Honors Curriculum Overview

for students who start Honors in Fall 2026 and beyond

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Curriculum Overview

**for first-year students who start Honors in Fall 2026 and beyond **

2026-2027 Catalog

A hub for inter- and cross-disciplinary inquiry and creative teaching and learning, the UMaine Honors College helps students become curious and creative problem-solvers, intellectual risk-takers, and compassionate, engaged individuals. Our four-year developmental “curriculum for inquiry” fosters academic skills and habits of mind that are valuable across all majors and degree programs and prepares students to take the next steps in their personal, intellectual, and professional journeys. The curriculum consists of 19-22 credits and satisfies a large portion of UMaine’s Core Curriculum Requirements (CCR) , as described in detail below.  

Honors credentials are indicated on final transcripts as well as the University of Maine diploma.  Honors graduates are recognized at the University of Maine commencement ceremony and are distinguished by the Honors medallion they receive upon completion of requirements.  

Note: the curriculum described below applies to first-year students who matriculate at the University of Maine beginning in the Fall of 2026. 

The Honors Curriculum is divided into two parts:

I: Cultivating Inquiry and Creative Practice (Semesters 1-4; 12 total credit hours)

From their first Honors class, students will begin building foundational skills in inquiry in small seminars led by world-class faculty members on the cutting edge of knowledge creation, scholarship, and practice. In this 4-course sequence, students will develop and practice increasingly advanced academic and research skills on diverse topics such as rebellious women, the history of plagues, urban landscapes, and biomedical ethics. Learning outcomes will be consistent across all sections, while course themes will vary according to faculty interest and expertise.  Class size is typically 15 students. 

II: Translating Learning into Real-World Impact (Semesters 5-8; 7-10 total credit hours)

In Translating Learning into Real-World Impact, Honors students will consider how their skills can be applied beyond the classroom in the Public Experience Seminar or Public Experience Seminar Alternative. Here students might practice writing for the public in a Calderwood Seminar, take a course on cultural wellbeing, study abroad, or participate in an internship. Next, students will choose one of two pathways: the thesis pathway or the integrative capstone pathway. Students pursuing the thesis pathway will work with a faculty advisor to apply their knowledge and research skills to a topic of their choosing, while the student pursuing the Honors Integrative capstone path will build on capstone coursework in their major. Finally, students will integrate their experiences into an Honors portfolio. Begun in the first semester in Honors, the finished portfolio demonstrates the skills they have gained and the academic, personal, and professional growth they have achieved while at UMaine.

When they complete the curriculum, Honors students will possess a well-curated toolbox of academic and interpersonal skills, along with a polished portfolio that they can utilize in their life after UMaine – whether applying to graduate or professional school, engaging in volunteer work, or entering the workforce. 

Each course in the Honors Curriculum gives students the opportunity to develop core skills in scholarship and inquiry. 

Learn more about the Essential Honors Content Here!

Successful completion of the curriculum outlined below satisfies many of the undergraduate Core Curriculum Human Values and Social Context requirements as well as one writing intensive requirement. For information on which requirements are met by specific Honors courses, see the course descriptions linked below. In many majors, the Honors thesis courses satisfy the Core Curriculum capstone requirement. Some departments also allow HON 499 to fulfill a writing intensive requirement in the major or count as a technical elective. For information about requirements in your major, students should contact their department chair or academic advisor in their major.

Additional note on Core Curriculum Requirements (CCRs): The Honors curriculum does not satisfy the First Year Writing (ENG 101) and Quantitative and Scientific Literacy CCRs.

"Flowchart diagram of the Honors College Curriculum showing a four-year timeline with two distinct paths starting in year three. Detailed text description available below.

Honors College Curriculum Flowchart Description
The flowchart outlines a four-year academic timeline for the Honors College Curriculum, split into sequential blocks and branching paths.

Year One:

Courses: HON 101 (Foundations of Inquiry) & 102 (Evidence and Argument). Students will launch Honors Portfolio.

Year Two:

Courses: HON 201 (Projects for Impact) & 202 (Practice and Scholarship).

Year Three:

Course: HON 301 (Public Experience Seminar) or HON 349 (Public Experience Seminar Alternative) or HON 350 (Molecular Mechanisms of Human Disease).

