Honors Program in Latino & Hispanic Caribbean Studies

The Department of Latino and Hispanic Caribbean Studies provides its majors who have demonstrated high academic achievement with the opportunity to participate in the department's honors program. The program allows students who meet the established requirements to work closely with a faculty member to develop and complete an individualized research project. The department views the honors distinction that it confers to those who complete the program successfully as recognition of superior academic effort and achievement.

Students must receive a grade of B+ or higher in their research proejct in order to receive Honors.

Who can apply?

In order to apply to the program, students must satisfy the following requirements: (a) be a declared major in Latino and Hispanic Caribbean Studies; (b) by the second semester of the junior year have a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better and 3.4 or better in courses taken for the Major.

When and how to apply?

Students are required to apply before April 1 of their junior year. The application requires a letter of proposal to the Department Chair, outlining the research objectives, methods, and identifying a supporting bibliography. Before the end of April, applicants will be informed in writing about admission to the program, assignment of a faculty project advisor, and other pertinent information.

What does the honors project consist of?

The honors project may include, but is not limited to, social science- or humanities-based research or artistic projects. Usual lengths for honor projects are 50-70 pages, including text, references, tables, charts, art, illustrations, acknowledgments, and bibliography, etc. Art-based projects must also be accompanied by a written component.

What are the program's deadlines?

• Second semester of the junior year: by April 1, the student must apply to the department chair for admission to the program. Before the end of April of the junior year the applicant will have been notified by the chair regarding the admission decision. Before the end of the junior year, the admitted honors candidate will have met with the faculty advisor to discuss the work schedule and honor's project requirements.
• First semester of senior year: Students must enroll in the senior seminar (497) during the Fall semester. They must inform the seminar's instructor about their honors candidacy and carry out research and writing that will serve as a base for the honors project.
• Second semester of the senior year: Honors candidates must enroll in an independent study with their honors advisor (495 or 496) and meet weekly with their advisors.
• Students must submit a draft of their honors thesis to their advisors before April 1 in order for the advisor to make necessary recommendations for changes and for these to be integrated into the final draft.
• A final oral presentation of the project will take place before the end of the senior year. A final bound copy of the project is due on the day of the project presentation. No later than one week after the presentation, the faculty advisor will write an evaluation of the project and provide a final grade.

Who can serve as honors project faculty advisor and second reader?

Only tenured and tenure-track faculty within the department can advise honors projects. Second readers may be advanced graduate students, part-time lecturers, visiting scholars, or tenure-track or tenured Rutgers faculty members. The student and his/her faculty advisor will select the second reader.

What if I'm carrying out interviews or doing ethnographic research with live people?

Projects that involve "human subjects" must be reviewed by the IRB (Institutional Review Board for the Protection of Human Subjects). This means writing a brief protocol that describes the project and identifies any risk to subjects. If you want to collect information from minors or information on a topic that involves risk "out of the everyday," your proposal requires a full review, this should be arranged during september of the senior year.