<p>I am a rising senior and am currently thinking of using BU as a safety when I apply to colleges next year. I was wondering if anyone had any input on the honors program: not only what it takes to get in, but what it is like when you are there. Are there any good opportunities for research? How are the classes? What about honors housing? Also, I will recieve no need-based aid, but grad school is definitely in the picture, so merit scholarships would help a lot… any idea as to my chances? Thanks!</p>
<p>A brief synopsis of my stats:
SAT: 2300/1500
SATII’s: Math II:780 US History 800
GPA: 4.0 UW
Ran: 1/63
Decent EC’s
Good Rec’s</p>
<p>Soo you're in a Boston University forum where about 80% of the ppl who post either go to bu or are affiliated w/ someone who does and you begin your post with " I am a rising senior and am currently thinking of using BU as a safety when I apply to colleges next year" ..... offensive to say the least...... class comes with maturity...now if you wanted to have people "help" you with your questions....you wouldn't degrade them first.....</p>
<p>now im not in the honors program...so obviously i cant answer any of your questions....but bu is pretty good with merit scholarships...however from what ive heard, honors program here really isnt as heavily stressed as other schools like say Penn ST. or Ohio St. or somewhere like that....anyhow, good luck with your search, just learn to be a lil more tactful when dealing with people...but anyhow good luck</p>
<p>I agree with the previous post. You could have said I'm interested in BU's honors college but instead you put in an ego ad for yourself, listing your test scores, grades and class rank while putting the school down as a safety. </p>
<p>Grow up. Try not being so self-centered. Try not being a jerk.</p>
<p>I would like to apologize for my previous post. Rereading it, both previous posters are correct in their assessment. It was a major error on my part. If anyone else felt degraded by this statement, I am sincerely sorry. I was wrong to phrase it that way, and it does not represent my feelings about BU, or the message I intended to convey. It is a wonderful school, and the reasons I am asking these questions is to learn if it is right for me. I promise from now on I will proofread for correct tone.</p>
<p>Thank you to KG974 for your info on the honors college. Any information is useful. If anyone else has any input (and is willing to help me after my terribly ungraceful introduction), I would still appreciate it.</p>
<p>Someone in another forum suggested that the phrase "sure match" should replace "safety." I like that. It doesn't have the negative connotation of "safety."</p>
<p>With your stats you should get consideration for merit aid but it seems this year some applicants with excellent stats didn't get any, which is surprising. I would make sure BU know it's one of your top choices, even if it isn't. Tour the school, at the very least. </p>
<p>The University Scholarship is half-tuition. The Deans Scholarship is $10,000. ED candidates have priority consideration for merit scholarships, so if you were going to apply ED, Id say you have a 100% chance. But if BU is not high on your list, then apply RD.</p>
<p>My S loved BU and applied ED. It is a great fit for him. He did get the University Scholarship and accepted to the Honors Program. Usually there is an honors section discussion for a lecture class. Some high level classes are strictly for honors students, I believe.</p>
<p>He was very impressed by the professor in his upper level honors political science class this past semester; even sent me a link to his bio. The work he did in this class helped shape his career path in political science. He was able to take this class because AP Government gave him credit for a prerequisite.</p>
<p>There are activities strictly for honors program students, including a weekend retreat in September, but he has not participated in them.</p>
<p>I don't personally think the honors program is particularly worthwhile. Some classes have Honors sections, but students outside of the honors programs can still register for these classes, but are excused from some assignments. The Honors housing is actually pretty good, and when paired with scholarship money, comprise the only real perks of the program. It may help with a graduate school application, but it has no bearing at all on whether or not a student graduates Summa Cum Laude or even with distinction in a major. Ever_after, I would not worry, though, about the Honors Program, though I do not doubt you will be accepted. BU has excellent research opportunities for undergraduates, and has very challenging classes. I know of people in the Honors Program formally, who do not even bother to enroll in such programs, as they are busy enough with a regular courseload. </p>
<p>As for Merit Scholarships, they are very competitive, especially in the College of Arts and Sciences. You can apply after your first semester, but only a handful are given out. I was fortunate enough to get one, but it was only for about $2000. </p>
<p>Anyway, I am not offended at all by the use of "safety" school. It's a colloquial term, and I see no reason why it cannot be used. Yes, the original post came of as haughty, but get real. She is eminently qualified, and as long as BU undergraduate program continues to have admissions standards that are disproportionately lower than the rigor of its academic program, it will continue to be a safety school for valedictorians with pristine standardized test scores.</p>
