To learn more about how to apply for one of these extraordinary awards, see our External Student Scholarships website.
Student Testimonials on the Success of the College Honors Program
“Being a part of the College Honors Program has truly heightened my academic experience at MMC. I have met some of my favorite professors and forged new friendships with like-minded students. Some of my most memorable moments in the classroom have come from my CHP courses. I am so thankful to have been a part of the program.” — Paige Cowen ’20
“It has been an amazing experience to part of the College Honors Program. All of the CHP courses challenged me intellectually and creatively, while also providing me with the most rewarding conversations, projects, and curricula. The professors were inspiring, and their passion for each subject and the small class sizes helped to advance the work of all of the students in the classes. I am so happy to be graduating with CHP honors and to have been part of a rigorous program that furthered my appreciation for learning.” — Nick Nazzaro ’20
“My CHP courses have always been a wonderful and enriching experience. I poignantly remember the CHP field trip to the Whitney Biennial in Spring 2017. We looked at art reflecting the 2016 election—an experience that I still use as an important reference point for artistic activism in my Political Science courses. I am so happy to have been a part of the CHP, and will forever cherish the personal and professional bonds that it gave me.” — Madison Weisend ’20
“I really enjoyed my experience in the College Honors Program as it pushed me to take classes outside of my elected major. In doing this, I was able to meet amazing professors and students I would not have otherwise, as well as take courses that were incredibly interesting, informative, and intellectually challenging.” — Leeann Minard ’20
“I am beyond grateful to have been able to take courses that provide the prime setting for building on critical thinking skills. CHP courses broadened my interest in new topics, such as Art History, Philosophy, and Chinese Ghost Stories, and after taking each course with CHP, I continued studying the subjects independently.” — Asma Rathod ’20
“I’ve found all of my honors courses to be incredibly enriching, and the smaller class sizes have enabled me to build closer relationships with my professors. As someone who is entering the work force within the next year or so, I think the College Honors Program has helped me to become a lifelong learner and a better worker who is truly interested in what she does, who knows how to work hard, how to do in-depth research and understand different topics, and who can formulate well-developed opinions.” — Nicole Marlin ’16
“I can without hesitation say that my honors courses at MMC have been my favorites. They were all intellectually stimulating and full of students who truly cared about the coursework. I feel that the program has better prepared me for my future academic and professional goals.” — Presley Scott ’16
Overview
Marymount Manhattan College (MMC) educates and empowers all of its students by providing environments for intellectual and creative development. Students take an active role in their education. They examine not only what they are taught but also how they receive, create, and share ideas with others. The College Honors Program (CHP) serves students who want and need a learning environment that is enriched with even greater academic and creative challenges, and who will work and learn with students seeking similar experiences.
What is the College Honors Program?
To complete their General Education requirements, all MMC students need to take at least one course from each of the following categories:
Disciplinary Studies
DS1 (Studies in Creative Expression)
DS2 (Studies in Literature and Language)
DS3 (Studies in Natural Science and Math)
DS4 (Studies in Psychology, Philosophy, and Religious Studies)
DS5 (Studies in Social Science, Business, and History)
Advanced Interdisciplinary Perspectives
CP (Cultural Perspectives)
EP (Ethical Perspectives)
NP (Natural Science Perspectives)
IP (International Perspectives)
REP (Racial and Ethnic Perspectives)
UP (U.S. Perspectives)
The designation “CHP” is used to identify honors courses housed within the General Education curriculum. Certain General Education courses are designated as “CHP” sections. For example, a standard section of Introduction to Ethics is designated PHIL 103-01; a CHP version is designated PHIL 103-HP01, with “HP” standing for Honors Program. Both courses fulfill the requirement to take one General Education course in “Studies in Psychology, Philosophy, and Religious Studies,” or Disciplinary Studies 4 (DS 4).
By comparison to standard courses, the work required of students in CHP courses is more academically and/or creatively demanding, and class sizes are generally smaller.
To complete the CHP, CHP students take at least six (6) of their eleven (11) General Education courses as CHP sections. They may take any combination of lower-level courses (Disciplinary Studies, or DS) and upper-level courses (Advanced Interdisciplinary Perspectives, or AIP).
Here are answers to some frequently asked questions about the CHP. All CHP policy remains at the discretion of the CHP Director and the CHP Committee.
Incoming first-year students may be accepted into the CHP on the basis of their high school grades and SAT or ACT scores. They must have achieved a minimum high school academic GPA of 3.5 and a minimum combined SAT score of 1270. The minimum SAT English score is 600; the minimum Math score is 570. Or, students must have achieved a minimum high school academic GPA of 3.5 and a minimum ACT Composite score of 26. The ACT English and Math must each be at least 24. All students who wish to be admitted to the CHP must have at least eight (8) General Education courses to complete at MMC.
