Transcript Designations

USU transcript designations showcase a graduate's skills and accomplishments to future employers and graduate programs. Honors has partnered with several USU programs to integrate requirements for Honors and other transcript designations. Every student who successfully completes University Honors Program requirements earns the University Honors transcript designation and qualifies for an Undergraduate Research designation (application required). The following designations may be of particular interest to Honors students:

Undergraduate Research

All students who graduate with Honors qualify for this transcript designation because of the research they complete for Honors in Practice and Honors Capstone Project. Students must apply for this designation through the Office of Research (see link to application below).

All Honors students seeking the Undergraduate Research transcript designation must 1) complete a minimum of two semesters of undergraduate research, scholarship, or creative activity supervised by a faculty member, 2) present their work at a recognized venue (Student Research Symposium, UCUR, NCUR, a professional conference in the field of study, etc.), and 3) complete and submit the application for this transcript designation to the Office of Research.

Community-Engaged Scholar

The University Honors Program offers its students the opportunity to ground their Honors work in community-engaged learning, in collaboration with the Christensen Community Scholars program. Honors students seeking the Community Engaged Scholar transcript designation must apply to the Christensen Community Scholars program through the Center for Community Engagement, and they must do so at least four semesters before their intended graduation date. Once accepted to the program, Scholars must meet with the Center for Community Engagement staff each semester.

Christensen Community Scholars are dedicated to applying their education to make a meaningful difference in their community and the world. Students accepted into this program will have the opportunity to engage in service related to their field of study and personal interests in addition to completing Community-Engaged Learning (CEL) courses.

Honors students can meet some of the requirements for this transcript designation by completing Honors Mentoring Agreements (HMAs), Honors CEL courses, and community-based Honors capstone work.

• Students can meet the academic requirements (two CEL-designated courses) by completing Honors CEL-designated courses and/or finishing and gaining approval for up to two service-based HMAs.
• Students can also partially fulfill the co-curricular requirement to log 200 service hours by completing up to two additional service-based HMAs.
• Students can meet the Community Action Project requirement to develop and implement a sustainable service project that addresses a community-identified need by aligning that project with their Honors capstone project. Like other Honors students, Christensen Community Scholars should enroll in HONR 3900 (the one-credit, pass/fail pre-capstone proposal course) before completing the project. The written part of the Honors capstone project must be a community-engaged learning portfolio that documents all of the student’s community-engaged learning experiences at USU and reflects specifically and in detail on the relationship between the capstone and the student’s academic discipline. For Honors students, this reflective writing must be substantial and meet the requirements for an Honors capstone project.

Optional Track: For those interested in international service, consider pursuing the Christensen Community Scholars program with a Peace Corps Prep focus. Application for this program is also required.

Global Engagement Scholar

The University Honors Program offers its students the opportunity to ground their Honors work in topics of global concern. Honors students seeking the Global Engagement Scholar transcript designation have the option to apply Honors points from approved Honors-in-Practice work toward fulfillment of the requirement to complete internationally focused coursework. Points typically include an internationally focused Honors capstone project (up to 5 points/credits), as well as globally engaged Honors Mentoring Agreements (3 points/credits each) and/or topical Honors Book Labs (1 point/credit each). 

To meet the internationally focused coursework requirement with an Honors capstone project, students must demonstrate substantial engagement with global issues in their discipline(s). Like other Honors students, Honors Global Engagement Scholars enroll in HONR 3900, the one-credit capstone proposal course, before completing the project. The faculty mentor, Departmental Honors Advisor, any committee members, and the Honors Program Executive Director must both approve the Honors capstone proposal itself and verify its Global Engagement emphasis. The capstone can account for up to 5 points/credits (1 for proposal, 1 for work plan, and 3 for project) of the required 15 credits/points of internationally focused coursework required for the Global Engagement Scholar transcript designation.

Students can indicate interest in this designation on their Honors Mentoring Agreement and Honors capstone proposal and completion forms, which they submit to the University Honors Program Canvas course.

Students must apply for this designation through the Office of Global Engagement. They may apply after they have completed the foreign language competence, pre-departure orientation, study abroad, and internationally focused coursework requirements. 

Latin Scholastic Distinctions

USU also awards Latin Scholastic Distinctions at graduation, based solely on USU GPA, as follows:

Achievement	GPA
Summa Cum Laude Magna Cum Laude Cum Laude	3.950 to 4.000 GPA 3.800 to 3.949 GPA 3.500 to 3.799 GPA

 
More information about USU's academic distinctions can be found in the University Catalog.