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Chancellor’s Honors Program (CHP)

 

“Unleash Your Intellectual Potential“

 
Do you crave an intellectually stimulating environment that fosters innovation and real-world impact?  The Chancellor’s Honors Program offers a dynamic learning experience that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries. This collaborative, interdisciplinary program allows you to study what you are passionate about and equips you with critical thinking skills, innovation prowess, and collaborative spirit to tackle the most complex challenges of our time. Leveraging a human-centered approach, you’ll join a vibrant community of scholars to inquire, co-create, and implement solutions with tangible effects in the world. The program emphasizes complex problem-solving, where you’ll actively engage with contemporary issues, fostering a methodical and collaborative exploration of potential solutions.

                           

Transformative

Impactful

Engaging

Financial Support

Chancellor’s Honors Students earn a $500 book/technology stipend in their first year, and $1,000 each subsequent year (up to $3,500 total) for successfully completing the program. 

Cultivating New Skills

Chancellor’s Honors Scholars are able to complete a wide range of challenging but rewarding coursework to broaden their knowledge of the world.
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“In economics, almost every problem we deal with is either wild or has wild aspects to it.  How do we remediate damages from the opioid epidemic?  How do we attract people into professions where we have shortages?  The metrics for success are not as obvious as they may seem and may be misleading. There are infinite possible solutions and you have a zero percent chance of drafting the perfect one.  So, you’ve got to think through the problem, take your courage in both hands and propose a course of action, hope you do some good, then learn from it.” 

– Dr. Matt Harris

Boyd Distinguished Professor of Health Economics, Haslam College of Business

 

 

Program of Studies

Problem-Solving Sequence

  • UNHO 207: Complex problems and human-centered design (2 credit hours)
  • UNHO 307: Complex problems and innovation (2 credit hours)
  • UNHO 367: Complex problems and Tennessee opportunities (2 credit hours)

Communication Enhancement

  • One Vol Core approved Honors Written Communication (WC) course (3 credit hours)
  • One Vol Core approved Honors Oral Communication (OC) or Applied Oral Communication (AOC) course (3 credit hours)

College/Departmental Honors Course(s)

  • Choice of an honors course in your major, one related to your interest, or a design/research-based course (3 credit hours)

Capstone

  • Students choose a capstone in their major or a group (UNHO 397) or individual (UNHO 497) capstone experience in University Honors

Total credit hours required: 18 credit hours  

 

Chancellor’s Honors students are expected to make timely progress towards honors graduation while maintaining a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5. Students not meeting expectations will be required to complete supplemental academic coaching and support with University Honors staff.

 

 

 

“UNHO 207 was the most interesting and thought-provoking class I have ever taken, and I wish I could engaged more with the material. I love how the instructors encouraged us to take risks without fearing that there would be consequences. I have never had a class with this kind of format, and I believe that because of the way it was laid out, all of us students took risks and learned far more than we would have in a typical class. I had always wanted to take a class with a teacher who truly pushed students to develop real life skills and problem-solving abilities.” 

– University Honors Student

 

 

Chancellor's Honors Program Minor 2025-26. Required three course sequence in problem solving and human centered design thinking. First year fall - UNHO 207: Complex problems and human centered design (2 credit hours). First year spring - UNHO 307: Complex problems and innovation (2 credit hours). second year fall or spring - UNHO 367: Complex problems and Tennessee opportunities (2 credit hours). Capstone- Three options: Capstone course in your major or UNHO 397: Group capstone (3 credit hours) or UNHO 497: Capstone (3 credit hours). 3 credit hours of honors written communication. 3 credit hours of honors oral or applied oral communication (oc or aoc). 3 credit hours of honors in your major or design or problem-focused course. 18 credit hours total minor.

*Students may complete most CHP curricular requirements in their first two years

 

 

“In STEM fields and professional careers like medicine, solving real-world problems requires more than technical skills. The Chancellor’s Honors Program teaches students to think like designers—blending deep understanding and innovation to tackle complex challenges through collaboration and human-centered design. Design thinking works to bridge the gap between logic and creativity—it’s where STEM meets empathy to solve real-world problems.”

– Dr. Sarah Binion
Assistant Teaching Professor, University Honors

 

 

 

 

 

 
“This program will encourage honors students to develop and refine valuable life skills such as getting comfortable with ambiguity, learning to listen deeply and with empathy, solving problems as a team, and embracing failure to gain key insights.”
– R. Keith Stanfill, Ph.D., P.E.
Edwards Assistant Dean, Professor, and Director of Integrated Engineering Design

 

 

 

Chancellor Donde Plowman emphasizes the problem-solving contributions from the University of Tennessee community

 

 
“Honors Students will work in diverse teams and synthesize a breadth of knowledge and experiences to test original ideas for emergent, unfamiliar, and complicated real-world situations.”
– David Matthews
Professor, School of Interior Architecture
 
 

 
“Most of the challenges we face are indeed wicked and complex. Not only are the solutions complicated, but they will undoubtedly take decades and probably centuries to resolve. Wicked problem-solving involves focusing on incremental solutions and realizing that we can only take steps in the right direction, and even those steps are often contentious, difficult, and sadly often involve backpedaling.”
– Dr. Michael McKinney
Director, Environmental Studies and Professor in Earth, Environmental and Planetary Science