College Distinction provides exceptional current Arkansas Tech students an opportunity to challenge themselves academically and gain recognition for their outstanding work in the college classroom. Students with at least sixty hours of college credit and thirty hours of course work at Arkansas Tech with a minimum 3.5 GPA are invited to participate in the program. Students who accept the invitation to pursue College Distinction will have the opportunity to take two courses designated as distinction courses. The first is an enrichment course. This course provides an extra educational experience related to the student’s field of study and could include, among other experiences, study abroad, internship, service learning, or mentor-guided research. The second is an enhanced capstone course. This course demonstrates a student’s ability to work at an exceptional level in a given field and is enhanced by an advanced or accelerated curriculum.

Students’ successful completion of the course requirements and a graduating GPA of 3.5 or better will allow for graduation “with distinction.” This will be noted on student transcripts and diplomas.

Each department will identify distinction courses for each major.

Students interested in the College Distinction program will need to submit a letter of application to the Department of Art. The applicant will need to meet the qualifications and guidelines outlined in the Academic Catalog for Graduation with Distinction and will work with their advisor to select two College Distinction course requirements: an enrichment course and an enhanced capstone course.  Any course offering study abroad, internship, service learning or advanced research may be used for the three hour enrichment course requirement. The Department of Art has designated ART 4733 Graphic Design Internship, ART 4993 Special Problems in Art and ART 4723 ART History Seminar for the College of Distinction offerings which can be used for the enrichment course requirement. Other courses such as SPAN/JPN/GER/FR 3143 Study Abroad may fulfill the enrichment with the permission of the department head.  The enhanced capstone requirement can be fulfilled by the designated art capstone courses, ART 4953 Undergraduate Research in Art and SEED 4809 Teaching in the Elementary and Secondary School. Regular capstone courses that are modified by the professor to contain special assignments for college distinction can be used to fulfill the enhanced capstone requirement.