Requirements and Registration

Honors at the UW

There are three ways to graduate with Honors at UW: Interdisciplinary Honors, Departmental Honors, and College Honors.

You’ve been accepted into Interdisciplinary Honors, which is composed of courses, experiential learning, and reflection.

The Interdisciplinary Honors curriculum explores diverse ways of thinking across disciplines and encourages students to see the relationships between their academic pursuits and the rest of their personal and professional lives. In addition to featuring small and engaging interdisciplinary Honors courses, we emphasize the importance of experiential learning, reflection, and a broad understanding of the interconnectedness of knowledge.

  • The Interdisciplinary Honors coursework overlaps in large part with the UW’s general education requirements, the Areas of Inquiry.
  • Visit our Honors Requirements page for more comprehensive details and worksheets.

Departmental Honors, a separate Honors track composed of unique upper-level coursework in your major, usually involving a thesis and independent research. If you wish to pursue Departmental Honors, once you are on campus in autumn you should meet with an adviser in your chosen department to discuss the requirements and timeline. Departmental Honors is usually completed in your junior or senior year, so you have some time to consider this option.

If you are entering with more than 45 credits and those credits are distributed fairly evenly throughout the Areas of Inquiry requirements, you might prefer to pursue a Departmental Honors degree. If you have questions about this, please carefully review the AP & IB credit page and see an Honors Program adviser during summer A&O to discuss your options further.

The third Honors track is College Honors, and is awarded to students who complete both sets of requirements (Interdisciplinary Honors and Departmental Honors).

Registering for Interdisciplinary Honors Classes

What’s Available?

Course descriptions, links to the UW Time Schedule information for the course, and instructor information for all Honors Core courses are posted on our Honors Courses webpage. Please always use the Honors Courses page to see what is available, though you may also consult the UW Time Schedule and MyPlan for up-to-date enrollment information.

How to Register

You will register for all of your autumn quarter courses, including any Honors courses you choose to take, during your UW Advising & Orientation session. If you are attending an non-Honors A&O, we will be in touch with you prior to your A&O date with instructions for registering for Honors courses.

You can register for most Honors classes the same way you register for non-Honors classes, using MyPlan, or the course SLN listed on both the courses website and the Time Schedule. Some classes require an add code to register. These courses are clearly marked on the Honors Courses website and add codes for these courses will be distributed by Honors staff during Orientation.

We’ll provide enrollment information for Honors Math, Chemistry, Physics, and Computer Science options at Advising & Orientation.

UW’s Proficiency Requirements

Honors students can’t just take Honors courses, even if many of you may want to! In addition to choosing a major and completing any Areas of Inquiry requirements that your Honors coursework doesn’t fulfill, you’ll be required to complete the following requirements.

English Composition

All UW undergraduates must complete five credits of English composition to graduate. You can complete this requirement by taking composition through Running Start, College in the High School, or by taking a composition class at the UW. AP and IB English scores do not fulfill the English Composition requirement. There will be some Honors courses offered throughout the year that will satisfy the Composition requirement but these fill up quickly. Exploring other English Composition course options as well is recommended.

Additional Writing

Most Colleges/Schools within the UW also require that their students complete additional Writing (“W”) courses. Many Honors courses will award “W” credit, so most Interdisciplinary Honors students will complete their “W” requirement via the Honors Core. You can check with an adviser to ensure completion of this requirement by graduation.

Foreign Language

Students graduating from majors in the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Education, or the School of Social Work must fulfill the foreign language graduation requirement. None of the other colleges or schools require foreign language beyond the two high school years required for admission to the UW. Of course, a number of majors (e.g., the language majors, International Studies, etc.) require language beyond what is required for admission to the UW. For more information, please see the UW’s Foreign Language Requirement page.

Students may complete the foreign language graduation requirement by any of the following:

  • complete the third college quarter of a language with a grade of 2.0 or higher
  • place into at least the fourth college quarter via placement test (see our Placement page for more about placement tests)
  • pass a proficiency test in a language
  • be considered a native speaker of a language other than English
  • complete the third year high school level of a foreign language

Reasoning (RSN) – Formerly Quantitative and Symbolic Reasoning (QSR)

All schools and colleges of the University require a RSN / Q/SR course. Some colleges allow any course from the list; others require a particular course. Check General Education and Basic Skills Requirements of UW Schools and Colleges for the requirements of majors you are considering. Certain AP or IB credit can fulfill this requirement.

Diversity

The University of Washington requires all undergraduates to take a minimum of 5 credits, approved by the appropriate school or college, that focus on the sociocultural, political, and/or economic diversity of the human experience at local, regional, or global levels. This requirement is intended to help you develop an understanding of the complexities of living in increasingly diverse and interconnected societies. Many Honors courses will award Diversity “DIV” credit, so many Interdisciplinary Honors students will complete their “DIV” requirement via the Honors Core. You can check with an adviser to ensure completion of this requirement by graduation.

For more information about any of these general education requirements, please visit the UAA Academic Advising website.

Next: AP & IB Policies and Placement Tests