Robert Donald Clark Honors College

http://honors.uoregon.edu

Carol Stabile, Acting Dean
541-346-5414
541-346-0125 fax
Chapman Hall
1293 University of Oregon
Eugene, Oregon 97403-1293
honors@uoregon.edu

The Robert Donald Clark Honors College at the University of Oregon is a competitively enrolled college of approximately 1,400 students. Its classes—limited to 19 students—and four-year curriculum features close interaction between students and faculty members. The Clark Honors College offers a liberal arts curriculum with all the advantages of a large research institution.

The college's curriculum—lower-division courses, upper-division colloquia, and thesis courses—integrate the humanities, social sciences, and sciences and foregrounds the study of diverse cultures and issues. Honors college courses are taught by core faculty members as well as by specially selected affiliated faculty members from other campus schools and programs. The college's curriculum replaces the general-education requirements mandated for all other university students.

The Clark Honors College is the university’s honor college: honors college students enroll in every school and department at the university, from architecture and music to biology and business. Each honors college student selects a major from the academic departments or professional schools of the university. Twenty-one percent of honors students have more than one major. 

An honors college undergraduate education culminates in a thesis project completed in students’ major field. The thesis project prepares students for success in multiple career paths, from industry and government to graduate and professional school. The thesis project is the culmination of a Clark Honors College education, emphasizing curiosity, independent research, the capacity to design and execute a complex project, and the ability to analyze and present the results of their research both in writing and in an oral presentation in a clear and compelling manner. 

Students pay honors college tuition, known as differential tuition, established yearly by the University of Oregon Board of Trustees. Complete tuition information is available on the honors college website. The honors college awards need-based tuition-remission scholarships based on the expected family contribution listed on a student’s Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Scholarships covering the cost of differential tuition are offered through the Office of Admissions and the Office of Student Financial Aid and Scholarships based on demonstrated financial need as determined by the FAFSA.

Facilities

The Clark Honors College is located in historic Chapman Hall on the west side of the University of Oregon campus, close to Knight Library. Renovated in 2018, the building provides classrooms, student common areas, and a library.

The honors college academic residential community (ARC) is located on the east side of campus in the Global Scholars Hall and the adjacent Justice Bean Hall. The ARC offers academic and social programming and access to campus resources that support undergraduate research.

Programs 

Calderwood Seminars in Public Writing (CSPW)

CSPWs are small (12 student) writing-intensive seminars targeted at juniors and seniors that teach students how to translate complex arguments and professional jargon to a broad audience. In these courses, students engage in forms of writing very different from the academic writing done in most courses. The seminars allow students to work collaboratively in the writing and peer-editing process. The fast-paced exchanges of drafts between writers and editors and the deadline-driven structure of the course simulate the work environment of professional journalists. Intensive discussion, feedback, and shared commitment to the clear expression of ideas create camaraderie and cooperation among student writers.

3 + 3 Program

The 3 + 3 Program enables highly talented and motivated honors college students interested in a legal career to complete both a bachelor’s degree and a doctor of jurisprudence at the University of Oregon in six years rather than the usual seven. All honors college students who meet the minimum requirements are guaranteed admission to the UO School of Law. Advantages of the program include

·       Saving a year’s tuition and living expenses associated with undergraduate education

·       Getting an early start on establishing a professional career

·       Avoiding the time, effort, and expense of applying to multiple law schools

Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program

Each term, Clark Honors College offers one or two course sections of the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program, which brings together honors students and incarcerated men and women to study as peers in a seminar behind prison walls. The course meets once a week in Salem, Oregon (the state capitol), at a major correctional institution. Each class includes as many as 12 “outside” (Clark Honors College) students and the same number of “inside” (incarcerated) students.

CHC/UO’s Knight Campus Undergraduate Scholars Program

In partnership with UO’s Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact, the Clark Honors College sponsors two mentored research opportunities for second- and third-year CHC students majoring in the natural sciences in a Knight Campus-affiliated lab. Each selected CHC Scholar receives $8,000 in support.

Oregon Health and Science University Internships

Each year Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU), a leading, nationally ranked medical teaching school, hosts an internship program in its Department of Cell, Developmental, and Cancer Biology. A partnership between the Clark Honors College and OHSU reserves two intern spots exclusively for CHC students. This partnership provides an invaluable firsthand learning experience for undergraduate students considering a medical career.

Oregon Forensics

Oregon Forensics provides students with unique opportunities to develop advocacy, critical thinking, and collaboration skills, with instructional and competitive opportunities in debate and mock trial. All students are welcome, regardless of experience or background. Students learn to translate and communicate what they learn in the classroom for different contexts and audiences. Students acquire and refine the ability to carefully evaluate complex and often controversial issues from varied points of view, guided by the latest in scholarly research. The program emphasizes education, community, and competition. Oregon Forensics enjoys considerable competitive success, including a 5^th National Championship in debate in 2022.

Entering the Clark Honors College

Clark Honors College seeks high-achieving, academically motivated students who will make diverse and unique contributions to its community. The admissions committee looks for evidence of academic scholarship, motivation, and creative and independent critical thinking.

Application Procedure

General university application procedures, prerequisites, and requirements apply. First-year applicants to Clark Honors College may complete the UO’s online application, the Common Application, or the Coalition Application to apply to both the honors college and the University of Oregon at the same time. Transfer students with an excellent academic record who have attended another higher-education institution should complete the University of Oregon’s online transfer application. International students who wish to apply must complete an International Undergraduate Application for Admission. 

