Dean's Message
"Our Honors students benefit both from the intimacy of a small structured program and the breadth and diversity of a large urban research public university. Furthering both academic excellence and social mobility, the Honors College provides a rich intellectual experience for students and encourages them to influence their communities in positive ways."
Welcome to the Honors College at UMass Boston! We invite inquisitive and accomplished undergraduates from all majors who are interested in pursuing a research-oriented curriculum. Our Honors students benefit both from the intimacy of a small structured program and the breadth and diversity of a large urban research public university. Furthering both academic excellence and social mobility, the Honors College provides a rich intellectual experience for students and encourages them to influence their communities in positive ways. As one of the most diverse honors colleges in the United States, we emphasize access and equity, connecting our students to the wide range of resources and opportunities available at a major American city’s only public research university. Combining holistic and individualized advising, co-curricular opportunities, and small seminar-style classes, we bring together students, faculty, and advisors who understand the critical role that education can play in changing our local and global worlds.
Our times call for transdisciplinary approaches to intellectual and real-world problems. Our boldly experimental courses invite Honors students to think about challenges that call for conscientious, committed scholarship. Alongside classes in your major, you will be invited to take six Honors seminars featuring ways of thinking that will expand your horizons. Seminars invite students to think about big questions: for example, to understand advanced problems addressed by the physical sciences, to practice fresh approaches to cultural and political analysis, to consider transdisciplinary approaches to environmental problems, to look at our judicial and health care systems, or to learn about educational leadership. Seminars offer fresh lenses through which to view the world, whether it’s the coastal environment of our campus, the latest media and technology, revealing psychological surveys, or the science and lore of baseball. Every year, we provide an optional travel-study opportunity for Honors students; past courses have taken students to South Africa to compare national approaches to public health, to California to learn about Asian-American history, and to New York City to discover hip-hop archives. Meanwhile, in your home base, the UMass Boston classroom, we bring experiences directly to you. Guest speakers have included human rights activists from Cabo Verde and former major league baseball players as well as prominent authors, scientists, and activists. We have worked with the Mayor’s Office to develop approaches to city planning, to learn about hops and malt varieties at nearby breweries, and to gain access to special events at museums. Our student ambassadors organize social events for Honors students. Our dedicated College advising staff are accomplished scientists and scholars in their own right; their diverse areas of expertise enable advisors to connect students with targeted research, internship, and professional opportunities.
The Honors College invites you to a transformative college experience, which is not just about what you can accomplish here, but more importantly who you can become. As a community of scholars dedicated to personal and intellectual transformation, the Honors College prides itself on investing its students with the skills, knowledge, and confidence to become leaders who can make a change in their communities, professions, and personal lives. I hope you'll join us on your intellectual journey!
Len von Morzé
Interim Dean, Honors College
Associate Professor of English