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University of Colorado Boulder, College of Arts and Sciences, Honors Program student theses collection

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Scope and Contents

The collection spans 53 years and includes 5,694 theses in 135 boxes. The list is order first in reverse chronological order of semester, and then in alphabetical order of last name within each semester. This means that box 1 contains the honors theses from 2012 whose author’s last names begin with an A, B or C. Each entry includes the full title of the thesis, the subject, the author’s name, and the semester.

• Creation: 1959 - 2012

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Copyright Statement

The University Libraries do not own the copyright to this collection. Researchers are responsible for contacting the copyright holder(s) for this material and obtaining permission to publish or broadcast. The University Libraries will not grant permission to publish or broadcast this material and are not responsible for copyright violations resulting from such use.

Biographical / Historical

The University of Colorado has always rewarded exceptional academic performance. Before the mid-1920s the University awarded Latin honors to students with high grades. In 1926 the College of Arts and Sciences created an honors committee to design a program that awarded honors based on more than just grades. The resulting program was implemented in 1928. Students and faculty found the new system wanting however, so university President George Norlin approved a new Honors Program in 1931. The new program was entirely extra-curricular and required 200-300 extra hours of studying a year to complete. An extra workload without any credit hours displeased many of the honors students and additional changes were made to recognize the problem. By 1937 the program had been changed to allow students to receive up to 27 credit hours for their honors work. In 1940 Professor Fredrick Bramhall became the first chairman of the Honors Council. Faculty-recommended students with a GPA of 2.0 or higher, on a 3.0 GPA scale, were eligible to take both an oral and a written exam. Successful students graduated with ‘combined honors’. The system was still controversial among students and staff who felt that honors weren’t being awarded to the most deserving students and that extra honors work should be required to receive honors. In 1956 the Rockefeller Foundation awarded the University $26,000 to conduct a 3-year study on the honors program and to host a conference on “The Superior Student in the State University.” The Carnegie Corporation, impressed by the successful conference, created and funded a national agency, the Inter-University Committee on the Superior Student which was based in Boulder. Interest in collegiate honors culminated in the creation of the honors office in 1958, giving the program a physical presence on campus. In 1959 departmental honors and general honors were still considered distinct programs. At this time honors was rewarded based on GRE area test scores, successful completion of both an oral and written exam, and GPA of 3.0 or higher on the 4.0 scale which is used today. Departmental and general honors were merged into one department in 1968, and honors finally received its present form in 1981 when the department added a required senior thesis. The honors program has since expanded, both in the number of students involved in the program as well as the number of honors courses offered each year. In 2003 the number of courses expanded from 50 to 80, and in 2012, 300 students graduated with honors. As of April 2015, the mission of the honors program is “to provide special education opportunities for academically prepared, highly motivated undergraduate students.”

135 linear feet (135 record boxes )

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Additional description.

The University of Colorado Boulder College of Arts and Sciences’ Honors Program is one of the oldest honors programs in the United States. The undergraduate program has roots going back before the 1920s, with the first honors committee formed in 1928. The Honors Program underwent several changes, until it assumed a stable form in 1959. In 1959, a student could earn honors by maintaining a GPA of 3.0 or higher, scoring highly on GRE department exams, an oral test, and a three hour written test. Many students also wrote a thesis as part of their individual plan. In 1981, writing and defending a senior thesis was added as a requirement for achieving honors recognition. The Honors Program continued to expand over the ensuing decades, with 300 students graduating with honors in 2012. This collection contains senior honors theses dating from 1959 through 2012, however there are very few theses before 1981.

Physical Location

Located at offsite storage (PASCAL). Allow at least 5 days for delivery. Contact [email protected] for questions and requests.

Related Materials

CU Boulder Libraries has access a number of CU Master's and Doctoral theses and dissertations available. Please see this LibGuide for information on how to access.

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Finding aid & administrative information, repository details.

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University of Colorado Boulder, College of Arts and Sciences, Honors Program student theses collection, University of Colorado Boulder Libraries, Collections of Distinction https://archives.colorado.edu/repositories/2/resources/2569 Accessed May 24, 2024.

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About the Blog

The Honors Program Blog is a student-run venture designed to feature research, events, theses, art, and more - all done by the College of Arts and Sciences honors students at the University of Colorado in Boulder.

