Honors
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The French philosopher Pascal once said that most of the ills of the world could be traced to people being unable to sit in a room and think. The Honors Program at Loyola attempts to teach students how to think. Because it is committed to liberal arts learning in the Jesuit tradition, the program places special emphasis on ideas and their expression. Students in Honors engage in a dialogue with great thinkers, writers, and artists—ancient and modern—in order to understand how ideas have shaped and continue to shape the world in which we live.
Honors brings together students and faculty who seek not only academic achievement but also intellectual challenge and growth.
The program focuses always upon the whole student, attempting to help refine and deepen the ability to think critically, to discern the true and the good, to respond to the beautiful, and to explore the intersection of faith and reason.
It offers students who are serious about their intellectual growth a series of classes and activities designed to lay the groundwork for responsible and informed choice in later life.
Students in Honors come from all divisions and departments of the University. Because Honors fulfills the humanities portion of Loyola’s core curriculum, Honors is equally suited to students majoring in the sciences, business, or the social sciences as it is to philosophy or English majors. Honors students are distinguished by their superior academic records and by their desire to participate in the program’s curriculum and activities.
Though the courses are rigorous, professors endeavor to foster an atmosphere of mutual support and collegiality, not rivalry or competition. Honors students speak often of the real sense of community that develops among them, and many lasting friendships have grown out of the program. At the same time, Honors students are by no means isolated from the larger University community. Because they often are among the most talented and engaged students on campus, Honors students tend to excel both in the program and in a whole range of campus activities.
The Honors faculty includes many of the University’s finest professors—teachers and scholars who are selected for their love of learning and their ability to communicate that love to students. They take a deep personal interest in their students and are readily available outside of the classroom for individual consultation and guidance.
Academics
Students in Honors take eleven courses at the Honors level during their four years at Loyola. Ten of these courses satisfy core requirements in the disciplines of English, Fine Arts, History, Philosophy, Theology, and Writing. At the heart of the program are eight Honors seminars.
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HN 200 First-Year Seminar
The introductory writing course for Honors students. Taken the first semester of first year, the course fulfills the composition requirement in the core curriculum.
Courses 2 through 5: The Interdisciplinary Four-Course Sequence. Students study the ideas, literature, faith traditions, and history of the western world in chronological order in the following four courses:
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HN 220 The Ancient World
Taken first semester of first year.
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HN 240 Medieval to Renaissance
Taken the second semester of first year.
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HN 260 Renaissance to Modern
Taken the first semester of sophomore year.
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HN 280 The Modern World
Taken the second semester of sophomore year.
Students are assigned to sections in a sequence that allows them to study over the course of their first and sophomore years with professors from four different disciplines: English, History, Philosophy, and Theology. HN220, 240, 260, and 280 satisfy core requirements in these disciplines. In each course, faculty from the four disciplines serve as consultants, working collaboratively to design the interdisciplinary syllabus and serving as guest lecturers in each others’ classrooms. Ordinarily about a third of the class meetings in the four-course sequence will be team-taught.
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HN290 Honors: Art History, or HN291 Honors: Music, or Seminar HN292 Honors: Theatre
Students choose one course from this group; taken second semester of sophomore year; satisfies the core requirement in Fine Arts.
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HN 300 Honors Junior Seminar
This course satisfies the core requirement in ethics; it is taken the first semester of junior year.
The remaining four courses are selected from among regular upper-division offerings in English, History, Philosophy, and Theology. These courses satisfy second core requirements in these disciplines.
Honors classes are small, and combine lectures with discussion and student presentations. Courses in all disciplines emphasize effective speaking and writing. Students generally find their work in Honors classes especially interesting and stimulating. The format and size of seminars allow for greater student participation, individual attention, flexibility, and independence than is possible in more traditional lecture courses.
Activities
Honors also enriches its students’ extracurricular experience through an extensive program of cultural events, excursions, discussions, and social occasions. The program sponsors an international film series, provides tickets to concerts by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and theatrical performances at Center Stage, and provides regular opportunities for participation in a wide range of events both within and outside the Baltimore-Washington area. Students in Honors elect representatives to a Student Council, which sponsors a variety of events and acts as the students’ liaison with the Honors director and the administration of the University. Among other responsibilities, the Council oversees use of the Honors student lounge, sends delegates to the national honors conference, and helps to organize field trips, class projects, and symposia.
Enrollment
Admission to Honors requires a separate application, which is sent to all students who indicate interest in Honors on the University’s application for admission or Supplement to the Common Application. In reviewing Honors applications, the Director is interested in candidates who have achieved a consistent A average while pursuing the most demanding curriculum available at his/her school. The Honors Program seeks to admit students who demonstrate intellectual curiosity, a desire for rigor, and a love of learning for its own sake.
Students are informed of their acceptance into the program no later than April 1; Early Action applicants to the University who also apply to Honors are informed of their acceptance into the program by February 1. Admission is extremely selective, and neither acceptance by the University nor a grant of scholarship aid is a guarantee of admission to Honors.
Current Loyola students may apply for admission to Honors up to the close of their first year, but they should note that very few spaces are typically available for continuing students.
Contact Information
Honors Program Director
Dr. Francis Cunningham
Acting Director, Honors Program
Department of Philosophy
4501 North Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21210-2699
410-617-5017
fcunning@loyola.edu
Loyola University Maryland, Undergraduate Admission Office
4501 North Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21210-2699
410-617-5012
800-221-9107