College Honors Day attracts prospective students

Signs up and down Bruin Walk directed the masses to
“College Honors Day,” which began on Tuesday and will
end today. Some high school students admitted to UCLA in the
College Honors Program were invited to take a special tour of the
campus and attend an Honors presentation by Honors counselors and
guest speakers.

Potential students and parents were welcomed by a student and
faculty panel in the morning regarding Honors and life at UCLA.
While students toured the campus, parents were invited to meet
one-on-one with financial aid officers, said Mary Ries, coordinator
of the two-day event.

Students were also invited to an information fair with
representatives from academic and campus departments. Parents and
students also attended workshops introducing them to features of
the program.

Using these workshops, UCLA promotes Honors to set our campus
apart from other prestigious universities. Because Yale and UC
Berkeley only offer their students departmental and Latin honors,
UCLA is unique with this additional prestigious honor.

“It’s a great marketing tool for students,”
said Mark Santos, Honors Collegium coordinator.

While many students enjoy the program because it personalizes
their studies, Santos said many students also participate for the
prestige that comes with the title.

To better support their studies, Honors students are offered
special benefits. Students receive special academic counseling,
priority enrollment, and are eligible for Honors scholarships and
awards each year.

Admitted students can qualify for the program using GPA, SAT
scores or rank in a graduating class.

There are about 2,700 students currently in Honors. UCLA
graduates around 400 Honors students each year. Most students who
graduate with College Honors also graduate with other honors,
Santos said.

Honors students are also offered an extra opportunity to take
smaller seminars in Honors Collegium courses.

The seminar atmosphere allows students to create personal
relationships with professors. Students can then use these
professors as references in the future.

Students have the opportunity to have intellectual discussions
with their professor and other students while discussing
specialized topics in all areas of study.

According to Professor Robert Gurval of the Classics department,
Honors is a tremendous asset to UCLA.

“Students have the opportunity to meet students in other
fields of study who are academically motivated like they
are,” he said.

These Honors courses are not only rigorous but also difficult to
enroll in. For Gurval’s course, “Representing
Cleopatra,” students were required to submit applications for
its 20 openings.

By using this method, Gurval had the opportunity to hand-pick an
exceptional and diverse group of students. Although Honors students
are given priority for Honors Collegium seminars, non-Honors
students are also welcome to enroll, Gurval said of his course.