English Honors Program

The Department of English Honors Program will provide a carefully selected group of seniors with opportunities for advanced scholarship:

1. Closer contact with faculty tutors than students in the regular major program;
2. An opportunity to work and exchange ideas in the stimulating environment of a small group of fellow students with similar aims and abilities;
3. An opportunity to develop individual initiative and sophisticated critical skills.

The English Honors Program will benefit those interested in graduate work, advanced professional study, or greater intellectual challenges.

Admissions Criteria

Students may apply for the program after completing 80 hours of course work (90 before actual admission). Applicants should have a GPA of 3.3 in the major and an overall GPA of 3.0 and should submit signatures of recommendation from two English faculty supporting their applications.

After screening all applications, the department’s Honors Committee will select participants for each year’s program.

Requirements for Completion of Departmental Honors

1. The Honors student will complete the requirements of his/her chosen English major as described in the current catalog.
2. In addition to the requirements of the major, the student will take two (three-hour) Honors seminars during the first semester of his/her admission year. Both courses should help the student in selecting a topic for his/her Honors thesis.
3. During the second semester of the program, the Honors student will enroll for three thesis hours. The Director of the English Honors Program will serve as instructor of record for the thesis hours. Under the direction of the instructors of the Honors seminars and/or the Director of the English Honors Program, the student will choose a member of the English Department faculty to serve as director or his/her thesis and one or two additional faculty members to serve as readers of the thesis. The student must satisfy the following requirements:
   1. Complete both Honors seminars with a 3.3 GPA;
   2. Complete all remaining major requirements with a 3.3 GPA and remaining academic course work with an overall GPA of 3.0;
   3. Submit an acceptable thesis to the Departmental Honors committee.
4. The student who completes all requirements above will graduate with Honors in English. The credit hours completed within the program by the student who does not complete all Honors requirements will, of course, count toward the baccalaureate degree.

The Honors Committee will disqualify any student from the program who does not complete the Honors seminars with at least a 3.3 GPA.

Honors students failing to complete a thesis within two years after acceptance into the program will be notified by the Honors Committee of their dismissal from the program.

The English Honors Thesis

The English Honors thesis, the final step in the completion of English Honors, is a 3-hour thesis written in the field of the English major, either in literary analysis or in creative writing. This independent project emphasizes analytical and critical thinking abilities, writing skills, competence in research and scholarship, and creativity.

The student should select a topic as early as possible in the Honors program in consultation with the seminar professors and\or the Director of English Honors. This topic may or may not be related to the material studied in the two Honors seminars. The student will then consult with the Director on the selection of an appropriate director for the thesis. In general, any member of the regular English faculty can direct the thesis. The committee for the thesis will consist of the thesis director and at least one other faculty member approved by the thesis director.

The student will register for the 3-hour course ENG 4970, Honors Thesis hours, in the spring semester following the completion of the two English Honors seminars, ENG 4935 and ENG 4936, in the fall. The thesis must be completed within two years of the student’s acceptance into English Honors; however, the student should not register for any additional thesis hours.

The role of a thesis director is to direct and guide the student throughout the project. The student is expected to consult regularly with his\her thesis director, submit regular drafts showing his\her progress on the thesis, and follow whatever schedule of deadlines the director assigns.

The student will submit to the Director of English Honors a prospectus approved by the thesis director along with the prospectus approval form available in CPR 358J. The prospectus is typically 2-4 pages long and consists of a description of the project and\or the first few pages of the thesis.

Both a hard copy and an electronic copy (disk) of the approved final thesis must be submitted to the Director of English Honors at least two weeks before the final day of the semester in which the student plans to graduate. The director of the thesis will determine the nature of the presentation of the thesis, which could range from a public presentation or a final, less formal gathering in the director’s office.

The student must submit to the USF Library two unbound copies of the thesis and must save the receipt from the Library.

Students who are enrolled in both Honors College and English Honors may use the same thesis for both programs; however, they must remember that the Honors College thesis must reflect 6-9 semester hours of work.

While there is no set requirement as to length of the thesis, essays of literary analysis have generally ranged from 34-50 pages. There is no average length of creative writing projects, which by their nature can involve more variable formats and requirements.

The thesis should follow the formatting and documentation style of the 7th Edition of the MLA manual.

An appropriate amount of research, deemed acceptable by the thesis director, must be properly cited and documented in a thesis of literary analysis or in any project using outside sources. Follow the 7th Edition of the MLA style manual.

Samples of former English Honors theses are available for onsite examination in the English Honors office, CPR 358J.

CHECKLIST

• Register for English Honors thesis hours (ENG 4970) in the spring semester following your completion of the English Honors seminars, ENG 4935 and ENG 4936.
• Find a general topic for the thesis. Consult with one of the seminar professors or with the Director of English Honors concerning your choice of topic.
• Find a thesis director. Consult with the Director of English Honors concerning your choice of professor to serve as director of the thesis. Then ask the chosen professor to serve as your thesis director.
• Consult with your thesis director on the selection of another faculty reader for your thesis committee, which must consist of your director and at least one other member approved by your director.
• Narrow the thesis topic. Consult with your director on the process of narrowing the focus of your thesis to a workable topic.
• After working closely with your thesis director, submit the completed prospectus approval form, available in the English Honors office, to the Director of English Honors.
• Continue to work closely with your thesis director as you write your thesis. Submit regular drafts of your work to that director during the thesis process. Follow whatever schedule of deadlines your director assigns to you.
• Finish the thesis within two years following your admission into the English Honors program.
• Submit your final thesis to your thesis director for his\her approval at least two weeks before the final day of the semester when you plan to complete ENG 4970. Any formal presentation will be required at the discretion of the thesis director, who may prefer a less formal final meeting.
• Submit these final materials to the Director of English Honors at least one week before you plan to complete ENG 4970: a hard copy of your final approved thesis, an electronic copy of the thesis on a disk, the signed and graded thesis approval form available in the English Honors office, CPR 358J, and a copy of the Library receipt.
• Submit two unbound copies to the USF Library. Save your receipt.