Freshman and Sophomore years:

To be certified as an ACES James Scholar for the first two years, students must meet these criteria:

• complete a minimum of 30 semester hours of credit on the UIUC campus (in residence) for fall and spring semester;
• have a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.40;
• complete one Honors Credit Learning Agreement (HCLA) each year; any regular course can be designated an Honors course by completing addition honors activities that are mutually acceptable to the instructor and student (the HCLA records this agreement); forms are available in 104 Mumford Hall;
• attend the ACES Honors Retreat held each spring semester; and
• complete an Honors Contract by the end of the sophomore year

Junior and Senior years:

To be certified as an ACES James Scholar for the junior and senior years, students must meet these criteria:

• complete criteria 1 - 4 as listed above for freshmen and sophomores and
• complete the Honors Contract. Components of the Honors Contract are as follows:
  • complete an independent research project;
  • complete at least one 400-level or departmental designated course;
  • complete at least four 300-level courses; and
  • present the results of the research project at the ACES Open House held each spring.

Benefits

Students qualifying for and participating in the ACES James Scholar program receive the benefits listed below:

• Early registration privileges.
• Access to the stacks in the UIUC main library.
• Opportunities to interact with honors colleagues at the annual retreat.
• Opportunities to work more closely with instructors through HCLAs and research projects.
• Up to $1,000 deposited in departmental accounts to support the undergraduate research project.
• An Honors Scholarship of $300 (GPA 3.40-3.49) or $500 (GPA 3.5 or higher) awarded in conjunction with the research project.

Dean's List

For each fall and spring semester, a dean's list is compiled and published by each UIUC college, recognizing students who have completed in residence a full course load of traditionally graded semester hours, achieving at least a B average for that term and ranking in the top 20 percent of their class. To be named to the ACES Dean's List, a student must have:

• completed 14 hours or more semester hours of course work, including grades of A, B, C, D, F, CR, DF, S, U, and EX, but excluding AB and hours of proficiency credit and advanced placement (graduating seniors will not be required to meet the 14- hour minimum).
• completed 12 hours of letter grades of A, B, C, D, F
• earned a GPA placing the student in the top 20% of all students that semester in the student's class in the College of ACES
• earned at least a B (3.0) average.

Bronze Tablet

Continuous academic achievement is recognized at UIUC by inscribing students' names on the Bronze Tablet, which hangs in the campus library. Bronze Tablet recipients must rank in the top three percent of the students of the College of ACES graduating class and have at least a 3.4 (A=4.0) cumulative grade point average for all work completed at the University through the academic term prior to their graduation. To be identified as a Bronze Tablet recipient, transfer students- in addition to meeting the general rules for qualification- must also have earned at least 40 semester hours at this University and have cumulative UIUC grade point averages as high as the lowest eligible students who completed all of their academic work on this campus.