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Honors

Two students working on building a plane
 

Honors Pathways

There are three distinct pathways to honors within engineering:

  • EGR 430D: Independent work in any area of engineering with a faculty member for a total of 8 credits. This pathway is separate from the capstone design experience required for the B.S. degree.
  • EGR 431D: Independent work in engineering design with a faculty member for a total of 8 credits. This pathway counts toward the capstone design experience required for the B.S. degree and must be taken concurrently with EGR 410D (2 additional credits).

Students who wish to pursue honors within engineering are required to follow the college guidelines found on the Class Deans website.

Engineering Program Honors Guidelines

To be eligible to apply to participate in the honors program in engineering, students must have a 3.5 average for all engineering, math, science and computer science courses through the junior year and a 3.0 average for courses outside those listed above through the junior year. In addition, applicants must document how they have demonstrated their ability to work independently. A student applying to the Smith College Departmental Honors Program must have approval of the major department or program before the application can be forwarded to the Subcommittee on Honors and Independent Programs.

Applicants for EGR 430D Honors Project or EGR 431D Honors Capstone with Faculty must complete the honors application paperwork including a thesis proposal, obtain a signature from the faculty adviser and submit the signed package to the departmental director of honors by 5 p.m. Wednesday of the first full week of classes of the fall semester. The engineering faculty will vote on all honors applications; approved applications will be forwarded to the college’s Subcommittee on Honors and Independent Programs for final approval.

In engineering, the overall honors evaluation is based upon the following three criteria at the given percentages:

  • 20% grades
  • 60% written thesis
  • 20% oral presentation

Apply for Honors

Students who wish to apply to enter the Departmental Honors Program must follow the guidelines and submit the application for departmental honors. More information is available on the Class Deans website.