Curricular Changes
Students may have to satisfy specific entry requirements to move into most specialized curricula and some majors in the College of LAS. Information for students already affiliated with LAS is found at www.las.illinois.edu/students/programs/declaring
For students coming into the College of LAS by intercollegiate transfer see www.las.illinois.edu/students/admission/intercollegiate and www.las.illinois.edu/students/programs/declaring
Honors Programs
Dean's List
The Dean's List is prepared each semester to honor all students whose grade-point average for that semester ranks in the upper 20 percent of their college. The minimum grade-point average establishing eligibility for the Dean's List in 2008-09 is a University semester GPA of 3.70. Other criteria include completion of at least 14 hours of course work in which traditional letter grades are earned (i.e., excludes courses graded credit/no credit, satisfactory/unsatisfactory, and test-based credit that is graded pass/fail), and any course work completed through Study Abroad, subject to these same limitations. No consideration is given for the Dean's List until final traditional grades are submitted fot courses designated I and DNR. If you believe you should be placed on the Dean's List as a result of a grade change or a grade received more than a month after the end of the semester, notify the honors dean to ensure that corrective action will be taken.James Scholar Program
The official honors program in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is called the Edmund J. James Scholar Program. This program was established to encourage academically outstanding students to develop their intellectual abilities as fullly as possible. Scholars are charged with the academic responsibility of seeking sustained intellectual achievement as undergraduates by achieving and annually maintaining certification as a James Scholar.
The James Scholar Honors Program offers a number of curricular and co-curricular opportunities to entering first-year students who are invited to participate in the honors program as James Scholars Designees. These incoming students are notified of their eligibility by a letter from the dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Qualified continuing or transfer students with a 3.5 (A=4.0) cumulative grade-point average may apply to the program at these times: beginning second semester freshman year, first semester sophomore year or, for transfer students (junior level), at the start of their first semester, if they have already completed a college honors program.
In order to remain in good standing as a James Scholar, students must maintain a cumulative grade-point average of 3.5 at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and must complete two honors courses each academic year. For continuing Honors Program members, official certification of James Scholar standing on the University transcript is made at the end of the academic year (upon completion of these requirements). Senior James Scholars completing 25 hours of honors credit and consistently meeting program requirements for each year of program involvement receive recognition at graduation. Additionally, completing 25 hours of honors credit as a James Scholar is one pathway to graduating with college honors, provided the student's grade-point average is ranked in the top 12 percent of graduating seniors.
Further information about the James Scholars Program is available at www.las.uiuc.edu/students/honors/Rogers Merit Scholar Program
The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences has established the Robert W. Rogers Merit Scholarship program for highly qualified first-year students. A student chosen as a Robert W. Rogers Scholar is awarded $1,000 for the year; the award may be renewed for the sophomore year if the student maintains at least a 3.5 grade-point average and continues in the college. The selection of a Rogers Scholar is made by a faculty committee and based on exceptional scholastic achievement, high performance on either the ACT or SAT examination, and evidence of leadership in the school or community. No more than eight to ten new awards are made each year. Rogers Scholars participate in selected campus activities drawing on some of the University's academic and cultural resources.Cohn Scholars Honors Program
The Cohn Scholars Program provides intellectual and financial support and special academic opportunities for a small group of highly qualified freshmen majoring in the humanities. Cohn Scholars enroll in a two-semester course sequence offered by the Department of Comparative and World Literature, with a special discussion section. Cohn Scholars participate in special campus activities designed to acquaint them with some of the University's many academic and cultural resources. Each Cohn Scholar may also participate in a yearlong independent study course in his or her field of interest (or in a closely related field) with a faculty mentor from one of the humanities disciplines. The independent study course offers each student the opportunity to interact with a faculty member on an individual basis through intensive study in a selected subject.
Candidates for the program are selected in early spring from highly qualified high school students who have been admitted for the following year to one of the humanities departments or programs in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Honors at Graduation
College honors at graduation are awarded on the basis of academic excellence and satisfaction of one of the following: (1) successful completion of 25 hours of honors courses (including work taken on honors credit learning agreements); (2) successful completion of 35 hours of advanced hours course work; or (3) earning departmental distinction. Provided that one of the requirements above is satisfied, the award of college honors is made according to the following ranges: cum laude, if the college grade point average places a student in the top 12 percent of the graduating class but not in the top 7 percent; magna cum laude, if the college grade point average places a student in the top 7 percent of the graduating class but not in the top 3 percent; and summa cum laude, if the college grade point average places a student in the top 3 percent of the graduating class.Departmental Distinction
Departmental distinction programs for juniors and seniors provide honors opportunities in their major area. For information about departmental distinction, students early in their junior year should consult with their academic adviser or the undergraduate advising chairperson of the department in which they are majoring.Phi Beta Kappa
Invitations for membership in Phi Beta Kappa, the nation's oldest and most prestigious honor society in the liberal arts, are sent to outstanding students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences each September. Senior eligibility requires a grade-point average which places students in the top 7 percent of recent graduates (preceding August and May) and of students with senior status who have completed six semesters of enrollment; junior eligibility requires a grade-point average which places students in the top 1 percent of their class after four semesters of enrollment. Detailed information is available at www.pbk.uiuc.edu.Awards
There are a number of prizes and awards available to outstanding students in certain areas of the college. Both the college and departments will generally notify the student of the possibility of such an award.