Honors College

Colleges and Universities A-Z Arizona State University
1

I know many people have told me about the perks of Barrett. However, I am wondering if I should attend ASU if I don’t get accepted by Barrett. What do you guys think, is it worth or not? (I have already been accepted for Computer Engineering by ASU)

2

“if I should attend ASU if I don’t get accepted by Barrett”

  • I think the answer to that question would depend on where else you’ve been accepted.
  • Being in Barrett should not make or break your decision to attend ASU.
  • Being in Barrett doesn’t mean anything to employers. You will be an alum of ASU.
    You should consider whether or not Arizona State University, [WPC, Fulton, etc] versus _____ is where you’d be proud to graduate from. You’ll never put “B.S. Computer Science, Arizona Sate University – Barrett, The Honors College/W.P. Carey School of Business” on a resume.

Barrett seems like a bigger deal than it is until you actually get to ASU. You’ll have the same opportunities whether or not you’re an honors student. If you’re academically inclined and competent, your academics will reflect that irrespective of being an “honors” student. Getting a job or getting into grad school is a game heavily influenced by your statistics – especially GPA. For me, Barrett just seemed like an unnecessary expense. I’ve had phenomenal professors, amazing internships and great extracurriculars. You don’t need Barrett to do that. My point is this: ASU is a great school and you should be looking at the whole institution, not just it’s honors college.

3

I agree that being in Barrett shouldn’t make or break a decision to attend ASU. Most of your honors credits will come from honors contracts on regular classes. That said, my daughter thoroughly enjoyed her Human Events classes and met many of her friends (she is a current junior in CS and math) through Barrett. Honors Contracts are a good way to get to know a professor better for graduate school recommendations but you can also approach a professor without that.

I disagree with @coloradoconfined that you would never indicate Barrett on a resume. Even if it didn’t make a bit of difference to 90% of employers, why not put it down anyway for the 10% who would notice it? It may not help but you never know either.