Jenifer Whitten-Woodring Image

Welcome! As an Honors College at a research-intensive university in a gateway city, we are a diverse community of scholars, entrepreneurs, artists and leaders committed to enriching your UMass Lowell experience through research, study, conversation and real-world encounters.

As a member of the Honors College, you’ll work with a dedicated team to guide you through your undergraduate experience while connecting you with meaningful opportunities. We’ll encourage you to delve deeper into your major area of study, but also to give yourself time and permission to explore other academic interests and extracurricular pursuits. Your college experience should extend far beyond the classroom. 

We pride ourselves on curating an array of focused courses, seminars, field trips, compact study abroad programs, research opportunities, creative experiences and networking events. From these you will make your own path.

Interested in travelling? The Honors College offers short intensive study abroad programs during semester breaks that also allow you to earn Honors credit. These faculty-led trips expose you to different cultures and allow you to gain insights into issues such as environmental challenges, social structures and international politics. Current opportunities include trips to Cuba, Madrid, San Sebastian (the Basque Country) and London (including Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre). 

In Honors College courses, you and a small group of peers will participate in a focused intellectual encounter. Perhaps you’ll take advantage of opportunities to pursue original research alongside faculty. We will encourage you to engage with the non-profit and community organizations in Lowell and the Merrimack Valley that serve our diverse community.

You may be a computer scientist, engineer, artist or liberal arts major. The Honors College welcomes students from every academic program. We are home to leaders, innovators, entrepreneurs, artists and thinkers.

Most essentially, we are home to a supportive, engaged community. The Honors College also serves the greater UMass Lowell campus through endeavors such as the fall Honor Yourself Week, organized in conjunction with UMatter2.

At our new home in Allen House, members of the Honors College can find respite in a beautiful location as well as a place to meet, study or engage in one of many events. 

As thoughtful representatives of UMass Lowell, we recognize that we occupy the ancestral lands of the Indigenous communities of Pawtucket and Wamesit.

We also acknowledge the exploitive actions of Charles Allen, the past occupant of the Allen House, as we commit to a tradition of inclusion reflective of the diversity of our community and the culture of UMass Lowell.

I invite you to learn more about the Honors College at UMass Lowell.

Jenifer Whitten-Woodring
Dean of the Honors College

Mission Statement

The Honors College at UMass Lowell connects high-achieving students to opportunities to broaden and expand their UMass Lowell experience, supports students as they design their Honors Pathway to pursue their scholarly, entrepreneurial, and creative endeavors, and engages students in research, community service, and cultural activities.

The Honors College at UMass Lowell:

  • Connects high-achieving students to opportunities to broaden and expand their UMass Lowell experience through:
    • Honors Study Abroad
    • Interdisciplinary Honors Seminars
    • Faculty Mentor Mixers
    • Office of National Scholarships

  • Supports students as they design their Honors Pathway to pursue their scholarly, entrepreneurial, and creative endeavors through:
    • First Year Seminar in Honors
    • Honors Information Peers
    • Honors Specialists

  • Engages students in research, community service, and cultural activities through:
    • Honors Fellowship Program
    • Honors Experiential Learning
    • Student & Alumni Leadership Circles

Governance

The UMass Lowell Honors Program is sanctioned by the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education. In 2001, the Board of Higher Education started to approve honors programs within the Massachusetts Public Higher Education System. We received our initial approval in 2002 and received re-approval in 2008 and 2016.

UMass Lowell's Honors College is administered by a dean and a team of full-time and part-time staff. The UMass Lowell Honors College is advised by the Leadership Circle which includes faculty, staff, students and alumni.

Affiliations

The Honors College is a member institution of the Massachusetts public higher education Commonwealth Honors Programs and the National Collegiate Honors Council (NCHC).

Commonwealth Honors Council Statement

Importance of Honors Education at Commonwealth Honors Program Institutions

Honors education at our public institutions is an equity issue and critical to our collective aim to serve the Commonwealth by providing access to high-quality affordable education to the highest achieving students in our state. 
The students across our honors programs and colleges reflect the diversity of our institutions. Students who are first generation and/or from underserved communities are well supported in the Commonwealth Honors programs and colleges. Our doors are open to transfer and non-traditional students. We provide an intellectually engaging education, including opportunities that inspire these students to realize their potential, and foster and celebrate their accomplishments. The Commonwealth Honors Scholars are the Commonwealth’s future leaders, entrepreneurs, scientists and artists.