The Daily O’Collegian

Although word around campus among nonhonors students might be that the degree is a lot of extra work for nothing, students enrolled in the Honors College say it’s not that hard, and it’s worth the effort.

Honors students receive privileges that other students do not, and this is motivation enough for some students to join.

Eli Sluch, a chemistry and biochemistry senior, has been in the Honors College for three years.

“It just seemed like the thing to do,” Sluch said.

Sluch said he thinks the honors program is worth the effort, even if just for privileges such as early enrollment, smaller classes and being able to check out books from the library for longer periods of time.

Robert Spurrier, director of the Honors College and political science professor, said having an honors degree is an advantage for students who apply for graduate or professional school.

“Having worked with professors in small classes and on an honors thesis, students are more likely to be able to obtain detailed and positive letters of recommendation from the faculty with whom they have worked in the honors college,” Spurrier said.

This helps students when applying for major national and international scholarships.

It also helps when applying for jobs or graduate school, Spurrier said.

Daric Adair, a mechanical and aerospace engineering fifth-year senior, has been in the Honors College for five years.

Adair, an ambassador for the college, said a lot of people “assume that the students in the Honors College do only honors work, all the time.”

This assumption is wrong, he said.

“Honors is a part of the education, not a ton of extra work or classes,” he said.

Sluch said he doesn’t know if the honors degree will improve his job chances.

“Honestly, I’ve been trying to find a place to put the Honors College on my résumé,” Sluch said.

However, he said it does give him skills he will need on the job.

Honors classes push students to do more critical thinking, Sluch said.

The Honors College focuses on communication, which is a skill every job requires, he said.

Sluch said he thinks the workload for honors students is less than other students.

Adair said there is less “busy work” for honors students. Professors often assign essays and papers rather than giving tests and quizzes.

Sluch said it’s “less brute force and more thinking.”

He said he prefers writing papers to doing mundane exercises.

Sluch and Adair have friends who dropped out of the honors program.

“Many of my engineering peers discontinued their honors work after they earned their general honors award,” Adair said.

They thought the honors program wouldn’t do much for them because they were getting engineering degrees and other minors that would help set them apart, Adair said.

Adair said he can understand the argument that honors degrees are more beneficial in certain majors than in others, although he said he thinks there is a benefit in it for students in any major.

Robert Davis, associate dean of the College of Education, said he thinks an honors award is a plus in any major.

“If you are serious about getting the most from your university education, you are missing out by not taking advantage of the honors program,” Davis said.

Martin Wallen, an English professor and coordinator of the department’s honors program, said an honors degree is beneficial for students planning to go to professional or graduate school.

“But the degree in itself is not what matters so much as the experience gained in writing a senior thesis, which is probably the first time undergraduates do advanced research on their own,” Wallen said.

“Being able to show that they have taken on a sustained project like that is what makes honors students competitive when they apply for prestigious graduate programs.”

As for those who don’t see benefits to an honors degree, Wallen said there probably aren’t any.

“In a university setting, benefits exist for those who are able to recognize them,” Wallen said.

Adair said most professors are easy going and understand that honors programs are not a master’s thesis or research project, and they keep the workload in perspective.

“While it required some extra work, it has lasting benefits,” Adair said.