Maryville University’s Bascom Honors Program aims to:
Provide intellectual and social engagement that allows honors students to develop to their highest potential.
Foster an appreciation of the liberal arts to enrich students’ academic lives and promote a commitment to lifelong learning.
Help students discover how the various academic disciplines relate to one another, to the world beyond academia and to their own lives in both professional and personal contexts.
Help students acquire the skills necessary to take responsibility for their own learning and to achieve all of their life goals.
Establish a learning environment that encourages independence of thought and use of academic experiences to develop a personal set of values.
Foster an attitude of responsibility to self and community.
To achieve these goals, honors students can receive the following benefits:
Excellent professors: Honors professors are hand selected because of their interest and efficacy at teaching honors classes. Honors professors are selected for their interest in actively engaging students in the classroom and for their deep knowledge of their disciplines. Above all, honors professors want to learn along with their students.
Mother Marion Bascom Honors Study Abroad Grants: Each year, sophomore, junior or senior honors students are eligible to apply for funding study at Oxford University. Awards vary based on number of applications and funding amount. Applicaton deadlines are announced by email to honors students. Interested students should contact Alden Craddock at acraddock@maryville.edu.
Conference Participation: Students in the honors program have the opportunity to attend the National Collegiate Honors Conference and the Great Plains Honors Council Conference to present class papers and to receive feedback on their work.
Additionally, there are several University benefits that many honors students find intellectually stimulating:
Distinguished Fellowships Program: Honors students should consider preparing to apply for any of the several nationally competitive scholarship that exist, such as the Rhodes Scholarship, the Marshall Scholarship, and the Udall Scholarship. The Distinguished Fellowships program at Maryville University mentors students in their application to ensure the student has the best chance for success. Students interested in these programs should contact the Director of Distinguished Fellowships early in their college career to ensure adequate time for preparation.
Undergraduate Research Scholars Program (URSP): URSP is a summer program that pairs students with individual faculty members and offers students the opportunity to conduct a research project in their area of interest. Students receive a $1,500 stipend for their work.
Study Abroad: Many honors students enjoy studying abroad through the Center for Global Education and earning honors credit for doing so. Recent study abroad programs included courses in London, Madrid, Florence, Beijing, and Limerick (Ireland).
Magnolia: Magnolia is Maryville’s annual student art and literary publication and it providesa great opportunity for students to get an original piece published.
“Hot Reads”: This initiative encourages leisure reading and a culture of curiosity and an appreciation of reading on campus. Staff at the University Library purchase several fiction and non-fiction books on current bestseller lists and make them available at the front of the library each week. Students and faculty on campus love that we have the books everyone is talking about at our fingertips.
