Deadline for City College honors contract approaches

A range of benefits come with joining the program, but only if you sign up before the Sept. 16 deadline

City+College+honors+program+information+assistant+Paul+Verkouteren+with+student

City College honors program information assistant Paul Verkouteren, right, helps student Manuel Escobar, left, with contract sign-up. Photo by Sophia Traylor/City Time Media

Sophia Traylor, Multimedia Journalist

The deadline to join the San Diego City College honors program is quickly approaching.

All contracts must be reviewed, filled out and submitted by 11:59 p.m on Sept. 16.  

The honors contract is a mutual agreement between a student and a professor and it gives students a better understanding of the course. It also benefits a student’s transcript and can aid in the transfer to a 4-year university. 

“You’re going to be asked to do more work in that one class,” honor program co-coordinator Hector Martinez said. “There’s going to be a little more rigor but there’s also going to be a great opportunity to work on a one-on-one basis with your professor and to gain deeper learning.” 

The program is available to students taking classes on campus, remote and hybrid.  

Paul Verkouteren, a former honors program student, now works in the honors program as an informational assistant to help others join and maintain the elevated class. 

“Not only did it introduce me to different internship opportunities, but it introduced me to the job I currently have,” Verkouteren said. 

Students with 15 units are eligible for the Transfer Alliance Program, and while there is no guarantee, for schools like UCLA, “80% of our students that apply with honors get admitted,” Martinez said.

Transfer agreements with partnering universities include UCLA, UC Berkeley, UC Irvine and Pomona College.

“There was a little bit of trepidation for this fall,” political science major Joshua Mccann said. “I didn’t know if I was up to the challenge.”

Mccann, who hopes to transfer to UC Berkeley next fall, added:  “It’s all about time management.”

The submission process for the honors contracts is different this semester.

In previous semesters, students and professors were required to sign a tangible contract and submit it to the honors program office, located in the AH-102. 

Now the process starts through “My Portal” a recommendation by a professor first.

Room 102 in the AH building remains open for students in the honors program to go for help with sign-up along with maintaining the program throughout the semester. 

More information on the honors program and sign-up can be found here