VI. Honors in Philosophy

There are two ways a student majoring in Philosophy may graduate with honors:

Grade Point Average 

• Students with a cumulative FIU GPA of 3.900 or higher graduate Summa Cum Laude
• Students with a cumulative FIU GPA of 3.700-3.899 graduate Magna Cum Laude
• Students with a cumulative FIU GPA of 3.500-3.699 graduate Cum Laude

Honors College

Philosophy majors who have been accepted into the Honors College may elect to take the required Honors Seminars in the Honors College, or they take some of these seminars and write an Honors Thesis in the Department of Philosophy during their senior year. This thesis option is open only to Honors Program students who are Philosophy majors; they must apply for it during the spring semester of their junior year. To receive Honors via the thesis option, students must enroll in one three-credit Honors Thesis Independent Study course in Philosophy in each of the fall and spring semesters of their senior year; they must write a substantial Honors Thesis; and this thesis must be approved by both their thesis advisor (who directs the independent studies) and the departmental chairperson.

Eligible students may apply for the thesis option by submitting an Honors Thesis Proposal to the department chairperson, provided they have met the following minimal conditions:

• They must have a cumulative FIU GPA of at least 3.5
• They must have completed (by the end of that semester) at least five upper-division philosophy courses
• They must have completed (by the end of that semester) at least one upper-division philosophy course in the area in which they intend to write their thesis
• They must have identified a faculty member willing to supervise the Thesis and the two three-credit independent study courses which are associated with it.

Students considering pursuing the thesis option should read the recommendations regarding Independent Study in Philosophy.