Undergraduate Honors

Freshman Year Honors

Freshman Scholars are selected to participate in the Steinhardt Honors Program based on an outstanding high school record of academic achievement, leadership, and service.

Freshman Scholars are expected to maintain a cumulative 3.5 GPA and to participate actively in program activities.

Undergraduate Honors Program Freshman Scholars Seminar

Enroll in Steinhardt's Undergraduate Honors Program Freshman Scholars Seminar (SAHS-UE.2, 0 credit): Required

  • The Freshman Scholars Seminar (SAHS-UE.2) is the centerpiece of the undergraduate Honors Program during freshman year. The year-long zero-credit Seminar is organized around an annual topic that provides a foundation for learning, building community, and promoting leadership. Scholars meet every other week over the course of the academic year to explore the topic through discussions and reflection, lectures by distinguished faculty or visitors, interviews, and student presentations. The topic also informs social/cultural activities, research, and international travel.
Freshman Scholars are appointed to one of two groups that comprise the Freshman Scholars Seminar: University Scholars or Dean's Scholars. Both groups follow the same syllabus and often meet jointly.
  • The Seminar topic may vary from year to year.Recent Seminar topics have included Traditional Cultural Expression and Community Identify; Leading our Generation Past Discrimination; Evolving Communities; and the American Dream: Representation vs. Reality, and Heroes and Heroines:  Who are they and what do they represent? 
  • The Seminar is organized to promote student interaction and engagement.  Scholars assist in planning the Seminar.  Students work in small groups to plan and present one seminar meeting each term, under the guidance of the Scholars Advisors.  Other groups may form on an ad hoc basis.
  • International Travel Colloquia during the January or  Spring intersession offer additional insight into the human experience from a variety of perspectives. International travel is designed to work in tandem with New York University's commitment to global learning and cooperation.
Recent travel colloquia have taken Freshman Scholars to Ghana, Peru, Greece, and Mexico.
  • Student research through interviews with leaders in academia, non-profit organizations, or government allows Scholars to explore questions related to the annual topic and the travel colloquium destination.
  • Community service, as experiential learning, complements the Seminar and engages Scholars in individual and/or group service projects. This form of learning allows Scholars to explore issues of social justice and policy and to develop perspectives and skills necessary for effective leadership. 
  • Social and cultural activities and events embrace the richness of the University, New York City, and its neighborhoods.
  • Advisors to the Scholars program are senior leaders in the Steinhardt School.  They meet individually with each Freshman Scholar each term.

Jeanne Bannon
Director, Counseling & Student Services
82 Washington Square East, 2nd Floor
212.998.5058
jeanne.bannon@nyu.edu 

Patricia M. Carey
Associate Dean for Student Affairs
82 Washington Square East, 2nd Floor
212.998-5025
patricia.carey@nyu.edu 

Lindsay Wright
Associate Dean for Planning and Communication
82 Washington Square East, 4th Floor
212.998.5003
lindsay.wright@nyu.edu

Steinhardt Freshman Honors Colloquium

Enroll in a Steinhardt Freshman Honors Colloquium (4-credits) during your first semester in residence:  Optional

Freshman Scholars are invited to enroll in a Steinhardt Freshman Honors Colloquium, by advisement as an elective, if their program of study allows.

These Honors Seminars are small, intellectually stimulating classes taught by distinguished faculty across NYU.  Students are introduced to demanding standards of analysis and argumentation through intensive discussion, papers on focused topics, and readings that emphasize critical interpretation.