With one in four incoming freshmen enrolled, the Honors College is poised to become one of the largest student communities on the University of Alabama campus.

Based on four pillars – innovative scholarship, advanced research, cultural interaction and civic engagement – the College offers both academic and social opportunities for students.

“Being a member of the Honors College has positively shaped my experience at The University of Alabama, both academically and socially, through gaining new friendships and becoming more involved on campus,” Morgan Canada, a junior majoring in nursing, said. “My advice for students is to take full advantage of all the opportunities the program offers, including scholarship, honors abroad courses and service opportunities.”

The Honors College offers the University Scholars program, an opportunity that allows Honors students to work ahead in graduate studies, in addition to offering research opportunities in topics ranging from Parkinson’s disease to historical social trends.

To receive an Honors designation on a diploma, students must complete 18 credit hours worth of seminars and honors departmental courses, as well as maintain a 3.3 GPA in all programs.

Departmental honors courses typically feature smaller enrollment, a contrast Canada said she appreciates over large lecture-style classes.

“Because the Honors College offers smaller classroom sizes of no more than twenty people, I have gained personal relationships with my professors and classmates,” Canada said. “I am able to effectively communicate with my professors by having one-on-one relationships and forming study groups with my classmates.”

Ellen Fine, a junior majoring in fashion retail, said managing her classes required for her major with honors classes can be difficult sometimes since there aren’t a lot of honors courses associated with fashion retail. However, she has managed to merge the two by utilizing honors-by-contract courses.

Through the contract, a student agrees to do extra work to receive honors credit for a departmental course.

“Since I had so many hours, I didn’t have time to fit in honors classes with my schedule, so I filled out an honors contract in one of my fashion retail classes,” Ellen Fine said. “I had to complete extra work, which included writing a paper.”

Fine’s twin sister, Jennifer Fine, said she feels her honors classes helped prepare and challenge her writing skills as a public relations major.

“My writing class has helped me see literature in a different way,” Fine said. “Once you read the books, it actually makes you want to purchase them. They really try and engage your interest in a stress-free environment.”

According to the Honors College website, entering freshmen must have an ACT score of at least 28 or an SAT score of at least 1250 in addition to a 3.3 high school GPA in order to be invited to apply.

However, if you missed the mark in high school but want to join as an upperclassman, rest assured that current UA students with a 3.3 GPA are accepted upon submission of an application.

Junior Jennifer Fine applied to the College the second semester of her freshman year.

“When you hear the words ‘honors,’ it sounds intimidating, but it’s actually a really great social and learning experience,” Fine said. “Even though it’s at a fast pace, it’s well worth it.”