Transfer Students
Transfer students must have achieved a minimum academic (core subjects) college GPA of at least 3.5. Transfer students with fewer than 15 college credits must have achieved a minimum combined SAT score of 1270 (minimum 600 English and minimum 570 Math) or a minimum ACT Composite score of 26 (minimum 26 ACT English and 24 ACT Math). All incoming CHP students must have at least eight (8) General Education courses to complete at MMC.
International Students
International students will require the same criteria for admission to CHP for all first-year and transfer students. Those who submit TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE scores in lieu of SAT or ACT scores may be considered for CHP as well. They must have high ability as demonstrated by International Baccalaureate (IB) scores or other academic abilities and will be considered on a case-by-case basis. All incoming CHP students must have at least eight (8) General Education courses to complete at MMC.
Complete the MMC or Common Application and submit required transcripts, letters of recommendation, and test scores.
All students are considered for the CHP at the time of their application.
Qualified students will receive an acceptance package and invitation to join the CHP.
Completed applications are due 1 March.
Notification of decision is no later than 1 April.
Students invited into the CHP must notify MMC of their decision to join the program no later than May 1.
First-year students who achieve a first-semester GPA of 3.75+ will be invited into the CHP. Those with a 3.5-3.75 GPA may request permission to enroll in one CHP section to see if it suits their academic program. All potential CHP students must have at least eight (8) General Education courses to complete at MMC.
Juniors with a GPA of 3.75 or higher may apply in their Fall semester only. They must begin the CHP no later than the Spring semester of their Junior year. Again, they must have eight (8) General Education courses to complete at MMC and must be able to complete at least six (6) CHP sections before graduation.
No student may enter the CHP in their Senior year.
Students may not use AP credits from high school toward their CHP requirements.
Up to two (2) honors-level courses completed at the previous college may be considered toward CHP credits. In such cases, students should provide the CHP Director, Prof. Adrienne Baxter Bell, with copies of the syllabi of the honors courses and make an appointment to discuss the issue with her.
All CHP students must maintain a passing grade in all CHP sections and a minimum overall GPA of 3.50 to remain in the program.
Students must be continuously enrolled at MMC to maintain their place in the CHP. If they leave MMC for any reason, they forfeit their place in the CHP. If they return to MMC, their candidacy for the CHP will be reconsidered, though a place in the program is not guaranteed.
CHP students whose GPA has fallen between 3.0 and 3.5 will be placed on academic probation for the following academic year. They will be permitted to enroll in CHP sections. However, if their GPA does not meet or exceed the CHP standard at the end of the one-year probationary period, they will be dropped from the CHP.
Students whose GPA has fallen below 3.0 will be dropped from the CHP and will not be permitted to enroll in CHP sections.
Permission to re-enter the CHP remains at the discretion of the CHP Committee.
No student may re-enter the CHP more than once.
All CHP students must have completed at least two (2) CHP sections by the time they begin their 76th credit hour toward the completion of their degree. Students who have not fulfilled this requirement will be dropped from the CHP and not permitted to re-enter.
All CHP students must adhere to the Academic Standards and Codes of Conduct outlined in the Student Handbook. Failure to adhere to these Standards and Codes will result in permanent dismissal from the CHP.
Yes, Writing 201: Advanced Writing Seminar counts as a CHP section.
In the CHP, you will participate in courses with requirements that are more challenging than those in standard courses.
You will work with fellow high-achieving students who share your goals and ambitions.
Your classes will be smaller, with an average size of 10 students.
You may be invited to create, participate in, and attend various extramural activities at the College, including lectures, symposia, performances, and demonstrations. You will be invited to be part of the College Honors Program Mentoring Initiative (see below).
No, CHP sections cost the same as standard courses.
Professors teaching CHP sections determine the nature of their courses and syllabi. The first time a professor teaches a CHP section, the syllabus for that course is submitted to the CHP Committee to review to ensure a consistent standard for all sections within the program. CHP sections are taught by full-time faculty, though on occasion, and with the approval of the CHP Director, CHP sections are taught by Adjuncts.
Yes, and this designation will benefit your applications for study abroad, fellowships and grants, and graduate study, as it signals your commitment to an especially high level of academic and/or creative achievement.
Upon graduation, students who have successfully completed all of their CHP requirements have “Graduate, College Honors Program” recorded on their transcript; the designation also accompanies their name in the Commencement program. They wear a gold tassel on their cap at Commencement. Graduating CHP seniors are rewarded with honors at the Senior Awards Ceremony, which is held at the end of the Spring semester.
