Honors Program
Honors Congress
The North Park University Honors Congress brings together students of high academic ability with faculty in a learning community designed to promote academic excellence, rigorous intellectual development, community involvement, service to others, and vocational direction.
Honors in the Academic Major
During the junior and senior years, students will take honors courses provided they meet the requirements in the individual majors. Major professors will serve as guides to Honors Congress members and specifics are determined by the individual departments.
Graduate School Application
The Office of Career Development and individual school deans work with the Director of the Honors Congress to run seminars and plan events to consider graduate education. Vocational exploration undertaken in the first two years becomes actual planning in the second two years of university study.
National Fellowship Awards
Honors Congress students are encouraged to apply for awards and fellowships both in their individual disciplines and in competitive national applications to serve and learn beyond the undergraduate years.
Rewards of the Honors Congress
The Honors Congress at North Park University provides opportunity for students of promise to excel during their first two years of undergraduate study. If you are highly motivated, and if you are ready to be challenged and to challenge yourself this program may be for you. We strive to take the words of Jesus—“To whom much is given much will be required" — and give them special life during your NPU experience. Our philosophy is simply this: the Honors Congress gives students of high intellectual ability an array of learning experiences from which to choose, places them side-by-side faculty mentors who care, and offers guidance and encouragement along the way.
Departmental Honors Program
The Departmental Honors program is designed to challenge North Park’s most talented and motivated students to achieve at the highest level in their major fields. The requirements of this program are:
- A minimum overall GPA of 3.5 and a minimum major GPA of 3.7 for admission and retention in the program
- A minimum of 45 and a maximum of 90 semester hours earned at the time of admission into the program
- A grade of A or B in 3-8 semester hours of Departmental Honors (DH) 4000, which requires a paper or project at honors level
- Presentation of the DH 4000 paper or project at a Spring Honors Symposium
- Departmental approval
DH 4000 is listed in each major department with the course number 4000 and the prefix of the department, i.e., HIST 4000. For a course description of DH 4000, see the Departmental Honors section of the catalog and/or the individual department listings.
For additional requirements specific to a particular major, see departmental descriptions. Applications for admission may be obtained from the department chair.