Challenge Yourself with SIS Honors

The School of International Service Honors program is designed for a small group of academically curious SIS juniors and seniors seeking intellectual community and challenge. You’ll take honors colloquia alongside classmates who will quickly become friends, complete a year-long independent research project on a topic you're genuinely passionate about, and graduate with a notation of Honors in SIS on your diploma and transcript. All Honors courses count toward your SIS degree requirements, so you can challenge yourself without adding to your credit load.

Honors Program at a Glance

Admissions Requirements

Declared SIS major
At least second-semester second-year standing (at least 45 earned credit hours)
Both a major and cumulative GPA of 3.50 or above
Completed SISU-206: Introduction to International Studies Research and are enrolled in or have completed SISU-306: Advanced International Studies Research

Entrance Semester

Fall or spring semester of junior year; fall semester of senior year

Course Requirements

Two Honors colloquia (6 credits)
Senior Honors Project I and II (6 credits)

Application Deadline

Applications can be submitted in October or March of your second or third year

How to Apply

Online application

Researching sustainability

Amanda Borth, SIS/BA '18, SIS/MA '19

Honors student

I’m passionate about social science research that solves environmental issues.

The SIS Honors Program helps me further pursue my passions by refining my critical thinking abilities and bolstering my research skills, while prompting me to produce creative and original work. I also was an SIS Olson scholars and conducted a discourse analysis on the understanding of sustainable development in international policy compared to eco-labeled companies. The topic of green business is something that I am continuing to explore.

What You'll Do

As an SIS Honors student, you'll spend your junior and senior years immersed in some of the most challenging and rewarding academic work of your undergraduate career. You'll take two small-group Honors colloquia on topics ranging from colonialism and its legacies to fascism, communism, and capitalism—courses designed specifically for Honors students and built around deep discussion and critical inquiry.

In your senior year, you'll complete a year-long independent research project of your own design, guided by a faculty mentor and supported by a community of Honors students doing the same. Most students produce a scholarly thesis of 50 to 100 pages, but the program welcomes creative formats as well, like documentary films, multimedia exhibits, philosophical dialogues, and more.

A group of SIS honors students smile as they pose for a group photo.

Required Courses

The Honors curriculum is built around 12 credits of specially designed coursework: two Honors colloquia and a two-semester senior Honors project sequence. Each course is designed to challenge you, connect you with your peers, and build the research skills and scholarly depth that define the Honors experience. All Honors courses count toward your SIS degree requirements, so you can challenge yourself without adding to your credit load.

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Honors Colloquia

Honors colloquia are small, discussion-driven courses designed for Honors students. You'll take two colloquia for a total of 6 credits during your junior and/or senior year, depending on your study abroad plans. Both courses count toward your upper-division thematic area and/or regional requirements. Recent colloquia topics have included:

Race and the World Political Economy
Colonialism and Its Legacies
Fascism Communism, and Capitalism: Shaping the Modern World
Technologies and Human-Centric Development

If a scheduling conflict makes it difficult to enroll in a colloquia, you may be able to substitute one with a 300- or 400-level course in SIS or a related field paired with an Honors course supplement—additional work that counts toward your final grade in the class. Substitutions require permission from the SIS Honors faculty director and the course instructor. To apply for a supplement, email [email protected].

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Senior Honors Project I and II

The Senior Honors Project is where you get to demonstrate the expertise you've developed over your undergraduate experience. Over the course of your senior year, you'll undertake a year-long independent research project on a topic in international studies that genuinely excites you—one that reflects your own interests and makes an original contribution to the field.

Most students produce a scholarly thesis of 50 to 100 pages, but you also may pursue projects in other formats, such as a documentary film, novella, multimedia exhibit, or community service project, as long as it's grounded in a scholarly framework.

You'll complete your projects through a sequence of two courses—Senior Honors Project I and II—taken during your senior year for a total of 6 credits. In Senior Honors Project I, you'll identify your topic and research question, engage relevant scholarly literatures, find your faculty mentor, and develop your methodology and research plan. In Senior Honors Project II, you'll bring it all to completion under the guidance of your chosen faculty mentor. Both courses count toward your degree requirements—Senior Honors Project I toward your upper-division thematic area or regional requirements, and Senior Honors Project II toward your BA in International Studies capstone.

Who Can Apply

The SIS Honors program is open to students who have declared an SIS major and are ready to commit to a year-long independent research project. You'll need a major and cumulative GPA of 3.50 or above, have at least second-semester second-year standing (45 earned credit hours), completion of SISU-206, and completion or current enrollment of SISU-306.

Students participating in other honors and scholars programs on campus who meet these criteria are also welcome to apply, as are transfer students who have completed at least 15 credit hours at AU in addition to the other requirements.

An SIS student gives a presentation at the front of her class.

How to Apply

The SIS Honors program online application are accepted each semester in October or March. In addition to the online application, you will need to provide your current resume, an unofficial transcript, and a letter of recommendation from an SIS faculty member, which can be sent by the faculty member directly to [email protected]. Applications will be reviewed by a committee of SIS Honors Program faculty, and you'll be notified by email of the committee's decision before the beginning of registration for the next semester.

A young woman in glasses listens and takes notes during a class.