Two different Honors Programs are available to students at Penn State Schuylkill. Both programs provide students with an opportunity to broaden and enrich their general education and to enhance their preparation for graduate school or a career. For students not admitted into either program, there are opportunities to take honors courses as well.
The Penn State Schuylkill Honors Program is open to incoming first year students who meet one or more of the following criteria:
- Placement into ENGL 030 and/or 650 SAT Verbal score AND MATH 021 or higher.
- Placement into MATH 140 AND ENGL 015 or higher.
- Combined 1160 SAT (1600 maximum: verbal and math).
- Score of 4 or higher on any AP exam.
Students meeting the criteria will receive an offer to apply for membership in the Penn State Schuylkill Honors Program. The applications are reviewed by the faculty honors coordinator. All applicants will be notified in writing of the honors coordinator’s decision.
For sophomores (semester classification 3 and 4), the criteria are as follows:
- Minimum GPA of 3.70 (excluding review classes).
- Minimum Math (must be MATH rather than another GQ) requirement must be met with a C or better (MATH 017, MATH 021, or STAT 200).
- ENGL 015 or 030 with a B or higher.
- Application into the program will be reviewed by the faculty honors coordinator. All applicants will be notified in writing of the faculty honors coordinator’s decision.
Students in the program must complete a minimum of three honors courses, during the course of one academic year (fall and spring semesters). A 2 + 2 student should complete 18 credits of honors credits by the end of the second year. Four year program students must complete 32 credits of honors credits. Benefits of participating in the Schuylkill Campus Honors Program include registration priority during advanced registration and an annotation on the transcript for all classes taken as Honors Option courses.
The Schreyer Honors College is another option for participating in an Honors Program at Penn State Schuylkill. The Schreyer Honors College is the University-wide Honors Program of Penn State. Admission to the Program is determined by a committee at University Park and is dependent on having a cumulative GPA of 3.70 or higher, as well as submitting a personal essay and a letter of recommendation during the application process. Students at the Schuylkill campus typically apply for acceptance into the Schreyer Honors College at the end of their freshman year and are admitted at the start of their sophomore year. It is assumed that students who enter the Schreyer Honors College will finish their first two years at Schuylkill and will then transfer to University Park to complete the last two years of their baccalaureate degree.
Testing into honors courses is an option for students who show exceptional ability or interest in some areas and who show potential for entrance into the Penn State Schuylkill Honors Program. Honors faculty may admit non-honors program students to their classes. Within the first week of the semester, an interested student should contact the faculty member about taking the class as an honors option. The honors faculty member will administer a special placement exam. A student who places highly on the exam will then be recommended to the faculty honors coordinator as an honors option student. The faculty honors coordinator will confirm in writing that the student has been accepted as an honors option student for that class.
For more information about either the Penn State Schuylkill Honors Program or the Schreyer Honors College, please contact Dr. Anita Vickers at (570-385-6155) or by email at amv5@psu.edu.