University Scholar Pathway for new students starting Fall '22

The Honors Experience guide for students who started prior to Fall '22

Davidson Honors College course offerings for Fall 2024  

Davidson Honors College course offerings for Spring 2024

Each of the honors curriculum options (Construct Your Own, Independent Study, and Internship), as well as the required Capstone Project, all require an application that must be completed with a faculty mentor’s support. If you are interested in any of these curriculum options or are ready to dive into the Capstone Project, schedule an appointment with an Honors Advisor to discuss your ideas before completing the application.

Credit for Internship Opportunities

Internships are a great way for students to gain valuable work experience and on-the-job training. Because the Davidson Honors College values out-of-class experiential learning we are able to offer the opportunity for students to earn credit for their internship opportunities through collaborating with a mentor in developing an academic plan to augment the internship experience. Any DHC student in good academic standing may design an academic internship course for a variable 1-3 credit experience. Students will register for either (HONR 198, 398, or 498) during the term of their internship. The mentor must be willing to evaluate and grade the student’s work, and the student must complete assignments discussed with the mentor that extend the work experience into an academic setting to earn credit. Your mentor will provide the discipline-specific criteria necessary for your work. Generally, it is a good idea to devise coursework that will complement or supplement the material covered in a regular course, major, intended profession, as well as the internship experience. Internship credit can count toward your eight honors experiences. Apply using the Honors Experiential Learning Opportunity Approval Form. 

Honors Capstone Approval Form

To qualify for graduation from the Davidson Honors college with the “University Scholar” distinction, DHC students must fulfill a set of academic requirements, one of which is the Honors Capstone Project. Students should begin thinking about and planning for their project during their junior year. Projects can be connected with Capstone requirements in the student’s major(s), minor(s), certificate program, or can be completed independent of other requirements. Plan to discuss possibilities with a faculty member or members in the area you are interested in, as well as with the Director of Student Engagement in the DHC. These projects may take a wide variety of forms and culminate in a thesis, performance or exhibit, an independent scientific experiment, etc., depending on the student’s major(s), minor, or area of interest. Students must also publish their capstone presentations to UM’s ScholarWorks. Projects are intended to provide DHC students with a substantial capstone experience that encourages them to work in collaboration with a mentor over an extended period of time. These projects should challenge students to draw on knowledge and life experiences that they have attained throughout the course of their education, and apply them to an in-depth investigation of the chosen topic. Apply using the Honors Capstone Approval Form.

Construct Your Own Honors Course Approval Form

The DHC offers students the opportunity to collaborate with faculty in developing their own Honors courses. Any DHC student in good academic standing may make a regularly scheduled 3 or 4 credit course into an Honors course by approaching the faculty member teaching that course and asking them to grant one credit of independent study (HONR 192, 392, or 492) as a space to complete additional coursework. Students are limited to a maximum of two “Construct Your Own” Honors courses that count toward the eight Honors experiences required by the DHC for graduation as a University Scholar.  Submit your request with the Construct-Your-Own Honors Course Form.

Independent Study Course Approval Form

Because the Davidson Honors College is committed to student engagement in learning, we offer the opportunity for students to collaborate with faculty in developing their own Independent Study Honors courses. Independent study courses can be in any discipline and are an opportunity for students to work one-on-one with faculty to design a learning experience tailored to their needs and ideas. Courses are generally 3 credits. Any DHC student in good academic standing can work with a faculty member to design an independent study (HONR 192, 392, or 492) experience. Independent study opportunities can count toward the eight Honors experiences required by the DHC for graduation as a University Scholar. Submit your request with the Independent Study Course Approval Form.

Davidson Honors College Graduation Application

All graduates of the Davidson Honors College need to submit a DHC Graduation Application. There is no cost for the DHC graduation application and it should take around 20 minutes to fill out. 

DHC Graduation Application for Fall 2024

Fall 2024 Graduation Application Deadline: Friday, September 27, 2024

DHC Graduation Application for Spring 2024

Spring 2024 Graduation Application Deadline: By 9 AM on Monday, November 27, 2023

For questions, please contact:

DHC Director of Student Engagement, Bethany Applegate

bethany.applegate@umontana.edu 

DHC Student Success Coordinator, Andy Josten

andy.josten@mso.umt.edu.

Each student will submit a 2-3 page reflection to the DHC elaborating on your experience as an honors student and how your experiential learning, capstone research, and other honors courses/experiences have contributed to meaning-making during your time at the Davidson Honors College.  This reflection should include a thoughtful examination of how you have met the DHC's learning objectives through your time in the honors college. The reflection is due at the end of your final semester.

Honors Graduation Reflection Form

 Bethany Applegate, DHC Director of Student Engagement 

Honors students receive general advising support from the DHC’s Director of Student Engagement, Bethany Applegate, who assists students with honors trajectory planning, honors course selection, honors requirement completion, and general academic advice and guidance. Additionally, the Director of Student Engagement provides advising assistance related to exploring options for out-of-classroom experiential educational opportunities such as study abroad, independent study, and domestic field courses.  

Students in the Davidson Honors College receive priority registration status, which allows them to register before the general UM student body. Please reference the UM Office of the Registrar’s Priority Class Registration Timetable for up-to-date information on when priority registration will open for the coming term.

The Undergraduate Advising Center on the UM Campus is an excellent resource for questions related to advising policies and procedures, timelines, deadlines, and courses. They also have several advisors on staff who can meet with students for 1:1 appointments.