University Honors Transfer Advising Guide

Transfer Advising Guides are for planning purposes only. This Advising Guide does not replace the need for regular and timely meetings with your assigned Pathway Advisor.

Visit the University Honors College web page for detailed program information.

General Education Requirements

The goal of general education curricula is to ensure that all graduates have a common set of coursework designed around the university's educational goals. At PSU, students can fulfil their general education requirements through the University Honors College or University Studies. Deciding which path to take is a personal choice based on your goals as a student.

Your general education requirements will depend on how many credits you transfer to PSU before your first term of classes. To learn more about your options for completing your requirements as a transfer student, refer to the Undergraduate Academic Advising webpage or make an appointment with an Academic Advisor.

What is the University Honors College?

University Honors is one of two choices for completing your General Education requirements at PSU. Learn more about General Education below.

The Honors College provides a rigorous interdisciplinary general education curriculum taught by a resident faculty and access to undergraduate research opportunities.

Honors students take courses that prepare them to carry out a senior thesis. The thesis is a substantial creative or research project and represents a valuable opportunity for Honors students to work closely with a faculty advisor from their major department and explore a topic of great interest.

For detailed information on the requirements for the thesis project, refer to the current Thesis Handbook. Previous undergraduate Honors theses are also available for download on the library website.

Who is it for?

Honors serves high-achieving, academically motivated students from diverse ethnic, social, and economic backgrounds. Students from all majors and departments are welcome.

All Honors students enjoy priority registration, 24-hour access to a dedicated student lounge and computer lab, personalized guidance from an Honors adviser, support from Honors writing tutors, student-led community events, and career and graduate-school focused enrichment workshops. Honors students can also choose to live in Honors-only housing in Epler Hall.

Honors assists transfer students in their transition to PSU via bridge courses for sophomore transfers (HON 260) and junior transfers (HON 360), as well as transfer-focused events hosted by current Honors students. These transfer courses are designed to teach the writing skills and academic literacy that we focus on in our first-year foundation course.

Planning Your Transfer

Courses taken to meet Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science requirements are great choices to take at PCC in advance of transfer. You can complete all of your BA or BS requirements at PCC.

Most of your major coursework, your upper-division Honors courses, and your Honors thesis will be completed at PSU.

Honors students are strongly encouraged to study abroad. Students can take classes in their major and also fulfill Honors junior-level requirements. Learn more information on studying abroad as an Honor student, including Honors-only faculty-led programs.

Sophomore Transfers (31-89 Transferable Credits)

Take three required Honors sophomore courses: HON 201, 260/202, and 203. It is recommended to take HON 260, our sophomore transfer bridge course, in your first term at PSU. If HON 260 does not work for your schedule, you may take HON 202 instead (do not take both). HON 201 and 203 are not a sequence; they can be taken in any order or at the same time.
The HON 200-level courses explore research methods in the social sciences, humanities, and natural sciences through an integrated set of research projects.

Junior Transfers (90+ Transferable Credits)

Take HON 360: Honors Writing in your first or second term after admission to Honors. This is intended as a bridge course for future work and is not required for sophomore transfers.
Take an Honors Junior Seminar (HON 407) for 4 credits, which is required for all Honors students.
The remaining 4 credits of Honors junior-level requirements can be fulfilled with an additional HON 407 Junior Seminar, a pre-approved internship or research position for credit, or seminars taken while studying abroad.
Senior Year: Students generally take 8 credits of HON 403 Thesis credits and carry out their thesis over three terms.

How to Apply

Transfer Students must apply to the Honors College and are expected to have a cumulative college GPA of 3.25. However, each application is reviewed holistically and anyone who thinks they might be a good fit is encouraged to apply!

Incoming transfer students

Transfer Students who have not yet applied to PSU may apply to the Honors College via the PSU general application. If you submitted an application, you can log back into your application portal and submit the supplemental Honors essay questions.

The application consists of an informational form, two 300-500 word essay responses, and transcripts from your previous college or university.