<p>I believe that this program has just begun its second academic year, at BU.
Any feedback from students who are currently enrolled in this program? The structure of the first and second years? Has there been any changes from what was originally planned and begun in the Fall of 2010? What’s good and what’s not so good? I have a D who is currently a junior at BU. The program was not available when she enrolled in 2009, and I have another D currently applying to BU and the Honors College. I am an alum as well.
Any Terrier feedback would be greatly appreciated!
Take care,
Mr. VC</p>
<p>hey do you have any idea of what scores the Honors College students got?</p>
<p>With the HC program just in its second year, there is not much data. Hence why I asking for some current students, fellow Terriers to respond as to what’s hot and what’s not.</p>
<p>No offense, but you seem pretty focused on “scores”, how come?</p>
<p>There’s a lot more to it than that - as you know from the “chance me” details that you have provided in prior posts.</p>
<p>BU does mention that just because you may qualify or get awarded one of their merit scholarships, that does not guarantee entrance into HC.</p>
<p>Take care,</p>
<p>Mr. VC</p>
<p>hahaha, yea sorry I’m kinda in a SAT score frenzy. But the main reason I’m asking about scores is because I have graduated from high school and I am currently on a gap year. So improving my grades or anything like that is out of the questions all I can do is work on my SAT score. </p>
<p>I’m trying to maximize on that part of my application as the other areas are fixed.</p>
<p>Thanks for the details. I hope that you are able to engage in some type of learning - work experience that reinforces your career aspirations - Good Luck!</p>
<p>It makes sense to shine up your scores, but from your prior posts - they look pretty good.</p>
<p>I’m pretty familiar with BU. They do a lot of merit based scholarship attraction, and announce that they typically enroll over 700 valedictorians a year. With HC, it is unclear to me exactly the type of student that they are looking for. Years ago, when I attended and graduated, BU did not have an honors program for students. There was, and still is I believe, a chapter for Phi Beta Kappa.</p>
<p>Today, you have this slew of vals (I don’t know exactly what BU does to entice this group - perhaps a large minority come in via the accelerated medical and dental programs offered, and others such as phys. therapy / athletic training) and you have Trustee Scholars (a competitive program with a separate app.) and Presidential Scholars, which require no additional app.; for merit scholarships at BU you need to have your Common Application and BU supplement in by Dec. 1., although the deadline for reg. decision is later.</p>
<p>Back to the NHC program, in its second year at BU, I would like to hear from some current students about the experience. I went for a campus tour in Aug., not a whole lot was presented, in fact, I launched the question about the HC at the admissions presentation to more than 200 prospective students and their parents and the reply was limited to the HC’s newness. That was it . . .</p>
<p>Take care,</p>
<p>Mr. VC</p>
<p>hey guys,
im a current freshman at the honors college. We are approaching end of semester, so it is actually getting quite busy. I would love to tell you guys more about it next week probably by Wednesday 12/13 where I have most of my tests done.
Good luck in applying!</p>
<p>Hi Mr. VC,</p>
<p>I’m also a student in the honors college (officially the Kilachand Honors College). I am a sophomore biomedical engineer. For most of the information you’re looking for I would direct you to KHC’s website:</p>
<p>[University</a> Honors College | Boston University](<a href=“Kilachand Honors College”>Kilachand Honors College)</p>
<p>The site includes KHC’s curriculum, philosophy on education, and some admissions info.</p>
<p>As for my personal experience, I couldn’t recommend KHC any more highly. There are so many advantages to participating in such a great program. </p>
<p>One of the great benefits of KHC is the faculty that the students are exposed to. Since the college is meant to function as a high-level academic program, high-level faculty forms the backbone of KHC. For instance, I’ve already had a class taught by a Nobel-prize winning physicist. I know if I had not joined KHC I would have never been exposed to these upper-echelon professors. </p>
<p>The other main benefit is the community of great minds that students participate in through the Honors College. The people that I have met in KHC are people who I know are going to make a difference in the world. It was great getting to know them freshman year when we all lived in the same dorm, and now most of my really good friends are in KHC. </p>
<p>Basically, when you come to college you find your way into some sort of group of kids that is held together by some association, be it a sport or a club or whatnot. That is what KHC is to me its my group of people that I can talk with, study with, and hang with. In this way, KHC has definitely had a positive impact on my college experience. Also, I’ve made some great connections for research and internships through faculty in the Honors College, which has been great.</p>
<p>Granted, the program is in its infancy and has had its share of bumps in the road. And that’s going to continue as these issues are ironed out. But the administrators of the college are really easy talk to and make feedback very easy, which is essential with such a new program being implemented.</p>
<p>Hope this helps Mr. VC!</p>
<p>Its clear that your myelin sheath is wrapped appropriately!</p>
<p>I was a Bio and Psych double major in the late 70’s at BU - CLA at that time.</p>
<p>Your response is very helpful. The likelihood to have the type of lasting and progressive connection with a group of students was not as prevalent back in my day. </p>
<p>For you, and for my D who is a junior at Sargent, it has changed 180 degrees. She has had a similar experience, now in her third year, of strong relationships with classmates - teammates that she met within hours of moving in, as a freshman student-athlete.</p>
<p>Would you say that collaboration opportunities with fellow students is effective with your learning, understanding and accumulation of knowledge for critical thinking? Scale of 1-10 where is it compared to the best situation you were in prior - I know that high school is not always an incubator of collaboration, because, let’s think about it, teachers are often working in isolation.</p>
<p>Back in my day, BU didn’t always do things with the greatest degree of fidelity. I do see huge improvements though, and you have reported another to me - that as a tuition paying alumni makes me proud.</p>
<p>As long as you feel like you are getting your tuition’s worth, and your courses engage you, that’s great. I have years of experience helping public schools make decisions regarding curriculum and instruction, as well as school leadership, so what I can learn about NHC helps me understand what h.s. seniors can be transitioning towards, and the skills needed when they get there. </p>
