The Honors Program is designed for incoming freshmen students with a particularly strong academic record and is intended to provide such students with classroom and extracurriculary experiences that foster a spirit of inquiry and discovery. Participants in the Honors Program have the opportunity to take special honors courses. These courses, limited in enrollment of a maximum of 15 students, are not necessarily more demanding than regular classes in terms of the amount of work required. Rather, they are structured to allow for spirited discussion and interaction. Honors courses are taught by faculty members selected for their ability to stimulate and challenge inquisitive students to achieve the highest levels of intellectual activity.

The Honors Program encourages participation by students from all of the different schools and colleges in the University. Honors courses count toward the University's general education requirements which must be met by all Widener students. Thus, it is even possible for students with very demanding majors to participate in the program. In addition to the intellectual stimulation that participation in the program can provide, involvement in the program can have a positive impact on an individual's career. Employers and graduate schools view participation in an honors program very favorably in evaluating applicants.

A Certificate of Honors in General Education is awarded at graduation to students who successfully complete a minimum of five honors courses. The usual course distribution is the following:

• Freshmen Honors Seminar
• Freshmen Honors English
• One Junior Honors Colloquium
• Two other Honors courses

Students are encouraged to take as many additional honors courses as they wish. A Certificate of Advanced Honors in General Education is awarded at graduation to students who successfully complete an additional Junior Honors Colloquium or Honors Independent Study.

In order to continue in the Honors Program, each participant must attend a minimum of eight ourside-of-class performance or lecture series events during each academic year. Two of these eight events must be events held during the annual Honors Week in the spring semester. Each participant must also maintain an overall grade point average of 3.0 and must maintain a grade point average of 3.0 in all honors courses taken.

Incoming freshman students are invited to participate in the Honors Program based on their high school records and SAT scores. After the first and second semesters of the freshman year, other interested students displaying excellence in college work are invited to join the program. Students selected for the Honors Program are given priority consideration for Presidential Scholarships.