I am currently finishing up my application to Purdue and I am looking at joining their Honors College. It looks like a really interesting program with much better dorms, but I still have a few questions about it before I apply for it.
What benefits does the Honors College have (Besides the nicer, newer dorms)?
What is the Beering Scholarship and do all enrolled Honors College students receive it?
I am planning to major in Computer Engineering and I don’t think I will have an issue getting in to the computer engineering program, but I was wondering how selective the Honors College is. I have an unweighted 3.7 and a weighted 3.9 GPA (4.1 after my senior year) and a 34 ACT (35 superscored - 36E/33M/34R/35S), so would I be competitive to join the Honors College or what do they look for?
With my test scores and GPA, what types of scholarships would Purdue offer me since I am an out of state student?
For #1 , you register for classes around 2-3 weeks before other people do. The dorms are a bit more pricey and you are not guaranteed to stay in the new honor dorms. The location is pretty good though, but Owen or Cary would be better for an engineering.
I wouldn’t count on the dorms as a factor as many Honors kids had to be placed at Shreve this year. My OOS son had similar GPA and 33 ACT and got nothing in scholarships and was not invited to join Honors, which absolutely kills him now that he has met many of the Honors students and finds he has to help them with their homework! YMMV
My son started there, and left. The benefits: 1). Honors engineering was a lot more work but exposed him to CS as well as all the engineering areas. 2). You get to pick your engineering major first 3). Was allowed to / approved / assisted by the Honors Engineering Dean to get a EE / CS degree that is not part of the normal program. Well worth it first year. 4). Prospective employers for internships or co op like to see that on your resume THEN: Drop out. Seriously Purdue is a bear of a program with tons of work even for the smartest in the world. You choose the Cary Quad dorm where all the engineers are, focus on your engineering work. Engineering has its own honors for top . You are better off finding a Research Assistant Position than working harder in a very difficult curriculum as it will expose you to more and add to your resume and experience base
You could get Presidential scholarship ($10k)-I don’t know anything about Beering. My son is CS major and with UW GPA similar to yours and a 35, was offered honors and the Presidential, which was the final factor in his decision to go there. As a CS major, the honors dorm location is ideal (across the st from Lawson). About 20% of the incoming freshmen honors students were not placed in the honors dorm. They have a day program, if you live close enough to go, about the honors program in the spring. We didn’t go to that due to distance, but figured he’d do it and see how it goes.