Honors in the Department of Romance Languages

The Honors designation in Romance Languages is a recognition of outstanding scholarship in the field, as evidenced by academic achievement, critical thinking, and intellectual initiative. Highly qualified majors selected by the Romance Language faculty are invited to participate in the Honors program.

The Honors Program requires completion of 390 ( Directed Reading, 1.5 h) and 391 ( Directed Research, 3 hours). Coursework in 390 during Fall semester includes reading and discussion of a number of texts on the selected topic, and a written exam covering these texts. At the end of fall semester, the student submits an annotated bibliography and an abstract of the Honors thesis. Coursework for 391 during the spring semester consists of writing the thesis following a schedule established by the director and the student. At the end of spring semester, the Honors student presents the thesis orally to appropriate faculty for final approval.

Guidelines

Directing Honors in Romance Languages

• Early in spring semester of their junior year, selected students receive a letter of invitation which includes a list of possible areas of research.
• Near the end of the spring semester, the selected student meets with the appropriate faculty member to decide on the specific research project to be pursued. With the professor’s guidance and advice, the student establishes a reading list of primary and secondary sources. It is recommended that sources not exceed ten, but the number and nature of the works will vary depending on the field (literary/cultural studies, linguistics, interpretation, translation, or Spanish for business/and the professions).
• The following Fall, coursework for 390 includes:
• A schedule for the semester established by the director and the student.
• Reading and discussion of primary and secondary sources (articles, books, web-based materials etc.), as well as pertinent background material (for example, overview of the historical period, of the genre, general overview of the topic or field).
• A written exam (sometime in November).

Recommended questions for literary/cultural studies include:

• Give a general discussion of secondary sources read (describe the principal questions or theories raised by critics and/or compare specific critical works);
• What is your critical assessment regarding the thesis presented in 2 (or 3) of these sources?
• Select the secondary sources that would be most useful to your project and explain why.

Recommended questions for the fields of linguistics, translation, interpretation or Spanish for business and the professions include:

• Give a general discussion of secondary sources read (describe the principal questions or theories raised by critics and/or compare specific critical works);
• What is your critical assessment regarding the thesis presented in 2 (or 3) of these sources?
• Describe and evaluate the major threads of research (positions and developments) in the topic(s) featured in your reading.
• The final grade consists of an assessment of the written exam, the sources consulted presented in an annotated format and the abstract of the Honors thesis.
• In Spring, coursework for 391:
• At the beginning of the semester, it is imperative that the director and the student establish a schedule for writing the Honors thesis.
• The thesis is written in the target language. The length may vary depending on the field, though it is recommended that theses on a literary/cultural topic range from 30 to 40 pages.
• The director will enlist the collaboration of a second reader to give feedback throughout the semester.
• The final grade for 391 consists of an assessment and oral presentation of the Honors thesis to a faculty committee selected by the director. In addition to the director and the second reader, the committee is composed of two more members of the department (it is recommended but not necessary that one member be from another language program). The director opens the oral session by presenting the student who is given the opportunity to present the thesis (10 to 20 minutes). The floor is then opened to questions by the committee. The oral session is to be conducted in the target language and usually lasts an hour.