Last updated in September 2021.
Course requirements
Students who entered the Honors Program in Fall 2018 or later must earn 15 Honors credits in or related to their major, Computer Science (CS), Computer Science and Engineering (CSE), or Computer Engineering (CompE).
Currently, there are only a few Honors sections in CSE courses. Students earn Honors credits in following ways.
- Requesting Honors conversion in a regular CSE course
- Enrolling in the graduate section of a cross-listed course, if the option is available
- Taking a graduate course that is approved by Honors advisor
The course requirements from the University Honors Program include:
At least 15 Honors credits in or related to the major as approved by the departmental Honors advisor as follows:
- Twelve (12) Honors credits in the major or related:
- 2000-level or above
- At least 3 credits toward supervised Honors thesis/project;
- Completion of specific departmental Honors requirements, if applicable
- Three (3) additional Honors credits in the major or related earned at any level.
The clarification and CSE specific requirements on the 15 Honors credits in or related to the major are as follows.
(a) Twelve (12) Honors credits in the major or related
The 12 credits include 3 credits form working on Honors thesis and 9 credits from regular CSE courses, 2000-level and above.
Three (3) Credits toward Honors thesis
The three credits toward Honors thesis are from either CSE 4099: Independent Study in Computer Science and Engineering, or CSE 4997: Senior Thesis in Computer Science and Engineering. Students earn Honors credits by requesting Honors conversion. Typically, CSE 4099 is taken in the first semester of the senior year and CSE 4997 is in the second semester of the senior year.
Students should plan for their Honors thesis early. As recommended by the Honors program, students should find Honors thesis supervisor and discuss with them Honors thesis topics no later than the second semester of the junior year, the earlier the better.
CSE students should have a CSE faculty member as their Honors thesis supervisor. This page explains Honors thesis supervisor.
Please carefully study the suggested thesis timeline on the Honors Program’s website.
Nine (9) credits on regular CSE courses, 2000-level and above
To make the total of 12 Honors credits in this category, students earn nine (9) Honors credits in regular CSE courses at 2000-level or above, which do not include senior design (CSE 4939W and CSE 4940), independent study (CSE 4099), and senior thesis (CSE 4997).
(b) Three (3) additional Honors credits in the major or related earned at any level.
Students can earn the three credits in the following courses:
- A regular CSE course at 1000-level or above,
- A MATH/STAT course required by the major,
- CSE 4099: Independent Study in Computer Science and Engineering, if it is related to Honors thesis.
Engagement in the major field
The engagement in the major field includes intern (performing major related work), participating in research, attending seminars, and participating in major related student clubs (with significant activities). Students should report the major engagement activities once a semester to their Honors advisor. In addition to email, students should plan to meet with their Honors advisors at least once a semester.
Activities by Academic Levels
Freshmen
Students are encouraged to explore their interests and discuss academic plan with their Honors advisor.
Sophomores
We recommend students earn at least 3 Honors credits in a CSE course by the end of their sophomore year. We also encourage students to start to look for their Honors thesis supervisor.
Juniors
Juniors file the Honors Preliminary Plan of Study in the first semester of their junior year. Here are instructions for listing courses on the form.
- 3 Honors credits in either CSE 4099 or CSE 4997 as Thesis / Project course.
- At least 9 Honors credits from courses at 2000-level or above. See the course requirements section for details. Students can list 12 Honors credits in this section and skip the next section on the form.
- If necessary, list a CSE 1000 level course in the “Additional Honors credits at any level” section.
Students should find an Honors thesis supervisor by the end of the second semester. See the requirements on Honors thesis.
Seniors
Students submit the Honors Final Plan of Study in the first semester of their senior year. Please discuss with Honors advisors about the progress in Honors thesis and adjust the Honors Plan of Study if necessary.
Honors Scholar in Multiple Majors
In general, students earn the Honors Scholar designation in each major separately. See the requirements on Honors Program’s website.
https://honors.uconn.edu/more-than-one-major/
Quoted from the page:
If you will graduate with multiple majors and want to earn the Honors Scholar designation in more than one of them, you must complete separate Preliminary Plan of Study and Final Plan of Study forms for each. Generally, students with multiple Honors majors complete a separate thesis/project for each major.
You may be allowed to have a single thesis/project serve as your Honors thesis for multiple majors.
- Plan ahead! Your Honors advisor in each Honors major must approve this in advance.
- You may complete just one Honors thesis course, which would be listed on only one of your Honors Plans of Study.
- When you complete your thesis, your Honors advisor in each Honors major must approve it (in addition to your thesis supervisor).
Students must discuss with Honors advisor about their plan to complete Honors thesis. Also keep the following requirements in mind.
- The proposed Honors thesis must have significant CSE components.
- Students must find a CSE faculty member as their Honors thesis supervisor or co-supervisor, even if they have a supervisor in other departments.
- Students still need to earn 15 CSE Honors credits.