Global Honors

Global Honors

Create a Language and Global Competencies Honors Track

Even though many students join the University Honors Program (UHP) with stellar high school GPAs and ample units of Advanced Placement (AP) credit, rarely do they consider learning a second or third language at the university, pursing courses with global learning outcomes, or studying abroad. Embedding global competencies into the Honors curriculum, establishing structures that encourage undergraduate Honors Thesis research projects on global issues, and streamlining opportunities to study language and culture abroad by awarding Honors credits for accredited Honors courses taken outside the US will serve to internationalize Honors education at CSULB.

Redesigning Honors courses to include a segment on global issues will ensure that every incoming Honors student will be exposed to global course content on his/her path to earning an Honors Certificate. Each Honors student is required to conduct a 6-credit hour undergraduate research project and write a 20-25-page long Honors Thesis under the mentorship of a faculty advisor in his/her academic discipline (UHP 496 and UHP 498). The UHP will establish a Global Honors Track in addition to the existing General Honors Track I and II, which require twenty-four (24) and fifteen (15) Honors units respectively. In the Global Honors Track, study abroad and language/cultural study will become a requirement where in the General Honors Tracks such educational experiences are currently strongly encouraged, but optional.  The Honors Program will work with the Center for International Education to develop Honors-specific study abroad options within existing bilateral agreements and, in the case of Latin America, at least one new bilateral agreement.  It will also collaborate with the Department of Romance, German, Russian, Languages and Literature to provide an avenue for Hispanic/Latino students to develop the level of language proficiency required to work as a truly bilingual professional in their respective academic discipline.