Individual Honors Contracts

A student enrolled in a 300- or 400-level non-Honors section of an appropriate course may apply to receive Honors credit for the course through an Individual Honors Contract. Students requesting a possible Individual Honors Contract must have a minimum University of Delaware GPA of 3.30.

Individual Honors Contracts should be requested only in circumstances where no Honors course alternative can be identified. If an Honors course alternative exists that will provide you with the credits you need, it is best to take an existing Honors course. Individual Honors Contracts are ideally intended for use by a student interested in pursuing more in depth study of advanced material in the major or another field of significant interest to the student through a course for which an Honors section is not regularly offered.

PLEASE NOTE:

  • Contracts may not be requested for 100- and 200-level courses.
  • Only one Honors Individual Contract or Honors Independent Study can be requested per term.
  • No more than three total contracts will be permitted and may count toward the Honors Degree.
  • Creating an Individual Honors Contract is at the discretion of the individual faculty member and is subject to the approval of the department chair. Not all departments allow the creation of Individual Honors Contracts. The Honors Office will inform you these issues in step one in this process.

Step One: Indicate your interest by submitting Individual Honors Contract Interest Form. The Interest Form must be submitted by no later than the following deadlines:

  • For Fall semester courses – May 1 deadline
  • For Spring semester courses – Dec. 1 deadline
  • For Winter session courses – Nov. 15 deadline
  • For Summer session courses – April 15 deadline

You will be contacted about your Interest Form request within 10 business days of the listed deadline above.

Step Two: If your interest request is appropriate, you will be instructed on the process of creating an Individual Honors Contract by a member of the Honors staff. This process will involve working with a faculty member to create a challenging and enriching Honors course experience. Your finalized Individual Honors Contract paperwork must be submitted to the Honors Office, either by email or in-person, no later than 2 weeks prior to the first day of the semester for approval by the Deputy Director prior to the start of the semester.

For more information, email honors@udel.edu