After Year Three, the curriculum splits into two distinct paths:

Path One (Top Branch)
Year Three: HON 498 (Honors Thesis I).
Year Four: HON 499 (Honors Thesis II), leading to the completion of the Honors Portfolio (HON 401).

Path Two (Bottom Branch)
Year Three & Four: Capstone within major.
Year Four: HON 401 (Honors Integrative Capstone), leading to the completion of the Honors Portfolio (HON 402).

The Honors Curriculum: A Semester-by-Semester guide

The following is based on a student earning their undergraduate degree in 8 semesters and is a general guide only. Except where specified, all Honors courses are 3 credit hours. Note: the program of study may be different for students who complete internships off-campus, take summer coursework, are in credit-intensive majors, etc. Honors advisement throughout each student’s academic career will ensure that they are progressing in the curriculum. 

The Honors College welcomes transfer students (both internal and external) and will work with transfer students individually to craft an appropriate path of study.

HON 101 – Explore: Foundations of Inquiry (Fall)

  • In this first course in the Honors sequence, you will establish and practice foundational academic skills that will launch your Honors and UMaine learning experience.  Drawing on diverse content curated by faculty from across the university, this course will foster core skills in reading critically, writing, source awareness and analysis, learning through discussion, and collaboration. Topics vary.
  • Satisfies Human Cultural Traditions Core Curriculum Requirement (CCR)
  • Honors Portfolio: students will create and contribute to their portfolio, per HC guidelines.
sample HON 101 Offerings

HON 102 – Connect: Evidence & Argument (Spring)

  • In this second course in the Honors sequence, you will enter into the community and practice of active scholarship within various topic areas of instructor expertise. Working within diverse content areas in different sections of the course, each drawing from diverse Global Perspectives, you will develop core skills in writing, editing, and revising; finding and synthesizing scholarly sources, and constructing scholarly arguments. Topics Vary.
  • Satisfies Global Perspectives and Writing Intensive CCRs
  • Honors Portfolio: students will contribute to their portfolio, per HC guidelines.
HON 102 Offerings

HON 201 – Design: Projects for Impact (Fall)

  • In this third course in the Honors sequence, you will develop skills in designing research, scholarly projects or creative practices, and working collaboratively. Engaging with varied content areas in different sections of the course, each drawing on topics related to Human Values and Social Contexts: Environment and Sustainability, you will develop core skills in identifying gaps in research, designing a project, articulating arguments, and recognizing positionality. Topics Vary.
  • Satisfies Environment and Sustainability CCR
  • Honors Portfolio: Students will contribute to their portfolio, per HC guidelines.
HON 201 Offerings

HON 202 – Engage: Practice & Scholarship (Spring)

  • In this fourth course in the Honors sequence, you will practice executing scholarly, creative, or community-based work with attention to ethics, communication, and collaboration. Building on the project design skills developed in HON 201, this course emphasizes responsible follow-through, audience awareness, and interpersonal effectiveness. Across different course topics and formats, all sections of HON 202 share a focus on ethical practice, not as a set of rules, but as a set of habits that shape how you produce, communicate, and share knowledge. Topics Vary.
  • Satisfies Ethics CCR.
  • Honors Portfolio: students will contribute to their portfolio, per HC guidelines.
hON 202 Offerings (Coming Soon)

Honors Public Experience

HON 301*: Public Experience Seminar (Fall/Spring)

*This course will be offered starting Fall 2027

  • Students will put the skills and intellectual habits learned in the Honors core sequence into practice in a public-facing course (e.g. Calderwood Seminar in Public Writing, service-learning course, etc.)
  • HON 301 satisfies the Civic Literacy and Social Contexts CCR
  • Honors Portfolio: students will contribute to their portfolio, per HC guidelines.
hON 301 Offerings (Coming Soon)

or

HON 349: Public Experience Seminar Alternative (Fall/Spring)

  • Students will put the skills and intellectual habits learned in the Honors core sequence into practice in a zero-credit public-facing alternative (e.g. travel study, internship, summer research experience for undergraduates, etc.).
  • Honors Portfolio: students will contribute to their portfolio, per HC guidelines.

