Honors Program Contract Courses
Purpose:
Honors Contract Courses provide up to 12 hours of credit for courses numbered 300 and above.
Students electing either Upper Division or Full Honors must complete the Contract Course
requirements.
Distribution of Credits and Grading:
Contract Courses may be used to meet the major, minor, and/or upper division Liberal Studies
requirement. Credits per contract course may range from 1-4. To earn Honors Program credit on the
transcript, the student must earn at least a B in each Contract Course.
Contract Course Content:
An Honors contract should outline a plan to create a learning experience above and beyond normal
course requirements. Emphasis is placed on the quality of the learning experience, in addition to the
increased quantity of work completed. Instructors may elect to substitute more substantial contract
work for work that is required of other students in the class, or students may be required to complete
additional work for honors credit. All Honors Contracts must clearly state the a) course objectives,
b) planned activities, and c) method of assessment that differs from those of students who are not
“honorizing’ the class. The Honors Contract is considered an amendment to the regular course
syllabus; the contract should clearly state how the combination of the regular course work and the
contract work will be used to determine the student’s final grade for the course.
Potential Contract Course Activities:
Honors Contracts must describe in detail how the student will complete one or more of the following
course activities.
1. Written product. The document produced will include the citation of primary sources,
and involve multiple revisions.
2. Class presentation. Presentations will either substitute for a class period that the
professor would normally present, or they will involve the description and discussion of
additional enrichment course content during a class period.
3. Individual scholarly project. These projects will involve laboratory or library
scholarship, or the creation of a musical or artistic event. The course instructor will
supervise the project.
4. Experiential learning. Students will complete a service learning experience or an
internship to fulfill the requirements of the contract course.
Types of Contract Course Presentation Modes:
The results of the contract portion of the course should be presented in a forum that is appropriate to
the discipline; examples of types of presentation include the following.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Written Manuscript
Oral Class Presentation
HSO Forum/Departmental Colloquium
NMU Celebration of Student Scholarship
Art Exhibit or Musical Recital
Sample Honors Contracts:
Several example contracts can be viewed on-line at sample contracts. These contracts have been
posted as a guide for drafting the contract and are not meant to limit the creativity of students and
faculty. Many different projects have been, and will be, accepted for contract credit. Last year, the
Honors Board recommended the following procedure for Honors Contracts.
Honors Contract Procedure:
1. During the 10th week of the semester (prior to registration for the next semester), the
student contacts the professor to obtain professor interest in and approval for enrolling in
an Honors Contract Course.
2. The student enrolls in the class during the traditional registration period, without adding
the “H” designator to the course.
3. During weeks 11-13 of the prior semester, the student and the professor determine the
work that the student will do to satisfy the contract course requirements. This will
involve specification of the objectives, methods, and assessment of the work that the
student will produce.
4. The student and the professor complete the Contract Course form, obtain the necessary
signatures, and submit the form and course syllabus during the first week of class to the
Honors Program Director who will approve the contract or send it back for revision. If
approved by the director, the student will be contacted and then enrolled in the “H”
section of the course.
5. After the contract has been approved, the honors secretary will contact each student via
email to confirm the contract’s approval. The Assistant Registrar will enroll the student
in the “H” section of the contract course. Two to three weeks after the beginning of the
semester, students should verify their registration in the “H” section through checking
their course schedule online and notify the honors secretary immediately of any
discrepancy.
6. Contracts and supporting documents submitted AFTER the first week of classes will
NOT be accepted.
Questions about Contract Courses should be directed to the Honors Program office (227-2344).
Rev. 05/08 & 01/09