What is an "external minor" and why does the Hutton Honors Notation require it?
At the Hutton Honors College we know that, as future leaders, our students must be prepared to look at issues from multiple perspectives, to respect others’ expertise, and to continue learning new skills and professional repertoires. They must be able to engage constructively with others and communicate to multiple audiences. Innovators and leaders deserve and require an education that spans the campus, encourages creativity, and builds intellectual and professional agility.
Students pursuing the Hutton Honors Notation therefore must complete at least an external minor (an external certificate, second major, or second degree also fulfills this requirement) or successfully complete four Honors seminars. To qualify as "external," the minor (certificate, major, or degree) must require forms of thought and build types of competencies clearly distinct from those developed in a student's major. A student with a heavily literary English major, for instance, could not count an equally literary French or Philosophy minor as "external"—but any of those fields would constitute an external minor for a Biology, Mathematics, or Finance major. Students in the Notation track may, of course, pursue a closely aligned minor in addition to their external minor or second major. It is not uncommon for Honors students at Indiana University to graduate with multiple minors.