Academics > Honors Fellows Program

Honors Fellows Program

Less than 10% of applicants to Lake Forest are offered the opportunity to apply for the Honors Fellows program. 

The Honors Fellows program is a new initiative, begun for the class of 2013, that recognizes those students admitted to Lake Forest College with exemplary high school careers and high promise for independent study and research at the College. The Honors Fellows program is an example of the strength of a liberal arts education. Fellows are expected to think deeply and broadly, and to join their teachers and fellow students in serious intellectual inquiry and debate. They will produce independent work, research, Student Symposium presentations, Independent Scholar majors, distinguished senior theses, and provide intellectual leadership.

Less than 10% of applicants to Lake Forest College are offered the opportunity to apply for the Honors Fellows program. Those admitted to the program are granted a number of unique opportunities and distinctions:

  • Fellows will receive an Honors Fellow designation on their transcript.
  • They will receive special invitations to College lectures and guest presentations.
  • Honors Fellows who maintain at least a 3.6 GPA in the fall semester of their first year will be offered the opportunity to enroll in a fifth course in the following semester for no additional charge. A typical student course load is 4 courses in the fall and 4 courses in the spring. The opportunity of taking an extra course, free of charge, is normally reserved only for upper-division students who make the Dean’s List. With this option extended to first year Honors Fellows, they are given more flexibility during their college tenure for research, study abroad, internships, or independent study.
  • In subsequent years, Honors Fellows may be given the opportunity to enroll in the College’s sophomore and junior honors seminar courses.
  • All Honors Fellows will be invited to apply to become a Richter Scholar. Those accepted into the Richter Scholar Summer Research Program will conduct primary research with Lake Forest College faculty in the summer after their first year.