All Honors courses emphasize independent work, greater depth and breadth of study, and more advanced work than do regular courses. Honors Contract Courses should embody these same qualities. Typically, Honors Contract Courses entail more writing, research, and hands-on practical work than regular courses.

The form of an Honors Contract varies according to the level of the course and the discipline. It may take the form of a redesign of the course's entire structure, or it may enhance an existing course structure with such things as in-depth studies of special topics, research papers, oral reports, field work, group projects, and class leadership. Such work should not be busy work. It should allow the student to get a fuller and/or deeper understanding of the course's subject.