<p>Back in my day, BU Biomedical engineering was just getting going, and was a leader in the programmatic field. You have chosen a great field, especially with all of the biotech development, construction of R & D facilities (8 sites) going on in Cambridge and Boston right now.</p>
<p>Its the epicenter of Biotech in the nation, currently.</p>
<p>Thanks again for sharing your experience - good luck with mid terms!</p>
<p>Take care,</p>
<p>Mr. VC</p>
<p>Didn’t want to start a new thread, but my question is related since OP’s D was currently enrolled. </p>
<p>Can current students enter KHC even if they didn’t apply for it as a high school senior?</p>
<p>Would the honors college make sense for a piano performance major? She would likely have the grades to be eligible.</p>
<p>Another perspective from a parent…</p>
<p>I was a little annoyed when I found out about this college, by randomly looking at the website…</p>
<p>My daughter is a VERY STRONG student… (high GPA, high SAT)… and it would have been nice to have known about this college when she was in the process of applying… I was annoyed we were not told about it…</p>
<p>I think parents and kids should be told about this college upfront (like while they are interviewing/applying for schools).</p>
<p>She is currently a freshman, deciding on her major, and is taking Core which is very good… but it would have been nice to have known about this other college… And it’s also annoying that kids currently at BU cannot gain entry…</p>
<p>I’m currently a freshman in the KHC (Undecided Engineering). Asalmon, I personally think that there isn’t a major that doesn’t “make sense” with the honors college. The honors college really is about integrating all sorts of different fields and studies, so I know people in the honors college from almost all of the BU schools (including the college of fine arts.) Although I haven’t met any piano performance majors, coming from a pianist who has an idea of what piano performance might require, I think the honors college is definitely manageable. Yes, it does take some time away from practicing with the classes and Co-curricular events, but part of the reason for joining the honors college is to have the opportunity to be involved in these unique events and classes. You’ll get a chance to explore outside of your major and within a small class setting with professors who usually aren’t available to underclassmen. I posted a quote below from the website specifically for CFA. For Engineering, the KHC coursework satisfies all courses outside of the Engineering courses (general education requirement.) If you were planning on using AP credits so that you could focus more on music, then the KHC might not be for you (I could have used AP credits towards general education and perhaps had more options in terms of double majoring*<em>), but if you are going to be required to take the courses anyway and you aren’t planning on using AP credits, then I definitely would consider the honors college. *</em>Note that when I say this I don’t mean that being in KHC means you can’t double major. You definitely can double major or have minors and still be in KHC, but it does mean more work on your part in terms of taking more classes a semester. Also, KHC gives you 2 extra credit hours to use, which means instead of having a maximum of 18, you have a maximum of 20 credit hours, and I think you can still overload beyond that (I think this is the case, I’m sure the specifics are on the website somewhere.)</p>
<p>Here’s a quote from the website for College of Music: “Twenty-eight credits of liberal arts courses are required to complete the course of study for graduation. The Kilachand Honors College curriculum fulfills liberal arts requirements for College of Fine Arts students as follows: freshman writing, four liberal arts electives, two English literature courses, and two general electives.” </p>
<p>So again, all these courses are required anyway, and within the KHC you have the opportunity to take wonderful and unique classes that are not your “typical” gen ed requirement classes. Not to say that the normal gen ed classes are bad, but KHC is definitely a different and worthwhile experience.</p>
<p>chalkboard2010: I understand that it might be frustrating for current students not to be able to join the honors college, but it’s not like BU doesn’t tell anyone about the honors college either. On the common app, it’s pretty clear that you can check a box and write another essay for joining the KHC (at least when I was applying.)</p>
<p>Hi,
I am currently a sophomore in the honors college at BU and just to address some of these questions…
first its seems that a lot of focus is on grades and scores. Though this is important for khc admissions not the sole component the college likes to see. Something that sets students apart is always beneficial. Though KHC students have academic strengths, excellence and passion for things outside of school is very important (be it dance, clubs, competitions, science fairs etc.) and a music interest would be great! KHC is a cross discipline program and students whose high school resume shows that they would excel in such an environment are of interest to the college. It is meant to give students liberal arts experience in a large university.</p>
<p>I am not in CFA so I cannot address your question directly you can find how the college works with each of the schools here:
[How</a> the Kilachand Honors College Works with the Schools and Colleges » Kilachand Honors College | Boston University](<a href=“http://www.bu.edu/khc/your-four-years/how-khc-works-with-the-schools-and-colleges/]How”>http://www.bu.edu/khc/your-four-years/how-khc-works-with-the-schools-and-colleges/) </p>
<p>To address the most recent comment, because KHC is a very small school and a new program (this is only in its the third year) there is limited awareness about it. This can be a frustrating problem however it is mentioned on Boston University’s application (an essay must be written). As the school grows and the college becomes established hopefully this issue will be resolved.</p>
<p>Finally the reason that current students can’t join the program is because courses must be taken every year. 4 freshman year, 2 sophomore year, 1 junior year and 2 senior year. These classes build on each other leading up to a senior year project. Because there are a number of classes to take in addition to your major it just isn’t possible to join the program late. Also, you must attend co-curricular event (speakers, plays etc.) every few weeks are required and missing a year of these defeats what the college is trying to accomplish. It is not because students who weren’t initially admitted would not make good candidates, it is simply because it functions as a four year program.</p>
<p>Hope this was helpful!</p>
<p>One other note…
core does not work with the honors college, depending on what info sessions you attended etc. if she knew she was interested in core that could have changed the information you received (i do not know that for a fact) but it is an unfortunate circumstance.</p>