Key Honors Courses

Course Descriptions

HONS 1100: Introduction to University Honors Program (2 credits)
This course serves as a foundation for all incoming first-year Honors students to better understand our rigorous and relational learning community. This course equips students to maximize their academic and personal development through the Honors curriculum, campus resources, and transformative learning opportunities available at Idaho State University.  (Fall)

HONS 1101: Honors Humanities I (3 credits)*
A writing-intensive interdisciplinary course examining relationships between the arts and letters from the Classical Age through the Enlightenment. As the Honors equivalent of ENGL 1102, HONS 1101 partially satisfies Objective 1 of the General Education Requirements. (Fall/Spring)

HONS 1102: Honors Humanities II (3 credits)*
A writing-intensive interdisciplinary course examining relationships between the arts and letters from the nineteenth century to the present. Partially satisfies Objective 4 of the General Education Requirements. (Spring)

*HONS 1101 and HONS 1102 are writing intensive interdisciplinary courses developed to expand the writing and critical thinking skills of Honors students, preparing them for rigorous upper-level college expectations.

ACAD 1111-H: Information Literacy & Inquiry, Honors (3 credits)
Introduces students to inquiry in a university setting. The course will introduce the academic culture of ISU through research and university academic resources. The course will primarily deal with the level of inquiry and evidence expected of university students. Student will learn how to identify an information need, evaluate information discovered, and use information effectively and ethically. Satisfies Objective 8 of the General Education Requirements. (The Honors section includes a focus on developing a research question, creating an annotated bibliography, and presenting research findings.) 

HONS 2220: Information Research Techniques (1 credit)
Students develop strategies for recognizing, locating, and evaluating pertinent information and using it effectively in current and future research papers and/or in the field of endeavor.

HONS 3391: Honors Seminar (1 credit each)
Exposes student to a range of critical and theoretical approaches within various disciplines in multiple seminars. Students formulate research problems and incorporate the results of their research into a seminar paper and/or oral presentation. May be repeated for up to 4 credits with different content. (Fall/Spring)

HONS 3393: Introduction to Honors Thesis (1 credit)
Prepares junior-level students enrolled in the University Honors Program to develop, plan, and begin their Honors Thesis or Honors Project, select a thesis or project topic, identify a thesis advisor, begin scholarship review for the project or thesis, and develop a timeline for completing the project or thesis. (Fall/Spring)

HONS 3399: Maximizing Community Impact  (1 credit)
This Honors course helps students in the process of becoming a more engaged member in the community. This course examines the various foundational components of community service. During this semester, students will explore conceptual ideas of service and apply these concepts with community partners to carry out an applied service-learning opportunity. Students will also collaboratively explore an applied case study within Honors. (Fall)

HONS 3399: Research Service-Learning Project  (1 credit)
An experiential course that will expose students to the complexity of various service-focused issues in Pocatello, Idaho. Students will learn about different organizations who address these issues and have the opportunity to serve as volunteers within them. Through service-learning, students will carry out data gathering, research, and personal reflections to capture their experiences in addressing these various issues. The issue students explore will change on a yearly basis. (Spring)

HONS 4493: Honors Senior Thesis or Project (1-6 credits)
Supervised by a committee of at least two faculty members and approved by the University Honors Program Director. May be repeated for up to 6 credits. If needed, DEPT 4493H can be used. (Fall/Spring)

HONS 4499: Honors Service Capstone  (1 credit)
Provides students with in-depth mentorship in carrying out their data analysis of the organization’s needs, extrapolating themes from those needs, researching the literature to see how other organizations have gone about addressing those needs, and then providing a proposal and plan of action for their partner organization. This preparation course will also provide students with guidance on their capstone presentation. This includes the development of their final slideshow and presentation skills. (Fall/Spring)