"World citizenship" is an important theme in the Scholars curriculum—
it is Benedictine stewardship on a global scale. The Program requires students to perform community service and speak, read, and write a second language.
Graduation from the Scholars Program
“Benedictine Scholar” is an honorary designation conferred upon undergraduate students at graduation. Those so honored have, at a minimum, met each of the following six special requirements:
Scholars students are also expected to remain in good standing within the program while progressing toward graduation.
Scholars students with questions about these requirements are encouraged to contact the Scholars Director or Scholars Program Assistant.
1. CURRICULUM
There are eight courses in the Scholars Curriculum. They are ordinarily taken in sequence according to the following plan:
HNRS 190: First-Year Colloquium I
(freshman course, fall semester)
HNRS 191: First-Year Colloquium II
(freshman course, spring semester)HNRS 195: Organizational & Group Dynamics
(sophomore course, fall semester)HNRS 220: The Mediterranean World
(sophomore course, spring semester)HNRS 230: The Baptism of Europe
(junior course, fall semester)HNRS 320: Converging Hemispheres
(junior course, spring semester)HNRS 294: Art, Creativity, & Culture
(senior course, fall semester)HNRS 393: Global Interdependence
(senior course, spring semester)
Participation in these seminars is restricted to Scholars students, and class size rarely exceeds 20 students. Students complete most courses with the same cohort of gifted students.
Graduation as a Scholar requires grades of C of better for every Scholars course in which a student enrolls.
Students who enter the Program as first-semester freshman ordinarily enroll in one course per semester for eight semesters. Those who join the Program later ordinarily enroll in the Scholars course that corresponds to their semester of entry in the Program (e.g., first-semester sophomore = HNRS 220). Such students are not required to take “earlier” Scholars courses, so long as they have earned college credit for equivalent courses.
Note: most Scholars courses correspond to courses required of non-Scholars. These fall into two basic groups: “Basic Skills” courses and “Cultural Heritage” courses. See the Scholars Program Handbook for details.
2. COMMUNITY SERVICE
Scholars are required to complete 40 hours of community service—i.e., public, unremunerated charitable activity that promotes the common good—by the end of their sophomore year. In recent years, Scholars have donated their time to help the poor, the homeless, the elderly, the sick, the imprisoned, and others, throughout Chicagoland. Students will be asked to document the service they've performed and to reflect on the experience.
Note: Benedictine students not enrolled in the Scholars Program are required to complete 10 hours of community service.
3. LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY
Scholars are required to demonstrate the ability to speak, read, and write a foreign language at a level equivalent to six semesters of college study. Proficiency can be established by passing courses at the requisite level or by success on a proficiency examination.
Outstanding performance on the language placement examinations administered to incoming students can serve to establish language proficiency. The Scholars Program also currently offers proficiency examinations in Spanish, French, German, Hindi, Punjabi, and Arabic. Proficiency examinations in other languages can be arranged through neighboring institutions. The requisite level of proficiency is "Intermediate-Low" on the scaled defined by the ACTFL (Association for College Teachers of Foreign Languages). For information about scheduling a Proficiency Examination, contact the Scholars Program Assistant.
Over the years, many Scholars have earned major or minor degrees in Spanish and French. In doing so, they also complete the Program’s language proficiency requirement. Benedictine University students can utilize the University’s tuition-sharing arrangements with North Central College and Aurora University to take language courses not offered at Benedictine.
Note: students entering as freshmen in 2010 or after must complete the language requirement by the end of their junior year in order to remain in good standing with the Scholars Program.
4. MATHEMATICAL PROFICIENCY
Scholars must earn course credit for a Mathematics course at a level equivalent to or higher than one of the 
following:
Math 111 College Trigonometry
Math C115 Business Calculus
Math C170 Introduction to Calculus I
Math C210 Calculus with Analytics I
5. ETHICS COURSE
Scholars must earn course credit for one of the following Philosophy courses:
PHIL C245 General Ethics
PHIL C246 General Ethics for the Bio-Ethically Minded
PHIL C247 General Ethics for the Business-Minded
PHIL C248 General Ethics for the Environmentally-Minded
PHIL C249 General Ethics for the Professional
PHIL 346 Biomedical Ethics
PHIL 347 Business Ethics
PHIL 348 Environmental Ethics
Note: not all ethics classes offered fulfill the University's core requirement in Philosophy. For this reason, any Scholar who registers for a non-core ethics class must earn a passing grade in
another Philosophy course that is defined in the catalog as a “C-course” in order to satisfy this core graduation requirement.
6. ELECTRONIC PORTFOLIO | INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH PROJECT
Scholars will develop and maintain an electronic portfolio (using Desire2Learn) which will reflect their intellectual development, analytic and research skills and their attainment of Scholars Program Essential Student Learning Goals. Scholars must determine which of their many academic and creative achievements demonstrate the various learning outcomes and must use the electronic portfolio to show how each and every Essential Student Learning Goal has been achieved. Students may choose to include coursework, papers, community service, videos, speeches, and other appropriate artifacts in their electronic portfolios.
Each Scholars student will be assigned a mentor who will guide and evaluate the electronic portfolio on a regular basis. Scholars are expected to fulfill all these outcomes at the "Scholars" level. As part of the electronic portfolio, Scholars will also be expected to publicly present a paper at Benedictine University or a regional or national Honors conference.
Electronic portfolios are required for all Scholars classes beginning with freshmen who enter the program during the 2011-2012 academic year. Scholars who are sophomores during 2011-2012 will have the option of preparing an electronic portfolio.
For more information about the Interdisciplinary Research Project (IRP), which is required for Scholars students who will be juniors or seniors during the 2011-2012 academic year and is optional for those who will be sophomores during 2011-2012, see the Scholars Handbook.
Good Standing
To remain in good standing within the Program, a Scholars student must maintain a cumulative GPA (grade point average) of 3.2 or higher. If a Scholars student earns a cumulative GPA lower than 3.2 in a given semester, he or she is automatically placed on Scholars Probation. Students on Scholars Probation have one semester to raise their cumulative GPA to the required level. If a student’s cumulative GPA remains lower than 3.2 for two consecutive semesters, she or he may be dismissed from the Program. In special cases, the Director may grant a Scholars student an additional semester to raise his or her GPA.
Students who enter the program as freshmen in 2010 must also complete the language requirement by the end of their junior year in order to remain in good standing with the Scholars Program.