Current UO students may apply for admission as lateral transfers by completing the Clark Honors College application on Duck Web. Applications are accepted for winter, spring, and fall terms, subject to the specific application windows and corresponding deadlines for lateral transfers.

Application Deadlines

Freshman applications:

Early notification deadline: November 1
Supporting documents due by November 15
Regular notification deadline: January 15
Supporting documents due by February 15

Deadlines to apply are the same for all first-year applicants including domestic and international freshmen and institutional transfer students.

Lateral Transfer Applications for Current UO Students:

Winter term admission deadline: October 15

Spring term admission deadline: January 15

Fall term admission deadline:  March 15

Faculty

Dare Baldwin, Professor, Psychology

Corinne Bayerl, Senior Instructor I, Comparative Literature, German/Scandinavian

Anita Chari, Associate Professor, Political Science

Nicole Dudukovic, Senior Instructor I, Neurosciences Major Director, Psychology  

Daphne Gallagher, Senior Instructor I, Clark Honors College

Alison Gash, Associate Professor, Political Science    

Lindsay Hinkle, Instructor, Clark Honors College          

Trond Jacobsen, Instructor, Director of Forensics, Clark Honors College

Ian McNeely, Professor, History, European Studies, German & Scandinavian

Brian McWhorter, Professor, School of Music and Dance     

Michael Moffitt, Professor, School of Law

Kate Mondloch, Professor, History of Art & Architecture

Barbara Mossberg, Professor of Practice in Literature, Clark Honors College

Lisa Munger, Instructor, Clark Honors College

Carol Paty, Professor, Earth Sciences, Physics

Elizabeth Raisanen, Officer of Admin, Clark Honors College

Angela Rovak, Office of Admin, Clark Honors College           

Casey Shoop, Senior Instructor I, Clark Honors College         

Carol Stabile, Professor, Women & Gender Studies

Lisa Wolverton, Professor, History

Emeritus Faculty

Henry M. Alley, Professor emeritus. 

Louise M. Bishop, Associate Professor emerita. 

Joseph G. Fracchia, Professor emeritus.

David Frank, Professor emeritus.

Roxann Prazniak, Professor emerita.

Academic Requirements

Requirements in the honors college satisfy the core-education requirements that other University of Oregon students meet for graduation. Honors college faculty and professional advisors advise honors college students concerning these requirements and mentor them concerning their academic choices. Students retain full responsibility for understanding and shaping their study programs.

Depending on test scores, students may use advanced placement or international baccalaureate credits as well as transfer credits from other higher education institutions toward honors college outside course requirements, second-language requirements, applicable major requirements, cultural literacy requirements, or university electives. To earn a BS degree, students must complete one year of college-level mathematics or the equivalent. Advanced placement, international baccalaureate, and transfer credits may help fulfill either such a math requirement or the language requirement.

University and Major Requirements

Honors college requirements, which replace university core-education requirements, represent roughly one-third of a student’s total four-year schedule. Before graduating, Clark Honors College students must also meet the requirements, listed elsewhere in this catalog, of their major department or professional school. They must maintain a 3.00 or better cumulative grade point average (GPA).

Clark Honors College students who have completed the CHC core education requirements (HC 101H, 221H, 231H, 241H, and 301H; Area of Inquiry approved courses outside the CHC in Arts and Letters, Social Science, and Science (one course in each area); an approved quantitative reasoning course; and 20 credits in upper division CHC Colloquia) have fulfilled the university’s Area of Inquiry requirements. Should a student leave the CHC after successful completion of all of these requirements, the student will retain their clearance of the university’s Area of Inquiry requirements.

Honors College Degree Requirements

Majors, Degrees, and Contexts Waiving Second-Language Requirement

• Accounting
• Biology
• Business administration
• Biochemistry
• Chemistry
• Computer science
• Data science
• Earth sciences
• Environmental science
• Environmental studies
• General science
• Human physiology
• Math and computer science
• Marine biology
• Music, only in cases in which the second language is not a requirement for the student's chosen degree (Note: The second language requirement is not waived for General Music and Popular Music concentrations)
• Bachelor of Music in Music Education
• Music Composition
• Music Performance
• Music Technology
• Neuroscience
• Jazz Studies
• Physics
• Product design
• Bachelor of architecture
• Bachelor of interior architecture
• Bachelor of landscape architecture
• Students pursuing a bachelor of fine arts degrees (students must still fulfill the BFA Language or Math/Science Requirement)

Writing

The honors college is committed to excellence in writing. The core curriculum integrates instruction and practice in fundamental rhetorical skills—writing, reading, speaking, and listening—with the subject matter of the courses. Students who complete the honors college lower-division courses (HC 101H, HC 221H, HC 231H, and HC 241H) as well as HC 301H with a grade point average of 3.00 or better in all five courses satisfy the university's writing requirement if they withdraw from the honors college.

Four-Year Degree Plan

The degree plan shown is only an example of how students may complete their degrees in four years. There are alternative ways to navigate the CHC curriculum. Students should consult their advisor to determine the best path for them.The Robert D. Clark Honors College is not a major. Students who follow the honors college curriculum fulfill all of the University of Oregon’s core education requirements. Honors college requirements must be taken for a letter grade, unless pass/no pass is the only option. In addition, only courses passed with grades of C– or better will fulfill honors college requirements.

Bachelor of Arts