<p>As others have pointed out honors programs vary greatly from uni to uni. My (humanities-focused) D is in the Honors College at the University at Buffalo (SUNY). The perks include special advisement, research, taking graduate level classes, priority course registration, honors housing, special honors seminars and recitation sections of large lectures. She also participated in a required honors colloquium/service-learning project in the fall semester. Requirements of her program include maintaining a 3.5 gpa and completing 8 honors experiences over the course of the 4-year undergrad experience. These experiences can include: honors courses, independent study, special majors, double degrees, study abroad, internships, graduate level courses, and research. There is a lot of flexibility in terms of how she creates her program AND a lot of rigor in terms of academic expectations. (She has to maintain a higher gpa to stay in the Honors College than to keep her scholarship!)</p>
<p>So far the program has been great, and as others have observed, a good honors program at a large state university can provide the best of both worlds: a smaller, more personalized and rigorous experience within a larger, more diverse community with the resources of a research university.</p>
<p>It sounds like your S is very focused and knows what he wants, and this sounds like something he wants. I'd like him make the decision after carefully researching the program to make sure it meets his needs.</p>
<p>Let him decide and hope he goes for it, he sounds like a good candidate for succeeding in a rigorous program. Less boring classes, even in subjects outside of ones major/interest are easier to study for. My experience with my son has been better grades in Honors classes, he works harder. He'll also associate with a peer group closer to his own level and meet more people he relates to academically. The relative may have gotten the HS grades but probably had to work for them whereas the college Honors courses may finally be at the right level for your son.</p>
<p>My aunt wanted her son, a couple of years younger than I, to be a doctor throughout his childhood. I ended up becoming one, although that wasn't my plan when starting college. He went a totally nonscience route. Don't let someone else's experience be the reason for your son to avoid this challenge- his aunt doesn't know both boys well enough to determine if the Honors program will also be too tough for your son.</p>
<p>Your son should definitely take the honors program.
I am in a honors program at my school and it is great.
I have to take one honors class per semester, but the classes are small and intellectual.
This is a nice break from the larger classes that one suffers during the first few years of college (and even longer depending on the school/when you take certain courses). Also there are awesome social opps with a built in group of people that you have something in common with (trips, events, nights out.)</p>
<p>But you don't have to spend all your time with these people.</p>
<p>Don't let that one crazy lady tell your son to drop out! If he wants to stay in he will, but if he drops out later it won't be the end of the world.</p>
<p>Most honors programs require a min gpa to remain in them, gpa's which frequently in the 3.5 range. This would indicate that most honors students can do quite well in them. I would definitely encourage your son to take advantgage of the opportunity and challenge.</p>
<p>From what you say, he is capable of the work. The question for me would be, how does the honors program course fit with the courses he has to or wants to take for his major. So I agree: more info is needed. Call both honors and engineering departments.</p>
<p>Don't worry about the room! He's already proven he can do the work and get good grades AND have a messy room. </p>
<p>Also, about the perfectionism and procrastination: My daughter suffers from both of those, and her college experience so far (mid-year freshman) has been no different. The difference is that she has - miracle - learned to manage her time really well, and she has learned that she HAS to let go of some of the perfectionism if she wants to get all of her work done. Since she's also a perfectionist about getting it done and in on time, she's learned to balance the need to do it perfectly and the need to get it done. Don't get me wrong - she is still plagued by it, but she's grown a lot in both areas because she's had to.</p>
<p>Good luck - I have a feeling that a few phone calls will help put the decision in perspective.</p>
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Call both honors and engineering departments.
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<p>Actually, if contact is to be made at all, it should come from your son, not you. If it is inconvenient for him to call because he's in school during most of the hours that the relevant offices are open, e-mail will work fine.</p>
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And how would an 18 year old HS student know what a university Honors program actually entails?
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<p>As for the question quoted above, it's true that an 18-year-old would not know this -- but neither would his parents, especially since the situation differs dramatically from university to university. Fortunately, the decision of whether or not to go into the honors program is not an earthshattering one. It will have a minimal impact, if any, on your son's future. So it seems to me that it's a decision he could make on his own, with or without input from the honors and engineering departments, if he feels that such input would be valuable. He also might want to discuss the issue on the CC board for this specific university. Other students who post there might have valuable insights.</p>
<p>D found Honors not to be much more challenging. If class is challenging, than non-Honors will be challenging as well. If it is not challenging, then Honors, will not be challenging either. So far, she has been able to maintain 4.0 (sophomore in junior standing) with Bio being the most challenging. However, she avoided taking her most difficult class in college by getting "5" on AP History in HS. D is in Honors program. One warning, Honors might include some Merit $$, that you might lose if you dropped out of Honors.</p>
<p>Son #1- honors college. Takes a required amount of honors courses for honors college.
With your sons grades, honors college will likely be fine. However, he has a tough, tough major and may not need or want any extra work. Will saying you did "Honor" matter in the end? I have no clue. With my sons AP's he started school as a second semester soph and took honors 300-500 level without a problem. If your son wants to do it, why not? </p>
<p>Definitely read the post above by MiamiDAP- re: GPA to maintain merit award based on Honors college. </p>
<h1>2 son wants nothing to do with honors college. He is also applying for engineering and I think the work will be overwhelming and difficult as it is. However, he just got a letter from a great school that they want him to fill out the honors app ASAP and he may get merit this way, where otherwise he will likely not get any. In this case, I think he has to comply, but if admitted (and if he even want s to attend this school) keeping the required GPA just may not happen. Loosing the merit to attend an OOS may not be worth it when he has other great options. Just something to keep in mind.</h1>
<p>I am very glad that my D's merit scholarship is not attached to her honors college enrollment; though both have gpa requirements, the honors college requirement is higher.</p>
<p>Different schools run Honors differently. You/your son need to know the way things work at his school when making choices based on the information we give here on CC.</p>
<p>UW-Madison has an Honors Program, not a college. Students live anywhere, can join almost any semester, etc. There are math, science and liberal arts sequences for freshmen plus other courses one can do more for to get honors credit. Tough majors such as math, chemistry and physics have honors sequences for freshmen that are more rigorous and help with preparing for more advanced coursework. So much more to tell, but those interested in that school's specifics can read the UW website.</p>
<p>Often the classes are smaller, the peers better and the course a more desirable assignment for professors than the general classes. Likely more chances of getting to know/be known by a professor earlier in one's college career. </p>
<p>My Honors program was well worthwhile eons ago for me, now they have improved it and I still recommend any form of doing honors classes to students at any school.</p>
<p>He has taken dual enrollment...and many AP classes. One of his first year Honors classes is English and he has already completed 1010 and 1020 and passed and will qualify for exemption. He is a NMS Commended student and hasn't had any difficulty with his math skills and he is pretty set on engineering right now. It's obviously a good career choice because today he was trying to find a civil engineer to be named his Mentor to award him his Eagle Scout neckerchief (It's obviously something they do at the state ceremony) and there are only about six in the surrounding area. There was an offer though for him to shadow an engineer in the department of transportation. I'd like to see him do that during the summer to get a better feel for the type of work an engineer does.</p>
<p>He's pretty much set on going through with Honors. He's read all of your messages and has discussed them with me. He's decided to go ahead and take advantage of the Honors dorm too to cut down on any distractions of roomies with a less serious reason for being at college. The school does not lean toward liberal arts...and there are only so many Honors hours that are required each year. I guess that leaves time for the medival re-enactment club. :)</p>