1. GPA in the major of 3.5 or higher,
2. overall GPA of 3.25 or higher,
3. successful completion of senior thesis,
4. oral presentation of a paper at either a regional undergraduate conference or a colloquium sponsored by the department,
5. active participation in department activities (e.g., help organize and attend presentations by invited speakers, off-campus events, and Open Mic sessions; write for and/or work on Different Voices or Quantum Pulp; help organize and run initiation ceremonies for honor societies, etc.), and
6. performance of at least 25 hours of community service related to the field (e.g., serving as an ARC tutor or community literacy volunteer, working at an area social service agency serving the Hispanic community, etc.).

Students interested in working towards Departmental Distinction should speak with their advisor and contact the Chair of the Department of Language and Literature as early as possible in their academic career. Students graduating in May must apply for Departmental Honors by the end of the preceding October; those graduating in December must apply by the end of the preceding February.

Language Honor Societies

Benedictine University has chapters of two international language honor societies on campus. They are the Delta Nu chapter of Phi Sigma Iota, an honor society for students of all languages, and the Nu Kappa chapter of Sigma Delta Pi, the Spanish honor society. Initiation is held for these honor societies each spring. Students who have at least 18 semester hours of college credit in any one language, and who are in the top 35 percent of their class should contact the Chair of the Department of Language and Literature for more information about these honor societies.