Note that the designation “Graduate, College Honors Program” is independent of the decision to grant graduating students the honors Cum Laude, Magna Cum Laude, and Summa Cum Laude, which are determined solely on the basis of the student’s GPA, or to grant Honors in the student’s major field of study.
Yes. Students with a GPA of 3.5 or above who are not in the CHP may petition the CHP Director, Prof. Adrienne Baxter Bell, to join CHP sections. Please send an email to Prof. Bell (abell@mmm.edu) with your full name, student ID number, GPA, and the name and number of the CHP section in which you would like to enroll. If you qualify, she will put your name on a waitlist. If there is room in the CHP section after Sophomore CHP students have registered, she will provide you with a Waiver of Pre-requisite (waiving CHP status), which you can take to the Center for Student Services (CSS) to register for the CHP section. Waivers from other faculty members will not be accepted by the CSS or the Registrar.
Some advanced students may receive CHP credit simultaneously or even retrospectively for work completed during study abroad. Examples include students who have participated in language intensives or who have won Boren Scholarships. The decision to award this type of CHP credit rests with the CHP Committee. The maximum amount of credit is limited to three (3) credits, or one CHP section.
All students–those in the CHP and not in the CHP–might encounter a situation in which they would like to take a CHP section that has a course pre-requisite. For example, an NP course might have a lower-level Biology or Psychology pre-requisite. If you would like to take the CHP NP section but you have not taken the course pre-requisite, please petition the professor who will teach the course to have the prerequisite waived. If the professor grants the waiver and you are in the CHP, you can simply register for the course. If the professor grants the waiver and you are not in the CHP, you need to petition the CHP Director, Prof. Adrienne Baxter Bell, for a waiver to take the CHP section. Note that Prof. Bell cannot waive course prerequisites for CHP sections.
MMC policy holds that a student must complete at least 39 credits before taking an Advanced Interdisciplinary Perspectives (AIP) course. However, this rule is waived for CHP students in CHP sections. In other words, a CHP student may take a CHP AIP course anytime in her academic career. However, if a CHP student would like to take a standard AIP course before having completed 39 credits, she must petition the Chair of the Division that houses that course. All existing pre-requisites, including WRIT courses, remain in place. If you would like to request a waiver for a course pre-requisite, please ask the faculty member who will teach the course. The CHP Director, Prof. Adrienne Baxter Bell, cannot grant waiver for course pre-requisites.
Some College Honors Program students in their final semester at MMC have completed five (5) CHP sections but do not have room in their schedule for a sixth and final CHP section–the last course needed to complete and graduate from the CHP. In these cases, the student may elect to pursue an Independent Study Project (ISP) for CHP credit. The student needs to be in good standing in the CHP (i.e., must be maintaining a 3.5+ GPA) and the project must be related to a General Education / liberal arts topic. (Students cannot pursue a CHP ISP exclusively in a practice-based field, although, as noted below, the ISP may have a practice-based component.) The project can relate to work done in a previous course but it must be substantially different or show that it is substantially building on or developing previous research. In these cases, the student’s proposal must include the culminating project or essays from the previous course for reference. In general, the CHP ISP differs from Honors in the Major in that it encourages interdisciplinary investigation.
Students cannot receive CHP ISP credit and Honors in the Major credit for the same work.
Students may not pursue a CHP ISP in the January intersession, as there is insufficient time to produce sustained, independent work and to consult regularly with the faculty sponsor, which are both required of a CHP ISP.
To prepare for a CHP ISP, the student develops a project during the preceding semester in close consultation with her faculty mentor. The student and mentor produce the syllabus and complete the Independent Study Certification and Contract. The student then consults with the CHP Director, Prof. Adrienne Baxter Bell, to ensure that the ISP goes “above and beyond” the standard work for an ISP. To achieve this goal, the student could, for example, produce a publishable paper, give a substantial public presentation at the end of the semester, or even incorporate elements of performance in dance or theatre, or artwork for an exhibition, into their project. The ISP proposal is then reviewed by the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and, separately, by the CHP Committee. Once the proposal is approved, the student can then register for the ISP as a course.
The faculty mentor is entirely responsible for adjudicating the student’s work throughout the semester of the ISP. If the student fulfills or exceeds all of the terms of the ISP, the student will receive CHP credit for it.
A CHP ISP may be pursued for three (3) credits only, or the equivalent of one (1) CHP section.
In Fall 2017, the CHP began a new Mentoring Initiative, in which CHP Juniors mentor First-year CHP students. The older students share advice and answer questions on how to navigate the first year of college. The pairs work together for two years, at which point the First-year student, now a Junior, begins to mentor a new First-year student. We are pleased to report that the CHP Mentoring Initiative is going strong in its third year. We look forward to many exciting years of mentoring ahead! Here are recent photos of CHP Mentors and Mentees.
