Walker College of Business

The WCOB honors program strives to enrich the educational experience of highly motivated, curious, global minded, and academically talented students by providing opportunities for academic exploration and research. The purpose of Honors is to foster continued intellectual growth, to cultivate a lifelong respect for learning, and to prepare students for lives as contributors to society.

The WCOB honors program encompasses several ideas that create a unique and enriched educational experience for high-achieving and motivated students. We strive to provide:

• Interdisciplinary learning allowing students to explore topics across multiple fields of study to promote creativity and critical thinking by connecting ideas from different disciplines.
• Research opportunities for students and encourage them to engage in independent research projects and collaborative research projects with faculty, promoting a deeper understanding of their chosen field.
• Global outlook by providing international experiences, study abroad programs, and courses that explore global issues, broadening students’ perspectives and cultural sensitivity.
• Personalized education for students by working closely with professors and advisors to tailor their education to their specific interests and goals.
• Ethical development by not only developing academically accomplished students, but ethically responsible individuals too.

At Appalachian State University, qualified business students can choose to participate in University Honors, the WCOB honors program, or both. The WCOB honors program is a selective program for students maintaining a minimum GPA of 3.40. 

The WCOB honors program offers special recognition at graduation and on the student's transcript. Being a member of the WCOB honors program provides students with an enhanced educational experience while earning an undergraduate business degree. Students will enjoy honors classes that are smaller than traditional business classes. The small class size affords students the opportunity to engage in meaningful learning experiences and the ability to form long lasting friendships with fellow honors students. Even more, students will find that the WCOB honors program affords other opportunities, like engaging with faculty inside and outside of the classroom, participating in research, getting involved in practical learning experiences, favorable internship and employment prospects, and priority access to the Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Science in Applied Data Analytics (MSADA), and Master of Science in Accounting (MSA) graduate programs through the Accelerated Master's Admission program. 

A new business honors cohort begins each fall semester. The application window opens each spring semester, prior to the fall cohort starting. Sophomores who have successfully completed at least 45 credit hours but have not yet taken their junior and senior core courses by the start of fall semester will get the most benefit out of the WCOB honors experience. To graduate with business honors, a student must complete nine hours of business honors courses and three hours of honors thesis coursework. A final project (thesis or creative work) is required to graduate with honors. The thesis can be a traditional research thesis, or it can be an alternative creative works project approved by the program director. Questions? Contact us, wcob@appstate.edu, or read the FAQs.