Frequently Asked Questions

 

How do I apply?

Admission to FCLC Honors is by invitation only. All students who meet the requirements for admission are automatically considered for the Honors Program. The process involves a multi-step review, undertaken by faculty members who teach in the Program, as well as Fordham admissions officers. This team’s decision to offer a student admission to the Honors Program is based on a number of holistic factors in addition to academic achievement, including extracurriculars, the level of challenge students choose in high school, and the likelihood that students will benefit from and be able to contribute to a small, intensive cohort experience. The Honors Program works with Admissions to ensure as much as possible that all students are given access to academic and social experiences where they are most likely to succeed.

 

Is it possible to transfer into the program after the first year?

Invitations to the Honors Program are currently limited to first-year students. However, multiple other programs, seminars, and opportunities for cohort experiences are available for all students after the first year, based on student interest and experience during that first year. All students in the College have the opportunity to earn honors at graduation for academic, athletic, and performance achievements. Several majors also induct their most successful students into national honors societies. A partial list can be found here.

 

How many Honors students are in each cohort?

FCLC Honors matriculates about 19 students per year, which allows all members of each cohort to take their required core classes together.

 

What is distinctive about FCLC Honors?

During the first and second years, Honors students form a small cohort and take all their core classes together, in sequence. They benefit from increased academic rigor in a non-competitive learning environment. Honors core classes are typically seminars, taught by some of the college’s most popular and experienced professors. Outside of the classroom, students are fully integrated into the college. 

Concentrating the core into the first two years gives students considerable flexibility as they move into the following two years. Honors requirements are fully compatible with every major, as well as study abroad. The strong academic foundation and close-knit academic community provides exceptional support for students as they pursue more individualized courses of study.

 

What are the differences between the Honors core and the college core?

FCLC Honors students have fewer required core classes (13, excluding foreign language) than students pursuing the college core (19, excluding foreign language). Honors students take their required classes together and in a prescribed order–outlined here. Honors core classes are usually taught by members of our permanent faculty, helping to ensure that mentors will be available to students in years to come for advising or letters of recommendation.

Additionally, and regardless of a student’s major, the Honors Program culminates in a required capstone or thesis project during the senior year. These projects enable students to make an original contribution to the disciplines they’ve studied, encourage students to reflect on the meaning of their education, and provide students with training in the kinds of independent, problem-solving work required by many twenty-first-century jobs.

 

Do students have designated Honors housing?

No, FCLC Honors is an academic program rather than a residential one. Honors students take their required classes as part of a small cohort, but outside of these classes Honors students are fully integrated into the rest of the student body, living and dining with all other FCLC students.

All Honors students, whether they live on campus or off, have 24-hour access to dedicated on-campus study space in the Manion Seminar Room (Lowenstein 906).

 

Is the Honors program compatible with the 3/2 engineering program?

It is possible to complete the Honors Program requirements in three years and also meet the requirements for application to 3/2, though in some cases summer courses may be necessary to meet all of the transfer requirements for Columbia University. Depending on the student’s chosen major, some required courses may only be offered at RH. Interested students work closely with the FCLC Honors Program Director and the Director of the 3/2 Program to ensure a smooth process. More information about the 3/2 Program can be found here.

 

Is the Honors program compatible with the 3/3 law program?

Yes. It is possible to complete the Honors Program requirements in three years, and interested students should identify themselves to the FCLC Honors Program Director no later than the spring of their sophomore year. Interested students should also work with the Office of Pre-Law Advising.

 

Can I be an Honors student and also pursue a pre-med track?

Yes. Several students do this every year, often matriculating to top medical schools. Honors students take the required core Natural Sciences sequence (HPLC 1603 and 1604) in lieu of the introductory biology sequence (NSCI 1403 and 1404), and in this way meet the prerequisites for advanced biology courses. Interested Honors students benefit from the full extent of Fordham’s pre-med and pre-health advising.

 

Is the Honors program compatible with the Ailey/Fordham BFA program?

At this time, students who are directly admitted to the BFA program are not offered admission to Honors, due to the incompatible number of requirements for both programs during the first year.

 

Can I be an Honors student and also be enrolled in the Gabelli school?

FCLC Honors is for students enrolled in Fordham College, Lincoln Center, housed within the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. The Gabelli School of Business is not part of Fordham College or the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. Gabelli is administered as a separate college and enrolls its own Honors Program, independent of FCLC. All enrolled FCLC students, inclusive of Honors students, may take up to six classes in the Gabelli School for credit.

 

What is life like after the Honors Program?

It can be anything you want! Our students go on to work in technology, medicine, law, education, engineering, publishing, television, public service, consulting, finance, and private equity, among other careers. Honors students applying for postgraduate degree programs benefit from strong academic preparation and close faculty mentoring.

Honors students are also invited to work closely with Fordham’s Office of Fellowship Advising, competing for postgraduate opportunities including the Rhodes, Marshall, and Gates Fellowships. In 2024-25, Fordham was recognized by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs as a Top Producing Institution for Fulbright Scholarships.

No matter what your career path, the FCLC Honors Program is designed to give students a strong foundation, with a concentrated set of required classes and a small cohort experience in the first years. With that foundation in place, students are able to make the most of the independence and flexibility of the Program’s later years. Many students use that flexibility to take advantage of the incredible range of internships available in New York City, or to pursue study abroad at one of Fordham’s many partners across six continents. Honors students can choose to individualize their plans of study with interdisciplinary double majors (including, in recent years: Neuroscience and French, Political Science and Economics, Chemistry and Art, Psychology and English). The intellectual breadth of such programs makes our graduates highly competitive to employers looking for the range of diverse, interdisciplinary skills required by many twenty-first-century jobs.