Honors College
Love truth, kindle faith, and cultivate virtue in friendship, study, and service to Christ and neighbor.
The Honors College's diverse academic offerings help undergraduates pursue questions that often fall between the cracks of the specialized disciplines, by exploring the writings of scientists along with the writings of poets, historians, and philosophers.
Designed for ambitious learners, the B.Phil. offers a guided academic framework that combines honors coursework, a second major, and hands-on research.
A transformational major grounded in classical literature, philosophy, and theology, offered through small seminar-style courses with optional pre-professional tracks.
One of a kind opportunity to build your individualized major around your diverse academic interests under the guidance of faculty mentorship.
Well-designed alternative core that fulfills general education requirements for most Baylor majors, in an immersive, globally minded cohort.
Popular, classic form of honors education, with access to enriching courses and a thesis project; enhances any Baylor major.
Honors Residential College
The Honors Residential College (HRC) is an optional multi-year community that fosters intellectual, moral, and spiritual formation through friendship, integrated study, community service, and spiritual engagement. The HRC is home to 330 Baylor students enrolled in one of the Honors College majors or programs above. The HRC is located in Alexander and Memorial Halls.
The Honors College at a Glance
At Baylor University’s Honors College, every number points to a community shaped by curiosity, scholarship, and purpose. With more than 1,400 students across five academic pathways, the Honors College welcomes learners from a wide range of disciplines and backgrounds. Small class sizes, experienced faculty, and an active residential community foster close connections and meaningful conversations across fields of study.
From the tradition of the senior thesis to research, internships, and study abroad, Honors College students pursue ideas that matter and engage deeply with the world around them. With over $1 million in scholarships awarded each year, students find the support they need to grow both academically and personally.
News
Read More NewsAs The Odyssey debuts in theaters, Baylor Great Texts professor & filmmaker Sarah-Jane Murray, Ph.D., explores why Homer’s ancient epic still captivates audiences and how timeless stories find new life through modern media.
Baylor Honors College's Examined Life Scholars (ELS) program took its next step this summer, welcoming its first fully residential cohort thanks to a $300,000 Knowledge for Freedom grant from the Teagle Foundation.
The grant allowed the Honors College to expand the program beyond last summer's pilot by bringing rising high school seniors from Waco and Temple to campus for a two-week residential experience rooted in the Great Texts tradition. Students lived together in Penland Residence Hall, shared meals, wrestled with classic texts and continued conversations well into the evening alongside Honors College student mentors.
Baylor University students and recent graduates continue to be awarded the most prestigious scholarships and fellowships at the national and international levels – winning Fulbright U.S. Student Grants and Rotary Global Grants.
Fantasy writer R.F. Kuang’s sixth novel, Katabasis, takes its title from a Greek word meaning “going down,” a “descent,” a plunge. Think of an epic hero’s perilous descent into Hades, whether Odysseus, Aeneas, or Dante. In Kuang’s book, Cambridge Ph.D. students Alice and Peter, scholars of “analytic magick,” also descend into hell. Although it's far from a perfect novel, I enjoyed reading it. Even more, I’m grateful to serve a university whose Christian mission and community enable us to offer students not a “going down,” but rather a lifting up to behold the wonders of the Lord.