The Honors College at the University of South Florida has experienced astounding growth since its inception more than a quarter century ago. From its early days as a successful honors program, it has become a world-class College that each year attracts academically superior students to USF by offering a unique learning environment that demands their finest efforts as student-scholars.
With an enrollment of more than 1800, including the University’s most talented students, the Honors College at USF is one of only 61 such programs nationwide. Small, intimate classes encourage meaningful interaction among students and faculty, essentially providing an intellectually vibrant small-college atmosphere within the context of a large, metropolitan research university.
Honors College students are among the nation’s elite. They choose to take advantage of the rigorous curriculum that defines the College. Like other highly selective schools, the Honors College emphasizes the development of thinking, reasoning and writing skills.
The Honors College was designed to guide academically advanced students toward lifetime success through a combination of rigorous study, cutting-edge research projects and intellectually stimulating interaction with faculty mentors and fellow students. In addition to the challenging, broad-based curriculum, students have access to rewarding research placements and internships, are able to travel to national conferences and participate in overseas study programs.
The exceptional students who gain admission have the potential to make contributions to society on a global scale—they are the inventors, the discoverers and the creators of the future. Among the goals of the Honors College at USF is to prepare students to lead thoughtful, fulfilling lives as engaged citizens of the world.
Scholarships
It is no secret that great colleges and universities are measured by the caliber of their students and that, without exception, elite institutions attract, nurture and cultivate outstanding students. Competitive, privately funded scholarships make it possible for worthy students to focus on their academic pursuits with purposeful dedication, unburdened by serious financial concerns.
As the expenses associated with academic scholarships and other financial aid programs continue to rise, the Honors College relies ever more heavily on the generosity of alumni and friends to support our students through endowed and current-use scholarship programs. By creating an endowed scholarship, you will make a difference in the lives of students today and for generations to come. Through your support for scholarships at the Honors College you are investing in the future by making it possible for qualified students to reach their full potential. Those students represent a solid return on that investment as they go on to become the leading physicians, engineers, educators, and cutting-edge entrepreneurs of tomorrow.
Global Study
In an ever-changing global society, it is imperative that Honors College students are educated in a dynamic atmosphere that encourages their development as citizens of the world. By supporting a dedicated international study program, you are helping to ensure that Honors students gain the professional, technical, language and other skills that are becoming increasingly vital to success across the country and around the world.
The importance of study abroad opportunities to the overall education of Honors College students cannot be overstated. As students graduate and enter the job market or seek admission to graduate and professional programs, they face unprecedented competition from peers with a wide variety of educational, economic and sociological backgrounds.
In recent years, the necessity and demand for substantial international experience has grown exponentially as technology and other factors have continued to shrink our world. Young professionals with cross-cultural familiarity, regardless of their occupations or areas of interest, are at a definite advantage as they navigate a progressively complex world in a newly global age.
Provost’s Scholars Program
Debuting in fall of 2011, the Provost’s Scholars Program provides high achieving students with the opportunity for a well-rounded university experience in only three years. The program gives Honors College students a chance to complete a bachelor’s degree in three years, while also providing them with the chance to live in the Honors College Living/Learning Community and to do study abroad.
Financial support for the new program is needed to supplement scholarships for those students who need them in order to take courses during USF’s summer sessions. In addition, financial support given for study abroad will help these students meet this requirement. Gifts to fund undergraduate academic research are also welcome, as these students will need support for a host of projects.
Research
While others merely consume knowledge, Honors College students help create it. The breakthrough discoveries that have and will change our world are achieved through research. At the Honors College, students work alongside eminent professors and scientists conducting important research that yields real-world results. This experience allows undergraduates to comprehend and master the many components associated with graduate-level and post-doctoral research projects.
Moreover, the Honors College offers the only undergraduate research major in the country, giving students the chance to spend an intensive year-and-a-half working one-on-one with a faculty member on a collaborative research project. In addition, the Research Scholars Program provides high-achieving first-year Honors students opportunities to conduct research with some of USF’s most distinguished professors throughout their undergraduate careers, for which they receive supplemental scholarship support.