**This HON 349 course description and requirement information is only for students who start Honors in Fall 2025 and beyond.**

A student posing in front of an ice cave in Iceland.
A student posing in front of a podium in the Pentagon.
A student posing with a paddle pretending to play guitar while traveling down rapids.

The Public Experience Seminar Alternative (HON 349) allows students to earn Honors credit for substantial experiential learning opportunities that place them in real-world environments where they apply their skills, test their values, and navigate unfamiliar contexts. These experiences typically take place outside of the University of Maine, though students may request exceptions. 

Eligible experiences may include research, internships, travel study, public service, community engagement, creative projects, or other applied work conducted outside the structure of traditional coursework. The emphasis is on stretch experiences: opportunities that move students beyond the comfort and the familiarity of campus life to develop an understanding of public engagement, leadership skills, and applied scholarship.

To qualify, an experience must:

  • Occur outside of UMaine classrooms, laboratories, and student employment
  • Involve engagement with people, institutions, or communities beyond the university
  • Require significant independent initiative and self-direction
  • Provide learning opportunities or professional development not available through existing coursework
  • Entail a time commitment comparable to that of a 3-credit course (approximately 135 hours, which can include preparation time for the experience as well as the experience itself)

Paid experiences may count if they meet the criteria above. Simply performing routine job responsibilities or work unrelated to your academic or public engagement goals is not sufficient.

Process:

Step 1: Students must complete an HON 349 Public Experience Seminar Alternative application form at least one month before embarking on the experience that includes a brief proposal outlining their planned experience, responsibilities, and the length of time they will be engaged in the experience. You will be notified if your proposal is approved within two weeks of submission. 

Step 2: Students will be enrolled in HON 349 by the Coordinator of Academic Advising and Student Success – Sandra Cáceres Tijerina in the semester following the completion of their project. As part of the requirements for HON 349, students will submit the following to the Brightspace page for the course:

  • At least digital 6 photos that could be suitable for the Honors College website, social media, or marketing. If you are working/studying in a situation where photographs are restricted, be creative in taking photos of yourself in front of the building where you work;  with your supervisor, colleagues, or friends; or the community in which you are living.
  • Your choice of a written essay OR a short video (5 min) reflecting on your tutorial alternative experience. The essay or video must explain the significance of the experience, what was learned, and why it matters to others. (The HON 349 syllabus will have more information about this expectation and will be available on Brightspace when you are registered for the course).
  • When relevant, evidence of successful completion of any coursework involved in the tutorial alternative opportunity (for example, a transcript of courses completed during Study Abroad).

Honors Thesis or Integrative Capstone

For more information about the Honors Thesis, click here!
(COMING SOON)
For more information about the integrative capstone, click here! (COMING SOON)

Honors Thesis Track

HON 498*: Honors Thesis I (Fall/Spring/Summer)

  • Students on the Honors Thesis track will begin designing and executing their Honors thesis, under the guidance of their advisor and committee.  
  • Honors Portfolio: students will contribute to their portfolio, per HC guidelines.

or

Integrative Capstone Track

Capstone within
Major (Fall/Spring)

  • Students on the Integrative Capstone track will complete a capstone class in their major or at least 3 credits of their capstone requirements (credits vary).
  • Honors Portfolio: students will contribute to their portfolio, per HC guidelines.

HON 499*: Honors Thesis II (Fall/Spring/Summer)

  • Students on the Honors Thesis track will complete and defend their Honors thesis, under the guidance of their faculty advisor and committee.
  • May satisfy Writing Intensive CCR.
  • Honors Portfolio: students will contribute to their portfolio, per HC guidelines.

or

 HON 401: Honors Integrative Capstone (Fall/Spring)

  • Building on their capstone coursework, students in this course will develop a public-facing presentation of their capstone work through an Honors perspective. 
  • Honors Portfolio: students will contribute to their portfolio, per HC guidelines.

HON 402 : Honors Portfolio (Fall/Spring, 1 credit)

  • Students will integrate their Honors experiences into a curated portfolio that demonstrates the knowledge and skills they have gained and the academic, personal, and professional growth they have achieved throughout their college experience. 

