Honors Program in Biology

The Departmental Honors Program in biology enhances your education through a laboratory or field-based research experience.

You will work with a faculty research mentor to develop a research project that explores a specific topic in biology. You will collect and analyze data and write an honors thesis based on your findings.

Honors research helps you hone your critical-thinking skills, learn modern scientific techniques and build relationships with faculty and other students. It also provides an excellent foundation for a successful transition to graduate school or a career in science.

Frequently Asked Questions

Biology honors students are expected to take 4-6 research credits (BIOL 49X: Research in Biology) in two or more semesters. Up to three of those credits may be used to satisfy one of the biology upper-level elective requirements.

No, any biology student can take the course BIOL 49X: Research in Biology for credit, but only students who complete the Departmental Honors Program will have “Biology Honors” stamped on their official college transcript.

No, College Honors is a separate program. You can do Departmental Honors without College Honors. If you are eligible, you are encouraged to do both!

Once you find a faculty research mentor, you will complete an Independent Study Form, which includes a short research proposal. This form must be submitted to the chair of the Biology Department, and you will be registered in the research course automatically.

For more information, contact a member of the Biology Honors Committee: Assistant Professor Deborah Britt, Associate Professor Daniel Hewins or Assistant Professor Geoffrey Stilwell.

Program Details

Admission Requirements

To be admitted to the honors program:

You must be a biology major
You must have successfully completed at least 30 credit hours of classes, including BIOL 111/112
You must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5, and a minimum biology GPA of 3.0.

Application Process

1. Choose a faculty research project that matches your interests. You can review the projects faculty are currently engaged in on the Biology Research Web page.

2. Submit an application for departmental honors to the Biology Honors Committee. The application consists of a short document (one to two pages total) that contains the following information:

Your full name.
The total number of college credits you have completed.
A list of biology classes you have taken (either at RIC or elsewhere).
A research statement (1-1½ pages) that clearly answers the following:
Why you are interested in doing research in biology.
What subject area(s) interest you and why.
Which faculty member is conducting research in the area(s) that interest you most. Explain briefly how their research fits within your area of interest.
Your current career plans/goals. (Note that we recognize your career plans may change, or you may be unsure about your future plans.)

Submit this document electronically to the Biology Honors Committee chair(s) currently Assistant Professor Deborah Britt, Associate Professor Daniel Hewins and Assistant Professor Geoffrey Stilwell.

3. Submit an Independent Study Form, which includes a short research proposal. The contents of the form include:

Identification information (Name, RIC ID#)
Number of research credits you wish to take (1-4 credits)
A short research proposal

After you complete the application, submit it to your research mentor, who will write a brief paragraph stating how you will be evaluated for grading purposes. Then you will hand in the form to the chair of the Biology Department and be registered in your research mentor’s course automatically.

Due dates for submitting your Independent Study Form are Nov. 15, if the research project is to be undertaken in the spring, and by April 15, if the project is to be undertaken in the summer or fall.

You must submit a new Independent Study Form EACH SEMESTER that you wish to perform research for credit.