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Biology Honors Program
The purpose of the honors program in biology is to give students with outstanding academic records the opportunity to carry out research in biology in collaboration with a faculty mentor and to present publicly the results of that research.
To qualify to participate in Honors in Biology, a student must: A. Have completed 60 semester hours, including 15 hours of coursework at UNCCharlotte by the time the honors course sequence is begun (typically at the beginning of the second semester of the junior year), B. Have completed 36 hours in biology, chemistry, physics, math, and statistics with a minimum of 15 hours of coursework in biology (courses carrying major credit), C. Have and maintain both an overall and biology GPA of 3.4 in all University courses.
III. REQUIREMENTS OF THE PROGRAM Students in Honors in Biology must complete BIOL 4601 (Honors Seminar), BIOL 4700 (Honors Research I), and BIOL 4701 (Honors Research II). Students will receive a letter grade for BIOL 4601. Upon satisfactory completion of BIOL 4700, a letter grade will be assigned. The grade of A must be earned in BIOL 4701 for satisfactory completion of the honors program.
Students are expected to identify an Honors Advisor and to write a preliminary research proposal during the spring semester of the junior year (the research proposal will be a requirement in BIOL 4601).
The student’s Honors Committee, to be selected by the student in consultation with the Honors Advisor and approved by the Honors Coordinator, consists of an Honors advisor who is a tenure-track faculty in the Department of Biology, and two other faculty. One of the members of the committee may be from a different Department of the University, when justified by the work performed by the student. Adjunct Faculty of the Department of Biology may also form part of the committee. Students may elect to work under the direction of an adjunct Faculty member or a Faculty member from outside the Department of Biology, in which case a tenure-track Biology faculty member must serve as Co-Advisor. At least one of the other two members of the committee must be a tenure-track faculty member of the Department of Biology. The names of the requested committee members will be included in the form “Request to begin Honors Research and Thesis”. The form is to be submitted to the Honors Coordinator for approval.
The Honors Research Proposal should be submitted to the student’s Honors Committee by the last day to drop a course for the semester in which the student is enrolled in BIOL 4700. The proposal must be approved by the student’s Honors Committee, at the latest, three weeks before the last day of class in the semester in which the student is enrolled in BIOL 4700. The completed form “Application for Admission to Candidacy: University Honors and/or Departmental Honors Graduates” must be submitted to the Honors Coordinator by that date.
The Honors Thesis, in a form approved by the Honors Advisor, should be submitted to the student’s Honors Committee at least two weeks before the last class day of the term in which the honors program is to be completed.
The honors candidate must present an honors seminar on his/her research at the Undergraduate Research Conference that takes place every spring. The honors seminar must be presented by the last class day of the term in which the honors program is to be completed. A paper presented by the honors candidate on his/her research in an open session at a scientific society meeting may be substituted for the honors seminar, upon approval from the Honors coordinator, and may precede the submission of the honors thesis. Other public forums (i.e. seminars open to the public) selected for the presentation of the research accomplished must be approved by the Honors coordinator prior to the date of the defense. A poster presentation may not be substituted for an oral presentation. A memorandum to the effect that this requirement has been met should be sent by the student's honors advisor to the honors coordinator by the last class day of the term in which the honors program is to be completed.
The form “Completion of Requirements for Honors in Biology” together with a copy of the Honors Thesis signed by members of the Honors Committee must be submitted to the Honors Coordinator by the last day of class of the term in which the honors program is to be completed.
Honor students must take the A.C.A.T. (Area Concentration Achievement Test) to graduate. The test must be taken during their senior year. Honors students are required to make 50% or better in this test. Students with less than 50% will be lowered a letter grade in BIOL 4601, Honors Seminar.
IV. BIOLOGY CREDIT AND DEGREE REQUIREMENTS The three-semester course sequence BIOL 4601, 4700, and 4701 must be completed for the distinction “graduation with honors” to be earned. Additionally, a student must earn an A in 4701 and a minimum of a 3.2 GPA for all honors courses is required to graduate with honors in biology. The course BIOL 4601, Honors Seminar, substitutes for the required BIOL 4600, Seminar. Biology 4601 counts as two hours of major credit and as an Oral Communication course (O). The two-semester sequence BIOL 4700/4701 carries 6 hours of credit toward the major for both B.A. and B.S. candidates. All students who successfully complete the honors sequence may count the sequence for 2 of the required laboratories in biology. BIOL 4701 is a 3-hour Writing Intensive (W) course.
Students may withdraw from the honors program. Students who complete BIOL 4601, but do not undertake BIOL 4700/4701 will receive 1 hour of credit toward the major (substituting the 1 hour for the required BIOL 4600, Seminar) and 1 hour of elective credit. Students also have the option to withdraw from the program after successful completion of 4700.
Students may begin the Honors research sequence (4700/4701) in their senior year, upon approval from the Honors Coordinator. However, students will be required to enroll in 4601 during the spring semester of their senior year. Changes in the sequence of Honors courses taken will be based on the semester in which they enter the program.
**You will need Adobe Acrobat to open & fill these forms out. Please email the forms to the Honors Coordinator listed below**
For additional information, contact: The Honors Coordinator
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