All students must apply to the University Honors Program. Admission is never automatic. A completed Honors Program application includes the application (available on our website) and a high school transcript (sent directly to the Honors Program). Students will be notified of their review date by e-mail once these items are received.
Several factors are considered in admitting students to the program, including high school curriculum, grades, standardized test scores, an essay, and participation in extra-curricular and co-curricular activities. The University Honors Program is committed to admitting talented, highly motivated students. A student's merit and progress cannot be measured by numbers alone. However, applicants are more likely to be considered favorably if they can demonstrate an ACT composite score of 30 or higher, an unweighted GPA of 3.75 or higher, an essay that demonstrates intellectual curiousity and academic rigor, a rigorous college preparatory curriculum, and participation in activities that supplement academic work and/or demonstrate community involvement and a sense of social responsibility. Admission is competitive; decisions are made by a committee on a rolling basis.
The Honors Program reviews applications from current KU students and transfer students who have completed at least one semester of college with a strong curriculum of 15-16 credit hours and a 3.50 or above GPA. Please consider applying (or reapplying) in the future if you meet these criteria.
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By being a part of the University Honors Program, students have the opportunity to be involved in special programming and honors courses with top KU faculty members. Students also have access to personalized academic advising by an honors program staff member or an honors advisor in their department or professional school. The Honors Program encourages students to identify scholarship, career, internship and study abroad opportunities. The Honors Program also makes a special effort to provide undergraduate students with opportunities and financial support for student research. Finally, if you fulfill the Honors Program completion requirements, you will graduate from KU with university honors.
Students in the Honors Program have access to priority enrollment, meaning that Honors Program students enroll for classes first. Priority enrollment reduces the scheduling challenges faced by the many Honors Program students who are pursuing dual majors/degrees, thus making it more likely that they can complete these ambitious programs in four years.
Honors courses at KU are small and intimate and are taught by top faculty. They cultivate critical thinking, in-depth discussion, skill in self-expression, and independent analysis of course material. Honors courses are designed to enhance learning and stimulate discussion. Early contact with faculty provides students with the possibility of securing excellent recommendations for opportunities later on.
While the Honors Program provides local scholarships and awards for current students and nominates current students for national scholarships, it does not offer scholarships for incoming students. If you are interested in receiving a scholarship as an incoming student, contact the Office of Admissions and Scholarships at (785) 864-3911.
Yes! The Honors Program has students in the University Honors Program representing all of the professional schools. While the program currently only offers honors courses in CLAS and the Engineering, Journalism and Pharmancy schools, many honors students in other professional schools take CLAS honors courses that double as general education requirements for graduation.
Honors students are not required to live in special housing. The Honors Program does recommend that students live on campus for at least their first year.
Students who plan to live on campus may choose from a large variety of housing options. McCollum and Templin both have an honors floor that provides an enriching environment conducive to learning. In all co-ed dorms, men and women live on separate wings of one floor. Study areas are located in or near the lobby of each floor and residence halls have Academic Resource Centers (ARCs) with extra study areas and computer rooms featuring PCs with internet connections. Honors students may also consider the scholarship halls in which 50 men or women live in an academic cooperative-living setting at a reduced cost.
All student housing is coordinated through the Department of Student Housing. Visit their website for more information or to apply for housing.
You may be able to take honors courses if you are not in the Honors Program. However, you will not be able to automatically enroll in them. If you want to take an honors course, speak with the instructor of the course. If the professor grants you permission, you will need to contact the department's scheduling officer to get a permission number for the course. English and Math honors placement is handled through those departments and depends on a student's ACT/SAT score and/or high school preparation.
