Incoming Freshman

The Fall 2025 Honors Program application will open in January 2025.

Students who have already been admitted to Illinois State University, and have a cumulative GPA of 3.75 or greater, are encouraged to submit an application for admission to the Honors Program.

Admission to the Honors Program is competitive and space is limited. The application consists of two parts: Prospective students report their personal information (which will be used to match to their university admission application), and compose written responses to the provided prompts. Each student's application is carefully reviewed, with academic credentials and the quality of written responses having equal importance. 

Competitive essay responses are at least the minimum length required, and consist of thoughtful and clear responses to the provided prompts.

Applications received by February 15th, 2025 will be eligible for a limited number of modest first-year scholarships awarded by the Honors Program, and will receive priority consideration for admission into the Honors Program. The final application deadline is April 1st, 2025. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, and students can expect to hear a response within 3-4 weeks. 

All questions related to Honors Program admission should be directed to HonorsProgram@IllinoisState.edu.