Admission to the University of Florida is becoming increasingly selective as the university’s prestige and reputation (and student body) grows. Admission to the Honors Program is even more selective and rigorous, but it is indeed a unique honor and immediately joins new freshman into a growing body of ambitious young people.
The minimum requirements to be considered for the Honors Program at the University of Florida include having a 4.0 GPA as calculated by the university. Further, a score of 33 on the ACT or the best composite score on the SAT of 1400 are requirements. When a student is accepted into UF, they will receive an invitation to apply to the Honors Program and pending that application will be either accepted into the Honors program or will be encouraged to apply laterally in the future. Lateral admission offers a second chance to get into the program after a student’s first fall semester, whereby a 3.5 GPA is required along with having taken a 14 credit course load at the minimum and also showing university involvement.
In order to stay in the Honors Program, members must maintain at least a 3.0 GPA and enroll in at least four honors classes in their college career. In order to graduate with an honors diploma, students must additionally do one of the following: hold a leadership position, perform 50 hours of community service, conduct research or an internship or study abroad.
Still, as difficult as it seems to get into, the Honors Program is well worth the effort. Honors students automatically become part of the Student Honors Organization which not only offers opportunities for leadership, community outreach, and student participation but which also organizes many fun activities that help to “root” freshman in a group of friends and activities. Some of these include Sundaes on Sunday, Movie Nights (generally with a theme), Casino Nights, Ping-Pong Tournaments, Ultimate Frisbee Tournaments, and so on. Furthermore, students are given priority above other freshman in choosing classes (a very important feature of the program) and are kept up to date on all university functions sent right to their inbox. The Honors Daily Opportunity List, sent via email, makes it easy for students of all interests and backgrounds to get involved in organizations suited to them, giving dates for meetings and descriptions. Additionally, honors classes are no “harder” than regular classes, but they are more enjoyable and feature much smaller class sizes. Honors classes are often times non-traditional and are focused on broadening the students’ perspective regarding the ever-changing world. Some examples of Honors Classes include: Chick Lit, The Tao of Star Trek, Writing and Love, Things to Do With Poems, America in the 50s, and even Engineering and Astronomy of the Ancients.
However, beyond a shadow of a doubt, the best part of being an Honors student is the opportunity to live (if a student chooses to do so) in the Honors Residential Hall, Hume Hall. The newest dorm on campus, built in 2002, it is the only dorm on campus without communal bathrooms. Instead, students are generally in double rooms and two rooms share a bathroom and a shower. Indeed, four people to a bathroom is better than 30! Newly painted, with bright lighting and high ceilings, secluded from the bustle of main campus but still close enough, Hume offers large rooms, larger common rooms, a basketball court, a tennis court across the street, and plenty of fields for playing soccer, relaxing, or just reading a book.
