For 70 years, Michigan State University’s Honors College has been a place where high-achieving Spartans test ideas early, move between fields of study and take on real-world challenges.

Established in 1956 as one of the nation’s first honors programs at a large public university, the Honors College has grown alongside MSU itself, preparing thousands of students to lead as researchers, entrepreneurs, educators and problem-solvers.

That legacy is now fueling a period of accelerated momentum, from expanded pipeline programs and growing enrollment to high participation rates in undergraduate research and new living-learning spaces on campus.

Under the leadership of newly appointed Dean Glenn Chambers — who previously served as the college’s associate dean and interim dean — the Honors College will continue to raise the bar. “As we approach nearly 70 years of the Honors College, we are fortifying it as the university’s intellectual hub and a national bastion of excellence,” Chambers says.

Chambers’ plans include larger-scale enrichment events, more keynote speakers, greater partnerships with university collaborators, increased opportunities for faculty and a public-facing footprint beyond Greater Lansing — initiatives designed to break down silos.

By strengthening the intellectual life of the entire university and bringing people together around research, academics and community, he says, “we position Michigan State to continue recruiting the brightest minds and making a global impact."

Launching future scholars

From the moment they start their first semester in the Honors College, high-achieving Spartans enjoy unparallelled freedom to tailor their program of study and are encouraged to take their first steps into academic research. This stimulating environment yields results: 97% of Honors College graduates find employment or continue education within six months.

It’s a mix of opportunity, flexibility and student success that continues to attract more students.

“The Honors College has increased in size by nearly 30% in the last decade,” says Chambers. This academic year, more than 600 students joined the incoming Honors cohort, including a record 50 full-ride scholarship recipients. Among them were the inaugural 30 Joseph R. and Sarah L. Williams Scholars. As part of one of the nation’s leading public research universities, these students make an impact early in meaningful ways.

One pathway is the college’s Professorial Assistantship, or PA program, one of the few nationwide that allows first-year students to collaborate with professors on scholarly research and innovative teaching while getting paid.

Since launching 40 years ago with just 20 students, the program has grown to support 200 each year. Today, 67% of Honors students participate in faculty-led research before graduation, and 12% have their scholarly work published as undergraduates, cementing the program’s success in launching future scholars.

Eight years ago, increased donor support grew that momentum with the launch of the Honors Research Scholars program, which began with six students and has grown to 60 this year.

“This experience through the Honors College has started my research career,” says Anshul Shenoy, a Wielenga Scholar from Troy, Michigan, majoring in economics and minoring in social science quantitative data analytics who got involved with hands-on research in the 2024–25 academic year. “I was fortunate enough to work on a project focused on understanding ovarian cancer drug resistance,” says Shenoy. “Research requires patience, persistence and can only lead to progress in short, hard-earned steps. As this was my first time conducting lab research, I was able to learn multiple experimental lab techniques associated with medical research that will benefit me in future projects.”

Honors students also take the lead in shaping research culture on campus. MSU’s first student-run undergraduate research journal, SPARC, exemplifies how Honors students advocate for and amplify the work of their peers. Founded in 2024 by Om Nair and Veona Cutinho, SPARC works to create an atmosphere of ambition and enthusiasm for research.

Living and learning in a community that feels like home

For many Honors students, MSU is big in possibilities, yet small in all the ways that make them feel like they belong. It makes sense. They’re involved in every aspect of MSU life — enrolling in any MSU college, living in any residence hall that offers Honors options and participating in a wide array of student organizations, events and athletics.

On a campus counting more than 51,000 students, the Honors College serves just under 4,000. And with dedicated Honors floors in eight residence halls across campus, MSU carries on a tradition that started in 1980, when the first Honors housing floor opened in Bryan Hall.

The newly renovated Campbell Hall, the Honors College’s first living-learning Honors community, further cements MSU’s commitment to supporting academic collaboration, mentoring and belonging. Built in 1939, this Tudor-style residence hall is part of the original historic West Circle complex and first served as an all-female dormitory.

“I feel very fortunate that I get to live in Campbell Hall, surrounded by fellow Honors College students and in a great spot on campus,” says Jacob Barnes, a senior in supply chain management and Honors College student who’s made the hall his home. “I’ve gotten to know people from many different majors because Campbell Hall has been a friendly and collaborative place since early in the year.”

More than just a residence hall, Campbell Hall is a social experience and an intellectual hub, says Chambers, and “a place where undergraduates can connect with faculty and graduate students, where alumni return to share their expertise, and where seminars and workshops spark conversations that stretch across fields.”

So far, more than 50 student-facing events have been hosted there since its reopening in August 2025, including fireside chats with Honors College alumni — like Joanne Maguire of Lockheed Martin and Cathleen Smith Grzesiek of the American Heart Association — plus, a reception for 2025 Honors College fall graduates.

Expanding outreach to activate future talent

To reach gifted rising high schoolers for whom the Honors College could be the right track, the college partners with school districts in Michigan through programs like the MSU Detroit Early Honors Experience.

The program helps eighth and ninth grade students build college readiness, strengthen their critical thinking and academic inquiry skills, and connect with MSU faculty, staff and current students. Alongside other talented Detroit Public Schools students, participants explore their city in a new way, visiting the Detroit Opera House, the MSU-Detroit Partnership for Food, Learning and Innovation, the Apple Developer Academy and more.

After three successful years of operation, the Detroit Early Honors Experience program has expanded to the Lansing School District this year, in partnership with Eastern High School and supported by a grant through the MSU Office for Inclusive Excellence and Impact.

“We look forward to launching with a summer program and to supporting each successive cohort as they build deeper connections with MSU academic departments and initiatives such as Lansing Spartan Scholars,” says Bess German, assistant dean of the college.

As it enters its eighth decade, the Honors College continues to expand how students learn, collaborate and find success — strengthening MSU’s role in preparing talent for a changing Michigan and the world.

What it takes to be an Honors College graduate:

• Establish a 3.2 GPA by the end of freshman year and maintain a GPA of at least 3.2 until graduation.
• Complete a minimum of three Honors experiences by the end of second spring semester and eight in total for graduation.
• Complete the required general education courses or choose approved substitutions to satisfy university requirements.

Find out more about academic excellence, news and events at MSU’s Honors College.