Undergraduate Honors

At the University of New Mexico, students may graduate with University Honors and/or Departmental Honors, or Graduate with Honors.

Honors Student Advisory Council

The purpose of this organization is to relate student concerns and suggestions to the University Honors Program director, act as peer advisors to other honor students, promote the Honors Program campus-wide and to offer volunteer services to the community.

You can contact the Council by calling 277-4211.

University Honors Program

University Honors Program (UHP) students do not major or minor in University Honors. Undergraduate students will graduate with a degree from one of UNM's degree-granting colleges or schools.

UHP seminars are interdisciplinary and do not duplicate courses offered by other departments. UHP seminars may be used to fulfill group requirements, electives, or graduation requirements in the various colleges.

For more information, access the program's website by clicking here, or call them at 277-4211.

C&J Departmental Honors Program

You can receive your Bachelor of Arts degree from UNM in Communication or Journalism and Mass Communication with honors (cum laude), high honors (magna cum laude), or highest honors (summa cum laude). If you have a good GPA (greater than or equal to 3.5), consider applying for the C&J honors program.

Advisement and Program Information

Program Advisement: 
Victoria Lobato or Cory Muñoz, program advisement coordinators
(277-5305, cjadvise@unm.edu)

Requirements of Departmental Honors Students

  • Attainment of an overall grade point average of 3.5 or better at the time of application and a written recommendation from a departmental faculty member. A candidate with less than a 3.5 GPA may petition the Undergraduate Committee for admission. However, in no case will an overall GPA of less than 3.5 be acceptable at time of graduation.
  • Completion of the application form after earning at least 75 hours, but no more than 95 hours, of college credit hours including nine hours or more beyond the Communication and Journalism 100 level courses taken at UNM.
  • Acceptance by the department's Undergraduate Committee after a review of the application.
  • Submission of a "Proposal for Honors Thesis" (C&J 494 Senior Thesis) to a faculty no later than the end of the sixth week of the term directly before the term of the student's projected graduation.
  • Acceptance of the thesis proposal by the faculty member in consultation with the C&J Undergraduate Committee.
  • Successful completion of the thesis as determined by the supervising faculty member and the Undergraduate Committee.
  • Achievement of an overall grade point average of 3.5 or better at the time of graduation.

Other Requirements

Graduation with Departmental Honors will never be a matter solely of performance in standard courses or of grade point average. Continuance in the departmental honors program and the level of honors at graduation are both at the discretion of the department. Performance in departmental honors courses is not judged by mechanical quantitative standards. Students are expected to work enthusiastically and creatively, and at a sophisticated level of scholarly competence. A high level of achievement in independent work is expected of honors candidates. Completion of the course sequence alone does not guarantee graduation with honors.

Graduation with Honors

While working toward your B.A., M.A. or Ph.D., and without participating in either the University or Departmental Honors program, you can graduate with honors:

  • Summa Cum Laude (GPA 3.90 and above)
  • Magna Cum Laude (GPA between 3.75 and 3.89)
  • Cum Laude (GPA between 3.50 and 3.74)

You are required to apply for candidacy at the College of Arts & Sciences.