Description
The Honors Program at PCC offers motivated students the opportunity to participate in classes and activities meant to challenge them to reach their potential. The program attempts to create a cohort of motivated students working toward their academic goals. The program includes coursework, extracurricular activities, and a capstone experience.
The bulk of an honors student’s program is taken in designated general education courses, such as WR 121HZ or COMM 111HZ. Students should take HON 101 early in their program which develops a cohort and provides leadership opportunities as they work toward the final course involving the completion of a capstone project.
Honors courses are open to all PCC students having a minimum GPA of 3.25 whether or not they are admitted to the program. Full membership in the program, however, offers significant benefits. Please contact a program representative for further information.
Honors Courses
HON 101. Introduction to Honors: Scholarly Inquiry. 2 Credits.
Guides motivated students into the theory and practice of scholarly reading, researching, writing and presenting academic work. Students will learn to explore the serious questions of our world. The students will begin to build their Honors program portfolio of work. This course should be taken early in the student's experience and will define a cohort of Honors students. Prepares students to succeed in multiple academic environments. Develops skills required to transfer. Prerequisite: (WR 115 and RD 115) or IRW 115 and MTH 20 or equivalent placement, and 3.25 GPA.
HON 201. Capstone Experience. 2 Credits.
Culminates Honors Program study. Formalizes development of transfer portfolio. Scaffolds completion of capstone project. Prerequisites: HON 101, WR 122, 16 credits in designated honors courses and 3.25 GPA.
Biology
BI 101H. Biology I: Honors. 4 Credits.
An honors laboratory science course for non-biology majors. Introduces the properties of life, morphology and physiology of cells, cell chemistry, energy transformation, and the basic principles of ecology and animal behavior. Course explores the application of biological principles to other disciplines. Prerequisite: 3.25 GPA, and (WR 115 and RD 115) or IRW 115 and MTH 20 or equivalent placement.
This course fulfills the following GE requirements: Science, Math, and Computer Sci/SCI
Communication Studies
COMM 111HZ. Public Speaking: Honors (COMM111H=COMM111HZ). 4 Credits.
Honors version. Develops communication skills by examining and demonstrating how self-awareness, audience, content, and occasion influence the creation and delivery of speeches and presentations. GPA 3.25 minimum. This course is part of Oregon Common Course Numbering. COMM 111H and COMM 111HZ are equivalent. Prerequisites: MTH 20 or equivalent placement test score, and WR 121Z or any writing course for which WR 121Z is a prerequisite. Audit available.
This course fulfills the following GE requirements: Arts and Letters/AL
History
Philosophy
PHL 201H. Being and Knowing: Honors. 4 Credits.
Honors version of PHL 201. Introduces metaphysics and the theory of knowledge via the works of important figures in the history of philosophy. Prerequisites: 3.25 GPA, and (WR 115 and RD 115) or IRW 115 and MTH 20 or equivalent placement. Audit available.
This course fulfills the following GE requirements: Arts and Letters/AL
PHL 202H. Ethics: Honors. 4 Credits.
Honors version of PHL 202. Covers attempts by philosophers to account for the difference between right and wrong, for the notion of moral obligation and to answer the question: How should we lead our lives? Prerequisites: 3.25 GPA, and (WR 115 and RD 115) or IRW 115 and MTH 20 or equivalent placement. Audit available.
This course fulfills the following GE requirements: Arts and Letters/AL
Writing
WR 121HZ. Composition I: Honors (WR121H=WR121HZ). 4 Credits.
Honors version. Provides the opportunity to engage in the study and practice of critical thinking, reading, and writing. Focuses on analysis and composition across varied rhetorical situations and in multiple genres. Provides the opportunity to apply key rhetorical concepts flexibly and collaboratively throughout the writing and inquiry processes. This course is part of Oregon Common Course Numbering. WR 121ZH and WR 121ZHZ are equivalent. Prerequisites: 3.25 GPA and placement into WR 121Z, or completion of (WR 115 and RD 115) or IRW 115. Audit available.
WR 122HZ. Composition II: Honors (WR122H=WR122HZ). 4 Credits.
Honors version. Builds on concepts and processes emphasized in WR 121Z/WR 121HZ through engagement with inquiry, research, and argumentation in support of writing development. Focuses on composing and revising in research-based genres through the intentional use of rhetorical strategies. Includes strategies to find, evaluate, and interpret complex material, including lived experience; use of this material to frame and pursue research questions; and integration of the material purposefully into compositions. This course is part of Oregon Common Course Numbering. WR 122H and WR 122HZ are equivalent. Prerequisites: WR 121Z and 3.25 GPA. Audit available.