Policies and Procedures

Students in the Honors College have the opportunity to study with a community of exceptional
undergraduate students and distinguished faculty members. Honors College students may choose a major
from any of the five colleges or schools of Pace University: Arts and Sciences; Business, Computer Science
and Information Systems; Nursing, and Education. Acceptance into the Pforzheimer Honors College is
highly selective. Those students who are asked to join benefit by: being allowed to register early,
receive close mentoring from peers and advisors, and receive an annual $15,000 Honors
scholarship. The Honors College will help you excel academically, but it is also a place where you can
realize your greatest potential.

Joining the Honors College

Incoming First Year Students. The number of students admitted to any Honors college or program in the
U.S. is between five and ten of the undergraduate population.

At Pace, entering first-year students must have a high school average minimum of 90. Students must also
have minimum scores of 550 (critical reading) and 550 (math) on the SAT with a combined minimum
score of 1200 or a minimum score of 27 on the ACT.

Deadlines for Applying to the Honors College for Transfer Students:

Fall Semester: July 1st
Spring Semester: January 5th

Internal and External Transfer students. Any Pace student who has taken between 30-45 credits is eligible
to transfer into the Honors College. Students who transfer from other colleges/universities are also
invited to apply to the Honors College. The following application process pertains to transfer students:*

1) Any Pace student with a 3.5 GPA after taking between 30-45 credits at the University is eligible to
apply. The following documents are required:
 Statement of Interest (Cover Letter)
 A 750-1000 word essay on why you would like to join the Pforzheimer Honors College at Pace
University
 Unofficial academic transcript
 Letter of recommendation from a Pace faculty member
2) Students with 30 or less transfer credits from another University should provide the following:
 Statement of Interest (Cover Letter)
 High School Transcript w/ GPA 90 or higher
 SAT results with combined Critical Reading and Mathematics results of 1200 or higher
 GPA 3.5 or higher from prior college/university
 A 750-1000 word essay on why you would like to join the Pforzheimer Honors College at Pace
University

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  Letter of Recommendation from a professor at prior college/university

3) Students with 30-45 transfer credits should provide the following:

 Statement of Interest (Cover Letter)
 GPA 3.5 or higher from prior college/university
 Proof of Membership in Honors College/Society at prior college/university or High School
Transcript
 A 750-1000 word essay on why you would like to join the Pforzheimer Honors College at Pace
University
 Letter of Recommendation from a professor at prior college/university
* Students may be accepted into the Honors College with up to 64 credits IF they are enrolled in a 5 year program at Pace University.

Types of Honors Courses

At times, Honors students find it difficult to meet the demands of their particular academic discipline and
the requirements of the Honors College. We have therefore attempted to create as much flexibility with
the types of Honors courses that are offered each semester to meet the needs of the Honors students. The
following are the variations of Honors Courses offered each semester and ways in which students can
earn honors credit for other courses:
 Exclusive Honors Courses. These are classes offered every semester that are only open to Honors
students.
 Non-Exclusive Honors Courses. These are courses in which a specified number of seats are held
open for Honors students. The rest of the seats are open to non-Honors students. Courses which
are listed as Non-Exclusive Honors are usually upper level courses taught by Pace faculty which
the Honors Director and Faculty Advisor have determined to be challenging enough to warrant an
Honors course designation.
 Honors Option Courses. An Honors student may take ANY 200-level or above course for Honors
credit if the student applies for the Honors Option. The application process involves getting
permission from the faculty member and an agreement to submit extra work for the course. The
student must receive a B- or higher in the class. Faculty members must submit a final report on the
student’s extra work. Students who enter the Honors College as a freshman can do TWO (2)
Honors Option courses in their academic careers at Pace; transfer students are allowed to do ONE
(1) Honors Option course. Applications for an Honors Option are available at the beginning of each
semester on the Honors College website and in the Honors office.
 Senior Thesis Writing Workshop. Honors students in their senior year can take HON 499, which
is a one-credit course that is geared toward your Senior Thesis. The class focuses on research
methods for all majors and disciplines, and the goal of the class is ensure that Honors seniors are
making significant progress toward the successful completion of their thesis.
 Internships. Any Honors student may receive honors credit for successfully completing an
internship either during a semester or the summer break. Students who wish to receive Honors
credit for an internship must submit to Dr. Dupont a) a letter from the internship supervisor
stating that the student completed all the requirements of the internship, and b) a 5-7 page essay
on an academic topic which grows out of the internship experience. This is not a “what I did on my
internship” paper; it should be an academic, research type paper that is inspired by something the
student experienced, worked on, or was exposed to in the internship. Topics should be approved
by Dr. Dupont – but the topic is ultimately up to the student’s discretion. Any student interested in
receiving Honors credit for an internship should contact Dr. Dupont at the BEGINNING of the term
in which the student is completing the internship.

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  Travel Abroad/Study Abroad Course. The Honors College encourages Honors students to take a
travel course or study abroad during their careers here at Pace. Students can receive Honors
course credit for either doing a travel course or for studying abroad. Arrangements should be
made with the Honors College office at the BEGINNING of the semester in which the travel course
is taken or the study abroad is initiated.
Requirements for Remaining in Good Standing in the Honors College
In order to graduate from Pace University with an Honors College Certificate, you need to complete all of
the following requirements:
 Complete EIGHT (8) Honors courses before graduation if you enter the program as a freshman
 If you enter as a transfer student, you need to complete SIX (6) Honors courses
 Achieve at least a B- (2.7) in all Honors courses in order to have it count toward your number of
required courses
 Achieve an overall B+ (3.3) average throughout your academic career at Pace University
 Complete a Senior Honors Thesis which is due in your last semester at Pace University

Honors College Academic Probation

Honors students who do not maintain a 3.3 GPA EVERY SEMESTER are in danger of being asked to leave
the Honors College and forfeit all benefits of the Honors College. Students whose GPA falls below a 3.3
will have to file an appeal to the Honors College Director, Dr. Ida Dupont, in order to remain in good
standing with the Honors College.

The process for students whose GPA falls below a 3.3 is as follows:
 Each semester the Honors College staff reviews the GPAs of all Honors students.
 Students who do not meet the GPA requirement of 3.3 will be notified, at which time he/she will
have to submit a formal appeal to Dr. Dupont as to why he/she should remain in the Honors
College.
 If the appeal is accepted by Dr. Dupont, the student will have ONE (1) semester to pull his/ her
grades back up over the 3.3 GPA requirement. The student will remain in the Honors College and
will be able to keep all financial aid and other Honors College perks for the semester.
 If a student fails to raise his/her GPA over 3.3 after one semester, he/she will officially be
dismissed from the Honors College. A student may file a second appeal with Dr. Dupont, asking for
a one-semester extension of the academic probation.
 If the second appeal is granted, the student will remain in the Honors College and will be able to
keep all financial aid and other Honors College perks for that semester.
 A student who does not raise his/her GPA up over 3.3 after remaining on academic probation for
two semesters will automatically be dismissed from the Honors College. There is no appeal
process.
 However, students dismissed from the Honors College may appeal to a Scholarship Review
Committee in the Financial Aid office for consideration for other scholarships.

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