<p>I am looking at WSU(Washington State University) and I noticed the honors program, I'm confident I could get in, I am just wondering what it is all about, if it is worth it, etc. Does the honors program help in finding a job after college, I mean, when applying for a job is Honors College helpful to have on a resume? </p>
<p>Also, how would the honors classes differ from standard courses?</p>
<p>It definitely helps, especially when you are right out of college to have the honors and when employers stop looking at your GPA, but you still have your degree on your resume, it will look even better.
The main reason of doing Honors is because there are many more opportunities available. Often times, Honors Students receive more attention, more research opportunities. This helps when getting teacher recommendations for grad school, if you are considering that as well.</p>
<p>Honors colleges can be a great choice for those attending a larger school. Honors colleges offer valuable perks and let you meet some of the top students at your college. However they are often oversold with glossy pamphlets implying a small LAC has been set up inside the larger university giving an elite private education at the public school price. On this forum you’ll read posters who also say/imply that.</p>
<p>Depending on the program offerings may range from separate honors classes to taking just one honors seminar per semester. And some of the “honors” offerings may just be a special discussion section of the regular class (at many U’s you meet 2-3x a week in a large class with the prof, then everyone meets weekly in a smaller group with a TA). You really need to dig in to find what a particular school offers.</p>
<p>Keep in mind honors programs typically offer the small classes and hand-picked profs only the 1st two years of college. They can do this because doesn’t take that many classes to come up with a set that will meet the lower-division requirements for most majors. It is rare to find more than a token amount of upper-division classes since the honors program simply doesn’t have enough faculty members to create entire major(s). So the last two years most/all classes are taken with the rest of the students in the regular U’s classes. The teaching of the profs will be geared towards the normal U level, the discussions and student involvement in class will be dominated by the regular students, and so on. Class sizes may balloon, too, if you’re in a popular major.</p>
<p>Peer effects are big, too; when almost everyone around you at school is a strong student you have lots of good student to emulate in class or outside it such as doing research or internships. If the top kids are a few hundred strong dispersed among tens of thousands at the U then strong examples may be harder to see. When it comes to finding a job, employers are less likely to send recruiters to a campus with a limited number of honors seniors when they can get a campus-full at more highly regarded schools.</p>
<p>Honors colleges do offer some valuable perks, in addition to the classes. Typical ones include registering for classes before everyone else so you get the classes you want (a perk worth its weight in gold!), special counselors, guaranteed housing, special library privileges. They will mark your diploma recognition. But I would be dubious about attending a college for its honors program in place of a more highly regarded U if finances are not an issue.</p>
<p>One thing I’ll point out about most honor colleges is that they do not do anything to help with the bureaucracy of the larger university. If you find a honor college that has its own administration or business processes - separate registration, separate major declarations, separate graduation analysis, etc., then you’ve found something really worthwhile.</p>
<p>Thank you very much for the replies, they helped me a lot. :)</p>