Honors Program

The University of Michigan - Dearborn Honors Program offers students a suite of interdisciplinary seminars. First-year honors students take Honors Writing and Rhetoric I (COMP 110) and The Four Trials (HONS 300) in the Fall and Honors Writing and Rhetoric I (COMP 220) in the Winter. After that, you and your colleagues can choose when to complete the next courses in the Honors curriculum: Ways of Knowing (HONS 311), Ways of Seeing (HONS 312) and your capstone seminar (HONS 400). HONS program logo

You think it’s a lot of extra classes?

But our six core classes are worthy.

These core courses are six worthy opportunities to read, write, and think in sophisticated ways. These core classes will build your capacity to solve difficult, 21st-century problems.

To help students build this capacity, we offer a suite of interdisciplinary courses that challenge students to read and analyze difficult texts, to write with both clarity and nuance about these texts and their broader contexts, and to think through how the study of fields including history, philosophy, political science, and rhetoric speak to our personal lives, our professional aspirations, and our civic obligations.

Advanced placement classes, exams, and dual-enrollment courses can be indicators of preparedness and ambition but don't exempt students from these core courses we ask our students to take. Our six core classes are worthy. These core classes build on previous academic work and are premiere opportunities to take reading, writing, and thinking skills to higher levels while learning with like-minded students.

Honors students develop a special set of relationships with each other and with the faculty. They get to know each other and build close friendships because they take many of the same courses together. The program regularly sponsors social hours and organizes group outings to concerts, plays, and museums. Students and faculty in the program get to share valuable experiences outside the classroom.

In their first semester of the freshmen year, students take a unique gateway course first, HONS 300 “Four Trials”, in which they study several trials of great world-historical significance. The course introduces students to key developments in philosophy, history, science, and modern secular politics, while also providing an introduction to methods of textual analysis, critical thinking, theoretical reflection, and cogent writing that are the very fundamentals that the program seeks to develop.

In their first and second semesters, students also take two composition courses specially designed for the program. These are small classes, capped at 15 students per section.

Curriculum

HONS 300: Four Trials (first course)
COMP 110: Honors Composition I
COMP 220: Honors Composition II

Between their second and fifth semesters, students complete a sequence of two courses that together cover nearly three millennia of cultural history and thought:

HONS 311: Ways of Knowing
HONS 312: Ways of Seeing
HONS 400: Honors Seminar

In the junior or senior year, Honors students enroll in HONS 400: Honors Seminar. This is a small class, usually with ten to fifteen students. They pursue intensive study of a given topic with a faculty member who is an expert in the field. The course introduces students to timely and important areas of research and it usually requires a major writing assignment.

How Does the Honors Program Fit into the College Curriculum?

The Honors Program provides an alternate route for completing basic required courses. Honors classes satisfy Dearborn Discovery Core requirements for the various units on campus. If a student leaves the program, the classes easily translate into a normal college program with no loss of time or credit. Honors courses are demanding, yet the atmosphere is supportive and honors students generally maintain the same GPA in the program as they would taking ordinary courses.

Apart from their Honors requirements, Honors students follow a normal course of study in their own area of concentration, together with the other students in their unit. They are required to maintain a cumulative grade point average of no less than 3.2 to remain in the Honors program. Any student falling below an overall average of 3.2 at the end of any given semester will be assigned probationary status in the Honors program for the succeeding semester. Failure to improve the overall average to 3.2 or above during that probationary semester will result in dismissal from the Program.

The program accepts students from all units on campus: College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters; College of Engineering and Computer Science; College of Education, Health, and Human Services; and College of Business.

There are no special charges or fees for participation in the program.

Learning from top-notch faculty about engaging topics - like writings of Socrates and restorative justice has helped me to analyze and think more critically.

" I am a Junior majoring in History. To me, the Honors program has not just challenged me academically, it has also challenged me with getting out of my personal bubble and with this granted me the opportunity to make lasting friendships and connections." -Hope Pacheco

“I'm a freshman here in the Honors program, double majoring in Psychology and Integrative Studies. This is my first year in the Honors program, and I find it an astronomical program. It's truly fun and engaging. It is what helped me decide to come to UM-Dearborn; I was really grateful to find out about the small class sizes. After being in the program for a year, I can really see how it is a community, you make lifelong friends, and when you are around others you are ambitious to learn. We are all from different majors, and it's nice to have all of those different perspectives. Overall, no matter your major, interests, etc., this program will open you to new opportunities like studying abroad, networking, and emerging yourself into different situations that you wouldn't experience in your major or general education classes.” -Zion Porter

"I'm a second-year student studying Psychology. The Honors program the last two years has been absolutely amazing from the community we've built with each other to the topics we talk about in the classes." -Juliana Bazzi

"I am a first-year student at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, and this is My first year in the Honors program. The Honors program has not only helped me evolve academically but personally as well; I met so many new people with similar interests! I highly recommend this program!” -Zakaa Reda

“The Honors program has helped me grow my intellectual knowledge as well as my analytical skills. I would consider the Honors program to have a more philosophical view of history and social studies. These classes help students grow a deeper sense of empathy, which is crucial in any field. The Honors program has helped me develop connections with staff as well as students. This is in part due to the smaller classroom setting but mostly because of the incredibly welcoming community.” -Morgan Corley

"Assalamu Alaikum and greetings to you all. I am a sophomore Biochemistry student pursuing medical school. To me, the Honors program provides the space for deep, fascinating discussions with amazing people" -Adam Almaleky

Honors Student Spotlight, Adam Almaleky, Biochemistry & Philosophy

Meet Adam Almaleky who is majoring in Biochemistry with a minor in Philosophy. His accomplishments are quite impressive, including winning first place in the 2024 Hopwood Awards, being a medical assistant at First Choice Medical Center serving hundreds of disadvantaged patients across Metro Detroit, serving as a student researcher under Dr. Kondapalli studying the downstream impacts of endosomal pH regulator, NHE9, being a co-author in the 2024 Mary Ann Liebert Journal of Environmental Justice and also as co-founder of the humanitarian nonprofit, Who is Hussain – Michigan.

When asked about how the Honors Program has helped him in his journey Adam says, “One of the most valuable lessons I've learned through the Honors Program is this mindset of intellectual humility... a simple yet profound principle. Inspired from Plato's account of Socrates, it's reshaped my entire life. It goes like this: because you will never know everything, always keep an open mind to new ideas... like actually consider new ideas... even ones that bother you. If you truly want to learn the truth, your ego can't get in the way.

Personally, I've now realized that the prognosis of intellectual humility is ego death. Which is great! I've become a better son, brother, friend, and person as a result. Besides all this philosophy stuff, the countless cherished friends I've made through the Honors Program is priceless. The program combines a bunch of super cool people you'd never normally get the chance to meet... from all majors and walks of life. Don't even get me started with the pizza, ice-skating, and field trips!

Now, how on earth has this program helped me professionally? What's Socrates going to do for my career? That's the million-dollar question. The answer is.. He'll make his students...millions. Think about it... Writing all of those papers, simplifying complex topics, and reading dense texts - it's drastically strengthened my communication and comprehension skills. Any profession I wish to pursue would benefit from that - entrepreneurial routes, classic routes, or otherwise. Because of the Honors program, I'll be so much more prepared for the CARS section (notoriously known to be the hardest for its critical thinking & comprehension aspect).