Juniors who have maintained a 3.5 average in their major courses for the sophomore and junior years may, at the end of the junior year, request permission of the art department to be admitted to honors study. At this time, in consultation with their major adviser, they will formulate a tentative plan for a senior project that has a scope of a year-long project in the student's declared major.
Before the end of the junior year, the student will present to the art department honors committee or appropriate interdisciplinary committee an artist statement and a plan of study designed to replace two semester courses in the major field. This presentation will take the form of a researched 15-minute presentation incorporating historical, theoretical and contemporary references, a timeline and selected student examples of work. The artist statement and timeline will be distributed one week prior to presentations.
Upon approval of the art department, the chair and principal adviser will choose two readers: one from inside the department and one from a qualified faculty member outside the art department. At least one of the readers and/or the adviser must be a member of the department. The student may at any time confer with the readers about the progress of the honors work.
The student will enroll in 497-498 for the senior year in place of ART449-450. A temporary grade of "In Progress" will be conferred at the end of the first semester. Two weeks prior to end of classes, the student will submit three copies of the project with the department chair or principal adviser. Visual work will be represented by archive- safe digital prints and on a CD mounted in an appropriate archival binder page. The written section should follow library guidelines. One copy of the project will be deposited in the College library, and an electronic version may also be submitted to Digital Commons at Connecticut College.
Honors in the major field will be awarded those who complete the Honors Study with a grade of A or A- and maintained an average of 3.5 in all major courses. Please refer to the College catalog for complete details. A passing grade that does not meet the required level for honors will still be given credit for a normal course in the art department.
Any honors study project to be considered for the Oakes and Louise Ames Prize must be submitted to the Educational Planning Committee (EPC), and must include a one-page abstract of the project.
The honors project for the art department will normally consist of both visual and written components, the equivalent of 8 credits. Visual work will be supplemented with extensive research and a written presentation to include, but not limited to, such topics as personal goals, historical precedents, contemporary criticism and theory, and technical methods and experimentation. The department expects the highest level of achievement for the honors distinction to be granted and should be undertaken by only those students with serious intent.
The College awards the degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honors Study in the Major Field to students who complete their honors study with a grade of A or A-. Students who earn a passing grade of B+ or lower will receive credit as Individual Study as determined by the department. The College awards the degree of Bachelor of Arts with Honors Study and Distinction in the Major Field to students who complete their honors study with a grade of A or A-, and who have a scholarship standing of 3.7 in their regular or interdisciplinary major courses, including those of the freshman year or equivalent.
Visit the Honors Study section for the College's guidelines, forms and resources for honors study.