HON 180: A Cultural Odyssey (Fall or Spring)

  • An opportunity for students to extend their cultural education in the context of opportunities available at the University of Maine and in the surrounding area. Various arts events including dance, music, theatre, poetry, and visual art will be explored and analyzed. May be repeated once for credit.
  • Satisfies Artistic and Creative Expression CCR

Honors Courses focused on Genomics

Click Here for more information on HON 150/155/350

HON 150: Phage Genome Discovery I (Fall, 4 credits)

  • This inquiry-driven research course provides a hands-on laboratory experience in which students isolate a novel bacteriophage from the environment and characterized the bacteriophage through experimentation. Topics covered include phage biology and bacteriology, gene structure and expression, DNA isolation, restriction digest analysis, agarose gel electrophoresis, and electron microscopy. In this writing intensive course, students will learn effective scientific writing skills through instruction and writing activities and will write a final manuscript to report their research findings.  Students also carry out activities and reflective writing assignments that simultaneously teach students both scientific content as well as personal, interpersonal, and critical-thinking skills essential to the practice of science.  (HON 150 and BMB 150 are identical courses.)
  • Satisfies Writing Intensive CCR

HON 155: Genome Discovery II: From DNA to Genes (Spring, 4 credits)

  • Provides laboratory experience working on DNA sequence from a bacteriophage isolated during the previous semester.  Topics include bioinformatics, genome annotation, open reading frame and RNA identification, BLAST analysis, phylogenetics and submission to a genomic database.  In addition students will gain skills in designing and running computational experiments, reading the scientific literature, writing scientific papers, and making oral presentations. (HON 155 and BMB 155 are identical courses)

HON 350: The Molecular Mechanisms of Human Disease (Spring, 3 credits)

  • The Molecular Mechanisms of Human Disease (HON 350) Honors tutorial course is designed to give students hands-on experience in biomedical research. The course is held annually over an intense week at MDI Biological Laboratory (MDIBL) in Bar Harbor, Maine and continues at the University of Maine over the course of the Spring semester.
  • Successful completion of HON 350 satisfies the Honors Public Experience requirement.

The Honors portfolio

Designed to evolve over the course of your undergraduate career, the Honors Portfolio is a space for you to collect, reflect, and make meaning of your experiences in the Honors College. Think of the portfolio as a personal record of your academic, cultural, and civic journey through college–a sort of “autobiography” that will grow with you over time and help you connect your coursework to your experiences outside of the classroom in a meaningful way.  Above all, we hope that you will be creative, imaginative, and intentional as you develop a collection of artifacts that captures your personal, intellectual, and academic journey in the UMaine Honors College.

You will launch your portfolio in your first semester in Honors and add material to it each semester.  In your final semester in Honors, you will take a one-credit portfolio completion course (HON 402) in which you will curate your materials–make selections, organize, create coherence among your diverse artifacts–and present on the final product.  In addition to bringing closure to your time at UMaine, your portfolio will also give you an array of materials that you can draw on in your life beyond UMaine.  For more information on how the portfolio works year by year, see the breakdown below. 

Because you will set your portfolio up yourself, you can determine what platform you want to use to keep and how best to organize your materials. Google Drive is easy and free to use, but you could also just keep a folder on your computer or use another platform that works for you. Just remember: you will lose access to your work in Brightspace at the conclusion of any given semester, so be sure you upload any classwork you want to include before your course ends. 

By the time you begin the portfolio completion course (HON 402), you should have at least ten items in your portfolio; most of you will have many more than this.  

  • Some portfolio items will come from your Honors classes.  For example, in most of your Honors courses you will write opening and closing reflections that we will prompt you to put into your portfolio. 
  • In addition, you should add a minimum of 6-8 additional “artifacts” (whether from a course or from a related learning experience) that speak to your journey as a UMaine Honors College student.  Your artifacts can be just about anything you like: they can be papers or assignments from your classes, reflections on books, articles, or experiences (whether in or outside of class), images, videos, poems, or whatever else you might dream up.  This is where your creativity can really shine!
  • Variety in your materials is strongly encouraged! A diverse array of materials will give you a more interesting body of work to draw on when you begin curating your portfolio in HON 402 and will also result in a more interesting final product.