<p>I agree with calipharius -- I don't think ever-after was so tactless as to deserve such lambasting. Safety is only a negative term in certain context; otherwise, it's a valid term for college applications. ever-after was neither rude nor presumptuous in her post. </p>
<p>I'll be attending BU this fall and, while I wouldn't have called the university a safety when I applied, I would've been surprised if I wasn't accepted. I think the school is fantastic and offers incredible opportunities, but that doesn't change the fact that admissions is kind of lax for the type of education it gives out.</p>
<p>ever-after, you should be a lock for the honors program and a decent amount of merit aid, too, provided you show the university a little attention. I'll be entering UNI (University Professors Program); you should check it out, if you haven't already. Depending on what you want to study for grad school, it could be a good fit. Truthfully, UNI is the only reason why I decided to choose BU over Wisconsin-Madison; they were both the same price for me, but the courses that the program offers make my knees go weak.</p>
<p>I intended to suggest UNI, but it evaded me. The UNI program is fantastic. I have been fortunate enough to take classes with professors involved in UNI, and they are unequivocally excellent. Moreover, I myself feel remiss for not entering the program when I had the opportunity. </p>
<p>Bing,
I am not sure what your interests are, but if you are at all interested in philosophy or political science, do look into James Schmidt and Stanley Rosen. The professors who are associated with the science facet of UNI are also preeminent, but I don't have the first hand experience to praise them. The students in UNI are serious ones (with a few exceptions - after all, there are only a few students in the program!), and it is serious students that take advantage of BU. I think you will find rather quickly that BU is suffused with excellent professors, generally, and a huge array of courses to choose from. Also, it isn't well-marketed, but you can take graduate courses as an undergraduate. Not many undergraduates take courses with third-year students at a top 20 law school. There is something to be said for opportunities like this.</p>
<p>I hope this was coherent, it's 4:30am here!</p>
<p>
[quote]
As for Merit Scholarships, they are very competitive, especially in the College of Arts and Sciences. You can apply after your first semester, but only a handful are given out. I was fortunate enough to get one, but it was only for about $2000.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>This simply isnt true, I know someone with average stats at best that got a 10K renewable merit scholarship.</p>
<p>To the OP, I don't think using the term "safety" is offensive in any way, with your stats I definitely think this is accurate. </p>
<p>It may not make you all feel warm inside thinking that people use your school as a safety, but the reality is that people definitely use BU as a safety. (I know people that use Umich as a safety and are correct).</p>
<p>I think you look very good for both the honors program and merit money.</p>
<p>You're a shoo-in for honors program and merit money; you should definitely apply for Trustees (full-ride) Scholarship, which is in a separate application due December 1. </p>
<p>On a sidenote, some of BU's programs are extremely competitive, for which the OP is not a "sure match" for, such as the Accelerated Medical Program and the Trustee's Scholarship. But since the OP isn't interested in those, this is probably irrelevant.</p>
<p>
[quote]
This simply isnt true, I know someone with average stats at best that got a 10K renewable merit scholarship.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I am merely talking about merit scholarships that you apply for, not scholarships that are given out to prospective students. These, as I said, are rare.</p>
<p>calipharius, thank you so much for your input! I don't plan on studying philosophy or political science, but I do want to branch out in college and take classes in subjects I haven't had a chance to learn yet. I'm easily influenced by my peers and my environment, so I'm relieved to know the majority of the students in UNI are serious.</p>
<p>Thanks for the heads up on the graduate classes, too! These kind of opportunities are what make BU stand out; even though other universities may seem better at face value, when my parents and I researched all the various programs I could do, it seemed obvious where I'd want to get an education.</p>
<p>Thank you for everyone's input. I am especially interested in the UNI program. I found its website, but it left me with more questions than I started with...</p>
<p>Is it a college within BU, or a program within a specific college, or a program accessible to students from multiple colleges, or something else entirely? </p>
<p>It sounds like there is an application supplement; are there other requirements for admission?</p>
<p>While the topics do make 'my knees go weak' too (esp. Power and Legitimacy), there aren't any science courses listed in the 'sample courses'. Is this a fluke, or is the program humanities based?</p>
