About the Honors Program
The Azusa Pacific University Honors Program consists of academically enriched courses developed for talented and motivated students. The curriculum fulfills a significant portion of the General Studies requirements, while challenging students with greater depth, intensity, intellectual rigor, and close student-faculty collaboration.
In addition, several honors courses are offered in upper-division classes needed to meet some major requirements. The program coursework is designed for students committed to intellectual dialogue and Christian fellowship with scholars. The faculty members selected to teach in the program are acknowledged experts in their field and are known for their outstanding scholarly contributions. Students participate in scholarly activities such as conference presentations, paper competitions, and research projects under the mentorship of Honors faculty.
The class enrollment is limited to 15–18 students, and courses are designed by outstanding professors in their fields. In addition to the honors curriculum, the program offers extracurricular cultural and social activities, and international learning experiences. Honors units can also be earned in the High Sierra Semester and the Azusa Oxford Semester.
For qualified students, the Honors Program provides a challenge and an opportunity: the challenge to perform at their highest levels of excellence and the opportunity to develop their abilities to the fullest.
To graduate as an Honors Scholar, the APU student must:- Be considered in active status in the Honors Program.
- Maintain a cumulative grade-point average of 3.3 or higher.
- Complete a minimum of 24 units of the honors curriculum.
- Complete four semesters of Honors Colloquia, a unique academic and cultural enrichment program.
- Complete a thesis or capstone project.
The graduate receives a certificate of completion, brass medallion, and diploma stating “Honors Scholar.”
Honors Blog
Life of the Mind and Soul, a blog led by honors faculty member Joseph Bentz, Ph.D., professor in the Department of English, features interviews, debates, book reviews, and Bentz’s personal reflections. Hear from Bentz and guests as they discuss literature, faith, current events, writing, and more.
Life of the Mind and Soul
- Creating a Perfect Opening for a Novel—Raymond Chandler’s “The Big Sleep”In the California literature Honors course that I am teaching at Azusa Pacific University this semester, we are studying Raymond Chandler’s novel, The Big Sleep, a classic of hardboiled detective fiction...
- Teaching and the Joy of Repeating OneselfOne of the most frequent questions I get asked about teaching is, don’t you get tired of teaching the same things year after year? The answer is a resounding No. I never get tired of it. In fact, the...
- Pretend Someone is Watching–and Other Tips to Help Your WritingA couple weeks ago I wrote a post that compared the discipline of running to the discipline of writing. That struck a nerve with some readers who have never even put on a pair of running shoes. I am following...
