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Undergraduate Program

Degree Offered

• Bachelor of Arts in Honors Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts (B.A.)

The faculty of the University of New Mexico Honors College offer a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Honors Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts. This baccalaureate degree program provides the opportunity for students in the Honors College to develop a broad, interdisciplinary and experiential liberal arts education, similar to that offered by many small liberal arts colleges, but within the context of a flagship research institution. The program provides students with a foundation in social and behavioral studies, physical and natural sciences, humanities, communications, mathematics, and fine arts; and allows students to focus on a specific area of interdisciplinary study.

Students majoring in Honors Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts have the opportunity to discover connections among disciplines and analyze and evaluate primary and complex texts across diverse genres and styles and from different historical periods. They perform research and produce original work that integrates ideas and methods from different disciplines and learn to adapt to new environments and developing technologies. Students are expected to have intercultural knowledge and competence and develop personal and social responsibility, including civic knowledge and engagement—local and global. 

Bachelor of Arts in Honors Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts

Requirements

Students accepted as majors in Honors Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts must maintain a GPA of at least 3.5 and complete:

1.  A minor or second major in a field of study that complements or supports their capstone project;*

2.  18 credit hours in courses numbered 300 and higher containing significant coursework involving skills as defined by Honors College program student learning outcomes: interdisciplinarity, research, community engagement, critical thinking, communication skills, creative thinking;

3.  6 hours in an Honors integrative block or equivalent;

4.  At least 36 credit hours in UHON or HNRS courses, including:

• 3 credit hours at each of the 1000- (or 100-), 2000- (or 200-), 300-, or 400-levels
• 12-18 elective credit hours, at least 12 of which are at the 300-level or higher  
• 6 credit hours may include integrative block if taken as UHON or HNRS;
• 6 credit hours of coursework in one interdisciplinary capstone:

         >  Thesis/project: UHON 490 and UHON 491, or
         >  Senior Teaching: UHON 492 and UHON 493, or
         >  Service Learning: UHON 495 and UHON 496;

5.  At least 120 total credit hours;

6.  At least 12 credit hours of a single non-English language or provide evidence of equivalent proficiency.**

7.  All General Education curriculum requirements, some of which may be completed through UHON courses. Refer to the Undergraduate Program section of this Catalog for information on courses that meet General Education curriculum and U.S. and Global Diversity and Inclusion requirements.

For more information about the major and how to assemble a program of study, visit the Honors College Web site or speak with an advisor in the Honors College.

Notes:
* Separate fields are generally defined as the General Education curriculum areas plus additional colleges or schools at UNM that offer undergraduate coursework.
** Information about language proficiency equivalence can be found through the Foreign Languages and Literatures Department.

Minor Study

The undergraduate minor in Honors Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts is intended to complement, broaden and enhance a student's educational choices while at UNM. Students who complete the minor in Honors Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts are expected to produce original work that integrates ideas and methods from different disciplines, to analyze and evaluate foundational and primary works, to gain knowledge of diverse cultures and to acquire civic knowledge and apply ethical reasoning.

Requirements

All candidates for the Interdisciplinary Liberal Arts minor must be admitted to the Honors College and maintain at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA.

Successful candidates for the minor must complete 24 credit hours in UHON courses, or other approved courses, including:

• 3 credit hours at each of the 100-, 200-, 300-, and 400-levels.
• 12 additional credit hours, of which at least 6 must be upper-division (300- or 400-level).

At least 15 credit hours must be completed in UHON courses. Up to 9 credit hours in approved courses offered by other units may be used to satisfy minor requirements.

UNM Honors Scholar Distinction

The UNM Honors Scholar Distinction is intended to provide students with a flexible, high-level Honors experience, utilizing courses taught at the Honors College (HNRS, UHON) and departmental honors course offerings. 

Requirements

All candidates for the UNM Honors Scholar Distinction must be admitted to the Honors College and maintain at least a 3.20 cumulative GPA. Students must successfully complete 27 credit hours, including at least 15 credit hours in HNRS/UHON courses and up to 12 credit hours in departmental honors courses or from other courses approved by Honors College, distributed as follows:

• HNRS 1120 Honors Legacy Seminar (3 credit hours);
• One 2000-level HNRS/UHON course (3 credit hours);
• One 300-level UHON course (3 credit hours);
• One 400-level UHON course (3 credit hours);
• One additional HNRS/UHON course (3 credit hours);
• Four additional upper-division HNRS/UHON or departmental honors courses, including thesis and other capstone courses (12 credit hours).

Honors College Grading System

Courses offered in the Honors College under the UHON subject code use a unique grading system. Students receive grades of A, CR, NC, and I. This grading system is designed to encourage students to broaden their general education by challenging themselves and taking courses outside their areas of specialty. Under this system, students may be rewarded for superior performance (A) but not penalized for ordinary, satisfactory performance (CR) or for failure to complete the seminar or do poorly (NC). The program is designed to offer intellectual challenge, and students are expected to achieve at their highest levels; at the same time, competition for high grades is minimized. Taking Honors seminars under this grading system does not cancel the right of students to elect other University of New Mexico courses on a Credit/No Credit "CR/NC" basis up to a maximum of 24 credit hours. In addition, Honors faculty provide individual written evaluations of each student in their seminars. These evaluations are kept in the student’s confidential, personal file. Students are encouraged to review their evaluations and write a response to an evaluation if they disagree.