Upper Level Honors courses

HONR 196 Research Fellowship (3 cr)
This course designation is for students who have been awarded the Honors Student/Faculty Development fellowship and wish to receive Honors elective credit toward fulfilling their Honors Track requirements. Students may only register for this course after they have been notified of their award by the Honors Director and given permission to do so. See Honors Student/Faculty Development Fellowship for more information.

HONR 197 Honors Senior Thesis Research Seminar (3 cr)
This cross listed course is for Honors Senior Thesis students who desire concrete support and accountability to aid the completion of their thesis. This seminar uses traditional course days and times to meet each week. Students will create a research plan, design, and execute historical research, collaborate with peers to share, and receive, feedback, and present their research to the Drake community. Honors students completing their Honors Senior Thesis may register for this course in place of HONR 199 Honors Senior Thesis, and both may fulfill the Honors Senior Thesis requirement for University Honors. 

HONR 198: Independent Study (1-3 cr). 
To encourage independent scholarship, students may earn Honors credit in an approved independent study either within the Honors Program or another department. Examples include a scientific experiment, a painting, a work of literary criticism, a short film or a research paper based on community service learning. The product is typically presented at a public forum near semester's end and must be completed in conjunction with a faculty adviser. Interested students should consult with the Honors Program Director before completing the Honors Independent Study Request.

The Honors independent study option is usually reserved for students who must, or need, to take it to pursue an educational, research, or professional needs, or a course of study not offered through regular Honors course offerings. 

CREDIT: HONR 198 may count as an Honors elective; no more than 3 Independent Study credits may count toward the Honors electives requirement of 15. 

PREREQUISITE: Sophomore or higher standing, consent of a Drake faculty member and the Honors Program Director.

REQUEST FORM:

• Completed BEFORE registering for HONR 198, and BEFORE the end of the semester preceding the Independent Study.
• Requires Honors Director approval. These courses are reserved for students who must, or need, take it in order to pursue a course of study not offered through regular course offering. 

HONR 199: Honors Senior Thesis (3 cr).
The Honors Senior Thesis (HST) is required to graduate with Honors and is a culminating academic experience that allowing students to explore a personally meaningful question through interdisciplinary research and demonstrate advanced critical thinking and research skills. The HST emphasizes independent scholarship, interdisciplinary inquiry, and professional-level outcomes, aligning with the core values of the Drake Honors Program. The experience concludes with a 20-minute public presentation to the Drake community and the submission of their final project/paper. A successful HST must be interdisciplinary, intellectually rigorous, and result in a concrete product such as a 25–30 page written thesis, performance, film, or artwork (among other options). It must be the student’s original work and be guided by a faculty mentor from outside the student’s major, student-selected based on relevant expertise.

PREREQUISITE: completion of, or concurrent completion of, all Honors Track requirements. 

Students should complete the Preliminary Honors Senior Thesis proposal before the end of the semester preceding the semester in which they will complete the HST.

At the beginning of the HST semester, students will finalize their project and submit the Honors Senior Thesis Proposal.