About the Honors College
What is the Honors minor degree?
The Honors minor degree allows you to build foundational skills in interdisciplinary inquiry and increase your exposure to a wide variety of disciplines that will enhance your knowledge and abilities in your major discipline. Focusing on critical analysis, experiential learning and collaboration, the minor will enable you to understand, communicate, and solve complex problems in our world today and in the future. If you are interested in expanding your Honors experience beyond the minor degree, check out the Honors concurrent major degree.
What are the Honors minor requirements?
The Honors minor requirements include components in three categories: academic coursework (5 courses), experiential learning (2 badges of distinction) and an independent project (1 capstone project). Please note that Colloquium I and II and the First Year SOAR Badge requirements are waived for eligible transfer students.
View the Honors minor curriculum checklist to help you plan your coursework!
Students in the Honors College are committed to uphold the following:
- Maintain good standing with the university
- Uphold their commitment to academic honesty
- Graduate with a GPA of 3.25 or higher
- Meet with their Honors advisor once an academic year
If you are struggling to meet any of these expectations, please meet with an Honors Advisor. They are here to help and support you in successfully completing Honors degree programs.
- Interdisciplinary Perspectives: Students will demonstrate interdisciplinary perspectives by comparing, contrasting and interpreting the relationships between multiple disciplines.
- Applied Knowledge: Students will apply knowledge and skills, both collaboratively and individually, by utilizing experiential learning.
- Communication Skills: Students will demonstrate effective communication skills using a multitude of platforms for a variety of audiences.
- Global Perspectives: Students will cultivate an understanding of diversity and the importance of global cultural competence. Students will fulfill this learning outcome by taking a Global Perspectives Honors course.
- Research or Creative Competency: Students will undertake a coherent research or creative project to contribute to the creation of new knowledge.
- Critical Thinking: Students will employ critical thinking to work towards solving problems of the future.
What Can You Do With An Honors Minor?
Honors College students contribute to the success of our programs by bringing their extraordinary abilities to meet the challenges we give them. The end result is a student body we couldn’t be prouder of. They’re true representatives of the values we encourage. Our alumni have gone on to become professional actors and filmmakers, exceptional engineers, compassionate leaders, professors in higher education and life-saving healthcare professionals.
- Wyoming State Senator
- Professors of Botany, English, Mathematics
- Doctors of Medicine
- Labor & Delivery Nurses
- Head of Marketing
- Chief Information Officer
- Lead Engineers
- Entrepreneurs
- Program Directors
- Fashion Designer
- and more!
- Lyft
- Robinhood Markets
- 3M
- Amazon
- Northwestern Mutual
- McKinsey Global Management
- University of Washington
- University of Michigan
- Colorado College
- Columbia University
Certainly! Earning an honors minor can make you more marketable to employers by showing that you are a well-rounded, motivated individual with strong critical thinking and communication skills. It highlights your ability to take on challenging work, qualities that stand out in competitive job markets. Through interdisciplinary inquiry, you also develop the ability to draw on perspectives from multiple fields at once, integrating diverse ways of thinking to approach complex questions. This skill set prepares you to navigate ambiguity, make meaningful connections across ideas, and apply your knowledge in creative and practical ways to solve real-world problems.
Joining the UW Honors College means becoming part of a close-knit academic community built around small, engaging classes, meaningful faculty mentorship, and rich intellectual connection. Honors students often graduate more quickly than their peers with similar academic backgrounds, saving time and money while enhancing the overall college experience. Honors also offers distinctive financial support for learning beyond the classroom, helping students pursue opportunities such as academic conferences, undergraduate research, field experiences, and study abroad.
Our Honors students regularly contribute to a student blog where they provide insights into what it's like being a University of Wyoming Honors student. Check it out!
Get the Most Out of Your College Experience
The University of Wyoming Honors College is a welcoming community where motivated students explore different fields, think creatively and grow personally. With opportunities for original research and collaboration, it’s a great place to challenge yourself, discover new ideas and prepare for success both in and beyond your time at UW!
"During my time at UW, I found a home in the Honors College, one that provided experiences and opportunities that allowed me to flourish and discover a sense of purpose. The courses I took fostered in me a deep curiosity and a desire to approach every opportunity and challenge with an interdisciplinary mindset."
- Makayla Kocher | 2023 Honors Graduate
The University of Wyoming has earned its Research Level 1 (R1) status from the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, placing Wyoming's only four-year university with the top research universities in the United States.