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• Undergraduate Honors Thesis

Partitioning India: Indian Muslim Nationalism and the Origin of the Muslim State (1800-1947) Public Deposited

• This thesis explores the partition of British India into India and Pakistan. While focusing on the politics behind the partition, it also looks at the development of Indian nationalisms under British rule, as Indians began to form their own political movements and to demand independence. To cover the full scope of this cataclysmic event, this thesis looks at the conditions that led to the split starting in the nineteenth century through the partition itself in the first half of the twentieth century. Topics such as British imperialism, the communal problem, relations between the Muslim and Hindu communities in India, and the politics behind the partition of India are highlighted in this project. By covering this breadth of topics as well as time, this thesis narrates the waves of division and unity between the two communities, in connection with the evolution of British imperialism, as India moved towards independence. At this time in India, religion and politics were very much intertwined, so by discussing the development of Indian nationalism in response to British imperialism, this paper looks to separate the two by providing the scope and context necessary to see the politicization of religion in the subcontinent, and argue that in the end the partition was motivated by politics rather than religion. Through the use of a variety of speeches and letters and other primary sources, as well as an assortment of work written by other scholars, this thesis demonstrates both the complexity of the issue and the many factors and events that influenced the final shape of Indian independence. By doing so, this thesis looks to contribute to the debate over the factors most significant to the partition of India.
• Buur, Sophie
• Chester, Dr. Lucy
• Brown, Dr. David
• Gerber, Dr. Matthew
• University of Colorado Boulder
• British Imperialism
• Indian Muslim Nationalism
• Indian Partition
• the Muslim League
• Muhammad Ali Jinnah
• In Copyright
• English [eng]

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Honors (HONR)

HONR 1001 (1) Honors Coseminar

Honors coseminars are designed to combine an honors seminar experience with the shared experience of an organized lecture course. Designed typically for 15 students, coseminars are taken for an additional 1 credit hour. Coseminars provide honors students with an opportunity to extend their common experience in the course lecture into an enriched interactive, critical thinking opportunity.

Repeatable: Repeatable for up to 4.00 total credit hours. Allows multiple enrollment in term. Requisites: Enrollment allowed for first-year AS students invited into the Honors Program for the current academic year (not including Honors RAP students) and continuing AS students with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.300. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course

HONR 1125 (3) Heroines and Heroic Traditions

Reevaluating global heroic traditions is critical to understanding power structures. In this course we will interrogate the concept of the monomyth and redefine what it means to be a hero/ine. The course will explore comparative mythology, folklore, literature, film and television in order to reinterpret and investigate heroic traditions in diverse communities.

Equivalent - Duplicate Degree Credit Not Granted: HONR 4025 Requisites: Enrollment allowed for first-year AS students invited into the Honors Program for the current academic year (not including Honors RAP students) and continuing AS students with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.300. Grading Basis: Letter Grade Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course Arts Sci Core Curr: Human Diversity Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Arts Humanities Arts Sci Gen Ed: Diversity-U.S. Perspective

HONR 1810 (3) Honors Diversity Seminar

Students will develop an appreciation for, and experience with, diverse perspectives. In particular this includes: racial/ethnic, gender, sexual orientation, and class perspectives, for constructing knowledge as they proceed through their undergraduate studies. Three themes provide the framework for the course: education for the next century, the 21st century citizen, and the modern individual in a diverse society. Topics explored include privilege, stigmatization, targeted and nontargeted grouping, and oppression. Engaging in independent research and experiential, empathetic experiences is required.

Requisites: Enrollment allowed for first-year AS students invited into the Honors Program for the current academic year (not including Honors RAP students) and continuing AS students with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.300. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course Arts Sci Core Curr: Human Diversity Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Social Sciences Arts Sci Gen Ed: Diversity-U.S. Perspective

HONR 2250 (3) Ethics of Ambition

Through selected readings in classical literature on ethics and through more contemporary readings and films, examines critical ethical issues relating to the competition of ambitions and the alternative styles of choosing between courses of action in a dangerous world. Uses biographies of those whose lives illustrate both the complexities of the struggles and the profundity of possibilities. Considers the unconscious metaphors of national visions and ambitions, the competing ethics of ends and means, the conflicting ambitions in a pluralistic society, and the transcendent ambitions of visionaries.

Equivalent - Duplicate Degree Credit Not Granted: FARR 2660 Requisites: Enrollment allowed for first-year AS students invited into the Honors Program for the current academic year (not including Honors RAP students) and continuing AS students with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.300. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course Arts Sci Core Curr: Ideals and Values Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Arts Humanities

HONR 2251 (3) Introduction to the Bible

Studies the major works, figures, and genres of the Bible and attempts to understand what they meant to their own time and why they became so important to Western civilization and contemporary America.

Requisites: Enrollment allowed for first-year AS students invited into the Honors Program for the current academic year (not including Honors RAP students) and continuing AS students with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.300. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course Arts Sci Core Curr: Historical Context Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Arts Humanities

HONR 2500 (3) Open Topics

Variety of new courses at the 2000 level. See honors program announcements for specific contents.

