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Student Benefits
Priority Enrollment
Current UHP students in good standing are permitted to enroll on the first day available for students in their class (freshman, sophomore, junior, senior), where class rank is determined by credit hours accumulated toward a K-State degree. For example, a UHP student in good standing who had earned 39 credit hours—30 at K-State and 9 from dual credits earned during high school--would have the opportunity to enroll after juniors and seniors but at the beginning of the sophomore class (alongside students who have completed 59 hours). UHP students enrolling at K-State for the first time do not receive priority enrollment during New Student Orientation and Enrollment, but freshman-only honors courses are usually available on those days.
The UHP encourages its students to be intellectually curious and bold in pursuit of knowledge. Priority enrollment is intended to help students put those aspirations into action. It allows them to more easily fulfill UHP requirements, undertake ambitious courses of study, and create the time/space for meaningful co-curricular engagement.
Enriched Learning Through the Performing Arts
The Cultural Passport Program encourages and facilitates honors student engagement with the arts at Kansas State University.
Working with campus partners, and with the Honors Executive Board, the University Honors Program sponsors programs throughout the year at McCain Auditorium, Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art, University Libraries, and K-State School of Music, Theater, and Dance.
Opportunities will be highlighted in Monday Memos. Know that tickets for various events are limited and, for the most part, distributed on a first-come, first-served basis. Furthermore, know that honors students are usually limited to two tickets per event, but that use of the second ticket is open; that is, one’s companion has to be a student at Kansas State University, but they do not have to be a member of the University Honors Program.
Course Contracting Options
UHP students are able to contract a non-honors course for honors credit. This allows a high degree of flexibility in the program as students are able to tailor the credit requirement of the program toward their interests. Additionally, the process of contracting a course teaches our students the valuable skill of “coaching up”: the ability to effectively communicate with one’s boss (or in this case one's professor).
An honors contract is designed by incorporating honors elements into a regular, non-honors course or activity so that UHP students can earn honors credit. For courses, the honors contract is an individually planned modification of the course’s syllabus, usually including modifications of both the learning objectives and assignments. The specific design of an honors contract is created by the student and the instructor; the Director of the UHP can be used to facilitate this process. In the case of non-course activities (e.g., study abroad), a similar process must be followed in terms of completing the contract. The student, instructor, and college Honors representative must agree to the honors contract contents before the option is approved by the University Honors Program to meet the student’s honors requirements.
After a student discusses a potential contract with the instructor of the course they'd like to contract, they log into the student portal in HAL and complete the online form. Once this is done, the contract is examined and approved by the instructor, the honors coordinator for the student's college, and the UHP staff.
Coffee Bar and Study Space
The UHP offers free hot drinks to any students who want to drop by the office: coffee, tea, hot chocolate. etc. We love keeping up with our students and they're more than welcome to drop in anytime during the day to get a drink and talk, study, or relax. The conference room is available when we're not using it for a meeting, and there are a number of overstuffed chairs scattered throughout the office.
Honors Housing
Honors students have the opportunity to connect and build community through Honors housing options in both Putnam and Van Zile Hall.
Graduate Student Library Privileges
Students in the University Honors Program enjoy loan periods on library rentals normally only associated with graduate student status. This gives students the ability to check out books for 120 days at a time, allowing for the facilitation of in-depth research projects; or enough time to just get into a good book without worry of it being reserved out from under you! You can read more on the K-State Libraries website.