WALL STREET JOURNAL
RANKS U OF L
U of L is among the top "feeder" institutions to America's most elite graduate schools, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sept. 26, 2003. The article, "Want to Go to Harvard Law?," ranks U of L as 30th among all public colleges and universities in the nation whose graduating students made it into top graduate programs in fall 2003 at Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Chicago and similarly prestigious universities. The newspaper based the article on a survey it conducted to determine where students entering 15 of the nation's most elite medical, law and business schools had attended school as undergraduates. To read more click on "Harvard Law via U of L."
At left, David Soleimani-Meigooni, a Grawemeyer
Scholar who presented his research at the National Collegiate Honors
Council conference in St. Louis in October 2005, pictured with fellow
Grawemeyer Scholar, Josh Yuen. [Photo by Luke Buckman.]
For in-depth stories about Honors see With Honors e-Zine
Getting Acquainted
Students who demonstrate potential for high levels of achievement find
multiple opportunities for academic and personal development in the
University Honors Program at the University of Louisville. Established
in 1982 and redefined in 1985, the University Honors Program has been
enrolling and serving increasing numbers of students. Over 1,200 Honors
students are currently involved in Honors work with 750 students enrolled
each semester in Honors courses and seminars. On average, more than
400 new students participate in the University Honors Program each year.
The Overseers Honors House is at the center of campus.
The Honors residence hall is located nearby.
The Overseers Honors House, a renovated, 130-year-old townhouse typical of Victorian Louisville, is the second oldest building on campus and home to a classroom, library, computer center and the National Scholarship and Fellowship Office. Throughout the year, the Honors House and the Etscorn Center are the site of many presentations, receptions and social events open to Honors students.
Small Honors sections provide students the opportunity to participate in personal classes and to engage in intensive and challenging study. Honors classes promote discussion, in-depth research and writing and close relationships with faculty and peers. Honors students may major in any undergraduate program in the university and are required to take at least one Honors course per year as well as maintain a 3.35 GPA. Eligible students are advised by the University Honors Program staff and are encouraged to participate in the University Honors Scholars Program, which requires a minimum of 24 hours Honors credit.
Entering Freshmen, Fall 2009 Requirements
New students entering in the fall of 2009 are eligible to take courses in the University Honors Program if they have an ACT composite score of 28 or higher or the equivalent SAT score of 1250 (composite math and verbal scores) and a high school grade point average (GPA) of 3.5. Transfer students may also qualify for the Honors Program, please consult the Eligibility Guidelines at the bottom of the FAQ page for more information.
If you are a high school senior with plans on attending the University of Louisville, you will receive a letter from our office if you meet the above eligibility criteria. This letter explains how to join the University Honors Program. Freshman whose grades slip below the established minimum have one probation semester to improve their grade point averages. In all circumstances, registration in Honors courses requires permission acquired during advising with a University Honor Program staff member.
Spring Honors seminars previewed at the Honors Scholars banquet before registration began included "Speech and Hearing" with Dr. Paval Zahorik, "The Arts and Human Development" with Dr. Deborah Davis, "Anti-Terrorism Rhetoric" with Dr. David Anderson, "The Pacific Century" with Dr. Shiping Hua and "The Grawemeyer Awards" with Dr. David Mosley.
Eligible freshmen are invited to enroll for "Modes of Inquiry," an orientation to campus life for new students. Honors sections of general education courses are offered each semester. These classes provide a strong foundation for upper-level study and meet requirements across colleges.
Honors Scholar Seminars are interdisciplinary courses open to sophomores, juniors and seniors. Often team-taught, these seminars tend to focus on topics of immediate interest to students. Some recent courses include "Urban Water," "Tocqueville & the Shaping of American Politics," "Women’s Memoirs & Self Portraits," "Devotion and Demons: Medieval Popular Religion," "What it Takes to be a CEO" and "Environmental Law." Additionally, the Overseers International Seminars combine semester-long, in-depth study with substantially subsidized travel to locations outside the United States. These seminars have traced the footsteps of Charles Darwin in the Galapagos Islands, Ancient ruins of Greece and J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy in New Zealand. Seminar topics change annually. Specific descriptions are posted online each semester with qualified students invited to participate.
Honors coursework is noted on a student's transcript, and college honors is awarded on the basis of grade point average and other factors determined by each undergraduate unit. The University Honors Program works closely with those students who intend to graduate summa cum laude from the College of Arts and Sciences, helping them to develop and complete appropriate senior honors projects.
Active Honors students choose to get involved in many of the extracurricular offerings of the University Honors Program such as peer mentoring, community service projects, career mentoring with experienced professionals in the local area, attendance at regional and national honors conferences and undergraduate research related to senior honors projects. As freshmen, many Honors students choose to live on scholars' floors in the freshman residence halls; after the first year, Honors students may request space in Threlkeld Hall.
Contact information is available online.