Repeatable: Repeatable for up to 6.00 total credit hours. Requisites: Enrollment allowed for first-year AS students invited into the Honors Program for the current academic year (not including Honors RAP students) and continuing AS students with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.300. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course

HONR 2820 (3) Future of the Spaceship Earth

Examines major ecological, political, economic, cultural, legal, and ethical issues that will shape the future. Students consider how their decisions influence the future, and reflect on fundamental values and ideals underlying the search for solutions to these complex problems.

Equivalent - Duplicate Degree Credit Not Granted: FARR 2820 Additional Information: Arts Sci Core Curr: Ideals and Values Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Arts Humanities

HONR 2860 (3) The Figure of Socrates

Investigates why Socrates intrigued great writers like Aristophanes, Plato, Xenophon, and Aristotle and why, through his life and execution by the Athenian democracy, he still influences Western ethics, politics, and education and is central to cultural literacy.

Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course Arts Sci Core Curr: Literature and the Arts Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Arts Humanities

HONR 3004 (3) Women in Education

Honors women in education and their legacy. Introduces women educators, beginning in the late 19th century, whose significant theories of education and work in teaching have had an impact on all of our lives, in history and in society. Explores the educational theories and methods of several representative women educators and analyzes them through an investigation of their professional and personal lives.

Equivalent - Duplicate Degree Credit Not Granted: WGST 3004 Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course Arts Sci Core Curr: Human Diversity Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Social Sciences Arts Sci Gen Ed: Diversity-U.S. Perspective

HONR 3220 (3) Advanced Honors Writing Workshop

Intensive practice of expository writing skills, particularly argumentation in longer forms. Course includes extensive practice in researching secondary sources, synthesizing large bodies of information, structuring cogent arguments for diverse sources, etc.

Repeatable: Repeatable for up to 9.00 total credit hours. Allows multiple enrollment in term. Requisites: Restricted to students with 57-180 credits (Juniors or Seniors). Grading Basis: Letter Grade Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course Arts Sci Core Curr: Written Communication Arts Sci Gen Ed: Written Communication-Upper

HONR 3270 (3) Journey Motif in Women's Literature

Investigates literature thematically centered on forced migration, diaspora, and marginalized communities through novels, graphic novels, and short essays by women. Themes explored: feminism, identity, intersectionality, diaspora, issues of gender and borders, exile, ethnicity, and literary theory among others.

Requisites: Restricted to students with 27-180 credits (Sophomores, Juniors or Seniors) only. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course Arts Sci Core Curr: Human Diversity Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Arts Humanities Arts Sci Gen Ed: Diversity-U.S. Perspective

HONR 3550 (1-6) Open Topics

Investigates special topics in humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Topics vary from semester to semester and from course to course. See Honors program announcements for specific contents. Open to Honors-qualified students beyond the freshman year. May be repeated for up to six credit hours for different topics.

Repeatable: Repeatable for up to 6.00 total credit hours. Allows multiple enrollment in term. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course

HONR 3810 (3) Privilege and Modern Social Construction

Examines social constructions that lead to productive interactions between and among American social communities. Using case studies and humanistic accounts, students analyze the lived experiences of a unique group or successful citizens who routinely evidence productive practices of multicultural engagement. Through interactions with policy makers and community practitioners, students design and enact activities that allow them to reconstruct their personal patterns of privilege practices of their peer groups in various settings.

Requisites: Restricted to students with 27-180 credits (Sophomores, Juniors or Seniors) only. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course

HONR 3900 (3) Honors Internship Course

Engages students in hands-on work in the community imparting practical knowledge and real-world experience. The course is designed to help students combine professional experiences with an academic component that involves critical thinking and interdisciplinary approaches to problem-solving. Benefits of the course include acquiring professional skills and knowledge, building a network of connections, developing insights on possible career options, and applying classroom material to real-world experiences.

Grading Basis: Letter Grade

HONR 4000 (3) Open Topics

Variety of new courses at the 4000 level, see Honors Program announcements for specific contents.

Repeatable: Repeatable for up to 6.00 total credit hours. Requisites: Restricted to students with 57-180 credits (Juniors or Seniors). Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course

HONR 4025 (3) Heroines and Heroic Tradition

Given recent controversies about the roles of women in power, this course re-evaluates heroic traditions as the stories that ground our sense of public endeavor. What do we mean by heroic? What is a heroine? Are heroines different from heroes?