<p>It sounds like the program is small and comprised of driven academic types. How small is small? Do the students tend to socialize with others in the program, or do they branch out?</p>
<p>(1) UNI is a separate college, just like CAS or COM or ENG. It's the smallest and has ~150 students (?) total (I'm not positively sure, but I think there're about 30-40 students per year). The student:faculty ratio is 4:1.</p>
<p>(2) You apply to a specific college in your BU application, so you designate University Professors Program in the college pull-down box (if you're applying online & using the CommonApp). The only additional application supplement is a 750-word essay on what you plan to study and how UNI best fits with your concentration. There's no early deadline.</p>
<p>(4) A UNI freshmen actually e-mailed me upon request from the advisor, and the program's specialty housing is apparently quite decent, though those UNI students obviously wouldn't experience Towers or Warren, which are the most social dorms for freshmen (drawbacks are that those dorms are small and prison-like). I'm pretty sure students interact with other colleges within BU, though, because not all of your classes will be strictly UNI. After sophomore year, actually, I think people from other colleges can take classes in UNI, even though they aren't in the UNI college. If you're a current BU student and want to transfer into UNI, there's a pretty exhaustive application requiring prof-recommendations and essays.</p>
<p>There is no application for BU's Honors Program, or for most of the merit sholarships, so that's a plus. Basically if you are in approximately the top 10% of the particular college you are in, say CAS, you are offered the Honors program. Although PSU, the example given, has a more substantive Honors Program it enrolls far less than 2% of the college population and at least the first yr they are required, I believe, to choose Honors housing. So from a social viewpoint the mere size of BU's Honors program and that students can choose to be fully integratated into the rest of the Univ. experience is a plus.</p>
<p>Our S received the Univ. Scholarship half tuition. Like you he did not qualify for finacial aid and sees grad or law school in his future. BU also gave him merit money for a summer abroad program he did over his first summer. Both Honors Housing environments are phenomenal. The Bay St Rd Town house is in a great location, overlooking the river. However, most Honors kids choose to live in regular Freshman housing for social reasons. There are trips, activities, and a retreat but my son would have nothing to do with that aspect. He does enjoy the Honors segments which are smaller and engaging and occassionaly involve a trip. You can definitely ad it to your resume or grad school applications. He only needs to earn a 3.2/3.3 to maintain his merit aid and Honors status so you don't need to reapply every yr. I've also been told that if one misses the GPA for a semester and sends a letter with an explaination BU is flexible. If not, you gain it back as soon as you pull up your next semester grades/GPA.</p>
<p>Like any school there will be students at the higher end statistically as far as admissions stats. Since BU is so large thats a lot of kids. The Uni students and 7 yr med students also have stellar records as do many in other colleges like BME. (Biomedical Engineering--a BU top program)
Many kids, my s included, chose their sure bet college over match/reach school so its really about what feels right for you and like him you may feel that the merit award tips the scales in BU's favor. He has been challenged in all his classes. BU has high expectations.</p>
<p>OP, your maturity is commendable. Although you might have been a little more tactful in your first post I agree that it isn't a big deal. What is noteworthy is how well you took ownership of the error and corrected it in your subsequent post. On line nuances can often be misinterpreted and clearly your intentions were good and as for the clarification-"well done".</p>
<p>Can anyone say anything about the Trustees? I know its a full ride but do they too have their own "program" of sorts and special housing available?</p>
<p>Actually, I didn't find your first post offending at all. You're really qualified, I'm sure UCLA would be a safety for you too. And your questions about BU showed you were really interested. I don't know. It's just a forum everyone, get real. But yeah! GOod luck with your college applications. I'm so glad they're finally over.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Trustee Scholars and distinguished members of the Universityincluding Nobel prize winners, prominent authors, and esteemed scholarsgather informally every other week at 25 Lenox Street, a Victorian house that is a home away from home for the Trustee Scholars, to participate in a discussion about myriad topics. Social activities include cookouts at 25 Lenox Street, Halloween parties, faculty and Trustee Scholar receptions at 25 Lenox Street, and an annual trip to Boston University's Sargent Camp in Peterborough, New Hampshire.</p>
<p>They also participate in cultural activities ... (article rambles about ballet, baseball etc.)
[/quote]
I couldn't find anything about special housing, but that certainly doesn't mean there isn't a program in place... </p>
<p>If anyone has any additonal info, please share ;)</p>