Year One:  Getting going!  You’ll write personal reflections at the start and end of HON 101 and of HON 102.  Also select two or three additional artifacts that capture your first year as a Black Bear!

Year Two: Reflections at the start and end of HON 201 and of HON 202 will continue to help you frame things; you will also add two or three more artifacts. Your portfolio may begin taking shape and direction, with evident themes and interests emerging. 

Year Three: Your third year in Honors will entail a variety of experiences tailored to you, from a public engagement course to an internship or study abroad to designing your thesis project or advancing your integrative capstone work.  You will add two or three artifacts to your portfolio that capture your unique third-year experience. 

Year Four: Gathering your final artifacts, you will take a one credit-hour course (HON 402) where you will curate and share your work and finalize the portfolio for submission.

Most importantly, add items as you go and err on the side of more rather than less.  There is no harm in putting items in your Portfolio that you may not ultimately use.  Feel great about a project you did in a class?  Load it in!  Saw a concert or a film that really moved you?  Write up some thoughts and drop them in!  Did some volunteer work?  Reflect on what that work meant to you, and add that to your portfolio.  

By adding as you go, you will start your portfolio completion course with a robust and varied array of items that will give you great material to work with.  

One other tip: when you add an item to your portfolio, be sure to jot a few notes down to remind yourself why you are including it/why you thought it was important.  Otherwise, you might not remember when it comes time to curate your portfolio! 

Academic Standing Policy

Academic Standing Policy PDF

Graduation from the Honors College requires completion of all curricular and portfolio requirements, a cumulative GPA of 3.30, and a grade of C or better in all Honors courses.  

The Honors College monitors students’ progress in their coursework each semester, including GPAs and Honors grades, and in the program overall. Stated due dates, deadlines, and expectations are designed to ensure that students stay on track, fulfill requirements in a timely fashion, and complete high-quality work. For students who experience academic challenges, the policies outlined below are designed to help them resolve those challenges and ensure that the path to graduation with Honors remains feasible and open whenever possible.

Students who maintain a GPA of 3.3 or higher, who earn grades of C or better in all Honors courses, and who are making progress toward completion of all Honors requirements (including the portfolio) are in good standing in Honors. 

The following conditions are grounds for Honors College Probation*:

Students whose cumulative GPA falls between 2.7 and 3.299 will be placed on Honors College probation. Students must achieve a 3.3 GPA prior to embarking on their thesis or their integrative capstone; students whose cumulative GPA is below 3.3 will not be allowed to take HON 498, HON 499, or HON 401. 

Probationary process: To support progress toward Honors completion, students placed on probation will be required to meet with a member of the Honors College advising team within the first two weeks of the probationary semester to establish an Academic Improvement Plan. The plan will include academic goals, success strategies, and benchmarks for steady academic improvement. Students who improve their cumulative GPA will be allowed to remain on probation until they achieve a 3.3 GPA or embark on their thesis/integrative capstone where they will need to be at a 3.30 or higher, as indicated above. Students who do not improve their GPAs will be dismissed from the Honors College, with the opportunity to appeal. 

*Note: the Honors College probation process is an internal one and does not have an impact on your academic standing in your degree program or at UMaine more generally.  

The following conditions are grounds for Honors College Dismissal: 

  • Cumulative GPA below 2.7 for students who have not yet embarked on their thesis or integrative capstone; cumulative GPA below 3.3 for students who have embarked on their thesis/integrative capstone.
  • Grade below a C in any Honors course.
  • Not making satisfactory progress in the Honors curriculum (for example, not being registered for an Honors class for two consecutive semesters without prior arrangement with the Honors College, or not completing course or thesis/integrative capstone requirements).
  • Failing to respond in a timely fashion to outreach from the Honors College (instructors, thesis/project advisors, or dean’s office).
  • For students on Honors College probation, failure to improve their cumulative GPA.Cumulative GPA below 3.0.

Dismissal process:   Students will be given an opportunity to appeal their dismissal; if reinstated, they will move into the probationary process, as outlined above.

Students seeking to withdraw from the Honors College should send an email to honors@maine.edu for information about the withdrawal process. Good standing in and graduation from the Honors College requires a cumulative GPA of 3.30, and a  grade of C or better in all Honors courses. 

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