Equivalent - Duplicate Degree Credit Not Granted: HONR 1125 Requisites: Enrollment allowed for first-year AS students invited into the Honors Program for the current academic year (not including Honors RAP students) and continuing AS students with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.300. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course Arts Sci Core Curr: Human Diversity Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Arts Humanities Arts Sci Gen Ed: Diversity-U.S. Perspective

HONR 4055 (3) Discourse Analysis and Cultural Criticism

Discourse analysis critically investigates the founding assumptions by which systems of meaning operate. Its practice is aimed at a rigorous, systematic analysis of both specific cultural issues and the dynamics by which structures of meaning may be maintained or transformed.

Requisites: Requires a corequisite course of HONR 4056 . Restricted to students with 27-180 credits (Sophomores, Juniors or Seniors) only. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course

HONR 4056 (1-3) Service Practicum: Discourse Analysis and Cultural Criticism

Help communities in need, with credit hours varying according to time commitment. The practicum provides experiential and intellectual understanding of the discourses and dynamics that maintain major cultural hierarchies of values and of resource distribution.

Requisites: Requires a corequisite course of HONR 4055 . Restricted to students with 27-180 credits (Sophomores, Juniors or Seniors) only. Additional Information: Arts Sciences Honors Course

HONR 4075 (3) Environmental Justice

Examines the experiences of people who face disproportionate environmental harms related to historical marginalization correlating with race, class, and gender. Covers the history, principles, and contemporary state of the environmental justice movement in its opposition to environmental inequalities.

Requisites: Enrollment allowed for first-year AS students invited into the Honors Program for the current academic year (not including Honors RAP students) and continuing AS students with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.300. Recommended: Junior or Seniors with 57-180 credits completed. Grading Basis: Letter Grade Additional Information: Arts Sci Gen Ed: Distribution-Social Sciences Arts Sci Gen Ed: Diversity-U.S. Perspective

HONR 4490 (3) Capstone in Interdisciplinary Honors Studies

Explores the value of interdisciplinarity for conceptualizing, investigating, and solving problems. Critical analysis of interdisciplinarity across different fields will hone creative thinking, research, writing, and communication skills. Students will create a research project that encompasses multiple disciplines, informed by an appreciation of diverse points of view. Students will also examine how an interdisciplinary perspective is vital to being an engaged citizen.

Requisites: Requires prerequisite course of HONR 1810 (minimum grade C-).

HONR 4900 (1-6) Independent Study

HONR 4959 (3-6) Honors Thesis

Requires approval of Honors Program.

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The Economics Department is now accepting applications for rising seniors who wish to participate in the Economics honors program in the 2024-2025 academic year. If you are an Economics major expected to graduate in Spring or Fall 2025 and your overall and Economics GPAs are 3.40 or above, we hope you’ll consider submitting an application. This is an exciting option for our best students. 

Participants in the honors program are required to take our fall seminar, Econ 4309, which provides 3 credit hours towards your Economics major. The seminar meets Tuesdays 3:30-6 p.m. You should also take our spring seminar, Econ 4339, which does not count toward your major but will give you 3 hours of upper division elective credit. Both of these seminars are designed to assist you in writing and defending an honors thesis in Economics. 

To apply to the honors program, simply submit an informal copy of your transcript to Professor McKinnish ( [email protected] ). Applications will be acted on a rolling basis up through the start of the Fall 2024 semester as long as capacity remains in the honors seminar. 

Students who, at the time of application, have not yet completed the required 3000-level coursework for the economics major (3818, 3070 and 3080) may be told that they cannot be enrolled in the honors seminar until they provide an updated transcript showing satisfactory academic performance in these courses. The honors program generally expects a 3.4 combined GPA for these three required 3000-level courses for economics majors. 

Honors students are encouraged to take Econ 4848 (Applied Econometrics) no later than the fall of their senior year. Because virtually all honors students conduct applied econometric analysis as part of their thesis project, the material in that course is particularly beneficial. In absence of taking the course, honors students will likely have to master much of the material on their own in order to execute their thesis research. Students also benefit substantially from Econ 4818 (Econometrics), which provides a deeper understanding of the econometric techniques used. 

Participating in the honors program provides you with a unique opportunity to stretch beyond the standard undergraduate coursework and conduct original research on a topic of interest to you. It requires a deeper intellectual effort and a much more substantial time commitment than typical undergraduate courses. Honors students typically spend 150-200 hours on their thesis project during their senior year, and time demands during the spring semester are particularly severe. Students who successfully complete the honors program, however, find it a very rewarding experience and often find it beneficial when applying for jobs or to graduate school. 

More information can be found at the Arts and Sciences Honors Program .

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