Welcome to The Office of Honors and Scholarships
The Office of Honors and Scholarships, located in Honors Hall, Room 16, serves many functions. All students are welcome to come in for information about scholarship opportunities and honors programs. It is never too early to inquire about these opportunities. Plan to visit early and often.
Applying for Competitive Scholarships
Queens College students have been highly successful in winning major national scholarships. The Watson, Marshall, Fulbright, Truman, Gilman, Mellon Mays, and Goldwater Scholarship are among the prestigious awards won by our students. Through workshops, information sessions, campus emails, blog posts, and individual guidance, Dr. Moyagaye Bedward, Queens College’s advisor for national awards, mentors students at any stage of their academic career through all aspects of an application. To help students present their most competitive applications, she assists them in identifying appropriate fellowships, writing personal statements and research proposals, preparing for fellowship interviews, consulting with faculty recommenders and college, university, foundation, and fellowship contacts to further student success applying for graduate school and other post-graduate opportunities
All students are encouraged to apply for external awards. To begin the process, please consult the CUNY listing of major national awards, our national fellowships blog and college emails. To arrange an appointment with Dr. Bedward, please email qcfellowships@qc.cuny.edu
Academic Advisement
In addition to aiding students who seek financial support for their education, the Office of Honors and Scholarships provides advisement about honors programs. All students are encouraged to explore these options. Queens College Scholars and Freshman Honors Program students in particular are encouraged to come in for advisement sessions about these programs and for early registration.
Honors Programs
In addition to the Freshman Honors Program—to which incoming students must be admitted during their senior year of high school—there are divisional honors programs. Candidates may apply to the following when already at Queens College:
Honors and Awards - Baccalaureate
General college honors are conferred on graduates who meet standards approved by the Academic Senate: To be eligible for honors, a student must take at least 45 credits whose grades count toward the calculation of the student’s Queens College grade-point average (GPA). For eligible students, the honors designation is determined solely by the student’s cumulative Queens College GPA upon graduation, as follows:
- Cum Laude (3.5–3.749)
- Magna Cum Laude (3.75–3.899)
- Summa Cum Laude (3.9–4.0)
If your cumulative GPA is 3.75 or above you will be sent an Honors and Awards form to complete and return to our office for additional award evaluation. If you believe that you have met these requirements and have not received the Honors and Awards questionnaire by March 15, please contact the Honors and Awards Office at 718-997-5503. Also, please make sure to view the Commencement webpage for other graduation requirements.
Scholarships
High achieving high school seniors are encouraged to apply for merit-based scholarships. They can apply to the Macaulay Honors College or if they do not want to be in the Macaulay program, they can submit a regular admissions application and also submit an application to be considered for QC Scholars. The QC Scholars application deadline is Dec. 8. It is a merit based partial scholarship which includes required honors courses.
QC is the only CUNY college with a Transfer Honors Program​ exclusively for transfer students who have earned at least 55+ credits towards their AA or AS degree while maintaining a GPA of 3.5 or higher. The program provides mentorship, academic and financial support, and a cohort of likeminded peers for students who wish to pursue a rigorous schedule of classes and independent research in their field of study. Priority application deadlines are May 1 (for Fall admission) and December 1 (for Spring admission); applications may be accepted after these dates on a rolling basis. The application and program brochure are linked here​. For more information, please email transferhonors@qc.cuny.edu​.​
Current Queens College students can apply for awards that range from $250 to $2,500 per semester. All of these awards are for full-time students (12 credits per semester for undergraduate students; 9 credits per semester for graduate students). There are various awards with different applications and deadlines. Please visit QC Foundation’s Scholarship List and Application​ page to see the current scholarships; sign in to fill out the applications.
Entering Graduate Students please contact the Office of Graduate Studies.
Office Information
Office of Honors and Scholarships
Honors Hall, Room 16
Phone: 718-997-5502
Fax: 718-997-5498
Email: qc_honors@qc.cuny.edu
Taruna Sadhoo – Director
Taruna.Sadhoo@qc.cuny.edu
Essie Smolar
Esther.Smolar@qc.cuny.edu
Nancy Casey – Assistant Director
Ann.Casey@qc.cuny.edu
Anne Marie Devlin – College Assistant
Annemarie.Devlin@qc.cuny.edu
Corinne Munoz – College Assistant
Corinne.Munoz@qc.cuny.edu
Annie Chan-Yee – College Assistant
Annie.ChanYee@qc.cuny.edu
Summer Fellowship Program
The Jeannette K. Watson Summer Fellowship Program is a three-summer paid internship program. High-achieving freshmen and sophomores only are welcome to apply. For more information about this program, please visit the Watson website or contact the Office of Honors and Scholarships. To be considered for this fellowship, students must apply through our office, rather than directly through the Watson Foundation. The internal deadline for application submission is January 22. However, it is strongly suggested that interested students contact our office for assistance in the application process.
Honor Societies
Phi Beta Kappa: Students who are chosen for Phi Beta Kappa will be contacted by the committee. A student cannot apply for this distinction. The committee nominates students based on their academic record.