Admission to Honors
Thinking about applying to the Honors College?
Review the following to learn about what the VT Honors College values and offers in educational opportunities for students:
Why Honors?
As both workers and citizens, 21st century university graduates will need to combine the rigors of disciplinary knowledge with a capacity for diverse collaborations. They will need to value and employ diverse ways of seeing and understanding, be able to synthesize knowledge across seemingly disparate contexts, and create new knowledge in transdisciplinary teams.
A Virginia Tech Honors College education can significantly amplify the undergraduate experience. Successful Honors College students are highly motivated, are intentional about choosing the Honors opportunities that are right for them, and take initiative to pursue those opportunities. An Honors Diploma — and the Honors College Minor — are extraordinary academic and professional credentials.
Honors College opportunities and benefits include (but are not limited to!):
- Optional Honors College (UH) Courses intentionally curated to provide opportunities for transdisciplinary collaboration and to explore topics like ethical research practices
- The opportunity to develop transdisciplinary and collaborative problem-solving skills (and automatically also complete the Honors Laureate Diploma!) in the Honors Minor in Transdisciplinary Praxis
- A signature study abroad opportunity: the Presidential Global Scholars Program
- Honors merit scholarships and other funding
- Distinctive professional development programming
- Multigenerational and multidisciplinary Honors housing options
- Student leadership opportunities, like the Honors Peer Advising Center, the Honors College Student Council, and Peer Education
HOW TO APPLY
Check the box to be considered for the Honors College on your VT Undergraduate Admissions application or the Common App. Please note that first-year students who meet the criteria for admission to the Honors College will receive a separate Honors College decision notification soon after their Virginia Tech admissions decision. Additionally, if invited, your decision to accept or not accept your Honors College invitation will not affect your Virginia Tech admissions decision.
Honors Laureate Diploma
Most Honors College students are in the Honors Laureate Program and work toward the Honors Laureate Diploma.
Calhoun Collaborative Discovery Diploma
A much smaller number of prospective first-year students are invited to interview for the Calhoun Honors Discovery Program and work toward the Honors Collaborative Discovery Diploma.
REQUIREMENTS
The Honors College does not have minimum test scores. Instead, we look holistically at an applicant's experiences and consider the quality of engagement, self-awareness and reflection on involvement, and authenticity.
DEADLINES
Because the Honors College uses the Virginia Tech application for its admissions process, the Honors College does not have a separate application deadline.
HOW TO APPLY
Check the box to be considered for the Honors College on your VT Undergraduate Admissions application or the Common App. Please note that transfer students who meet the criteria for admission to the Honors College will receive a separate Honors College decision notification soon after their Virginia Tech admissions decision. Additionally, if invited, your decision to accept or not accept your Honors College invitation will not affect your Virginia Tech admissions decision.
REQUIREMENTS
The Honors College does not have minimum test scores. Instead, we look holistically at an applicant's experiences and consider the quality of engagement, self-awareness and reflection on involvement, and authenticity.
DEADLINES
Because the Honors College uses the Virginia Tech application for its admissions process, the Honors College does not have a separate application deadline.
The Virginia Tech Honors College will recognize up to twelve honors credits for students transferring from a post-secondary institution to Virginia Tech. In order to count toward our Honors Laureate Diploma, these credits must appear on the transcript from the previous institution and be comparable to the Honors College’s ways to earn honors credit.
HOW TO APPLY
We welcome applications from currently enrolled students with at least a 3.40 cumulative GPA and four or more traditional semesters remaining at Virginia Tech. The application process opens at the end of every fall and spring semester.
Interested students may email honors@vt.edu to express their interest in applying to the Honors College. Please include your full name and the last four digits of your student ID number. The Honors College will determine if you are eligible to apply and will provide further instruction.
DEADLINES
The mid-year application opens once semester grades are posted and is due by 11:59 PM EST on January 15 for spring admission and July 15 for fall admission. There is no admission cycle for winter or summer semesters.
Students who are eligible to apply will receive direct notification of their eligibility from the Honors College. If you feel that you are eligible and do not receive this notification, please email honors@vt.edu and include your full name and the last four digits of your student ID number. You must notify us before the January 15 or July 15 deadline to be considered.
The deadline to apply for Honors Living-Learning Programs occurs before the Honors College application, so plan accordingly if interested in Honors housing. Visit the Housing and Residence Life website to learn more about LLPs.
OUR LOCATION
Hillcrest Hall
385 W Campus Dr
Blacksburg, VA 24061
Main office: Suite 122
CONTACT US
Email us at honors@vt.edu or call 540-231-4591.