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Honors 491: Junior Honors Seminars

HON 491 Junior Honors Seminar (3) Project-based experiential learning involving community-based research or creative work.  Focus on project design, practical skills, and teamwork.  Multi-disciplinary topics vary each semester. Required of, and limited to, candidates for Honors degree.  A-F only.

The Junior Honors Seminar forms the "breadth" component of the Honors degree requirements, contrasting with the in-depth study within a discipline entailed in the Senior Honors Project.  This multi-disciplinary seminar provides opportunities for experiential learning and ideally it is  organized around a class project in which students work both as a collective and in teams to solve problems outside of the typical classroom setting.  This seminar may challenge students in research, creative work, or other applied forms of scholarly activity.

Particularly favored by the Honors Program are proposals for problem-based and/or community-based research, case studies, design-projects, and other activities that will provide hands-on training that may be useful for the Senior Honors Project.

 Seminars usually meet once per week and enrollment is limited to 15 students.  The course is usually offered with a Writing (W) Focus designation. 

These seminars challenge students by taking them outside the specialized focus of their major and by asking them to approach complex issues or problems in new ways.   Emphasis is on student participation, on writing and speaking to the point, on analysis, and on intellectual growth.

Topics of these seminars vary from semester to semester.

Most students take this course the first semester in the program, but it can be taken at any time.  You need to pre-register for this course and in order to do this you should attend an advising appointment.  Please contact the Honors Office, Sinclair 103 (honors@hawaii.edu, 956-8391)to do this.

Grading is presently on a A-F basis, and your instructor submits a critique of your participation in discussions and your written work. 

Please note that in some cases, a Study Abroad semester or another "breadth" experience (such as National Student Exchange, Western Undergraduate Exchange, a multi-disciplinary seminar, or internship), may  substitute for HON 491. 

Please see Waiver Policy for HON 491 and HON 495

Student Learning Outcomes

  • students will understand multiple disciplinary perspectives on a topic

  • students will develop skills for practical inquiry into a topic

  • students will develop skills for participation in seminars

  • students will learn to critically read primary and scholarly publications

   Guidelines for Senior Honors Seminar proposals (HON 491) (MSWord Doc)