Honors Course by Contracts allow students to pursue individualized work within the framework of a non-honors class and engage in study beyond the course requirements. The student will receive an Honors (H) designation from the registrar but the course itself remains non-honors.
Developed between the faculty member and student, contracts empower the student to take a leading role in their education and provide opportunities for faculty mentorship. Contracts are unique to each course, should never feel burdensome, and be qualitatively different from that assigned to other students in the course. For instance, contract work may accentuate increased depth or complexity on a particular topic and may require additional reading or research. Activities should involve critical thinking, creativity, rigorous scholarship, and independent study.
Examples might include:
• a traditional research paper or elevated class paper
• a case study or series of case studies
• a specialized lab experiment
• an art project, musical, or literary composition
• an original software or hardware creation
• an empirical research study or fieldwork
• an extensive gathering and analysis of quantitative or qualitative data
Honors Course by Contract Application Process
Only students participating in the University Honors Program can create a course contract.
1. An Honors Student will contact the professor who teaches the course in which they wish to complete a contract (preferably prior to registration or before the start of the semester). The contract proposal must be submitted before the Add/Drop Class Deadline (usually the third week of instruction). The student and professor will agree upon the requirements and expectations for the contract.
2. The student will fill out the Honors Course by Contract Proposal Form and send to the professor for their approval and signature.
3. Once the form is signed by both the professor and the student, the student will email the completed form to honors@ucmerced.edu for review and comments by the DUE-EC Honors Subcommittee who will notify both the student and professor upon approval.
4. At the end of the semester, the professor will fill out the Honors Course by Contract Completion Form and send to honors@ucmerced.edu. This must be accomplished prior to the semester's grade submission deadline.
