the Registrar.

Students must begin work on their honors thesis/project at the least three semesters before their term of graduation.  For instance, Spring 2026 graduates must begin work on their honors thesis/project no later than Spring 2025 and continue the work through Spring 2026. 

Your final Latin graduation level will be determined by your cumulative grade point average (GPA):

• Summa Cum Laude: GPA ≥ 3.9
• Magna Cum Laude: GPA 3.7 - 3.89
• Cum Laude: GPA 3.5 - 3.69

In order to leave the COEHP Honors Program, complete the Exit Survey. Once the survey has been completed, you will be removed from COEHP Honors.