Honors College

Priority Registration & Personalized Advising 

Honors students enjoy priority registration every semester for all four years, making it easier to build the schedule they want and stay on track for graduation.

The Honors College provides personalized academic advising from Honors staff to help students navigate degree requirements, select courses, and plan their Honors curriculum.

Students also benefit from dedicated registration support, including:

• Registration breakfasts and advising sessions before enrollment opens
• Guidance on course selection and degree planning
• Peer insights from successful upperclass Honors students who share recommendations on courses, professors, and academic opportunities

Honors Fellowship Program

The Honors College Fellowship Program is Duquesne's premier undergraduate funding opportunity. Fellows can receive up to $5,000 to pursue a research, creative, community-engaged, or experiential project with the support of a faculty mentor.

Designed to help students turn their interests into meaningful experiences, the program encourages exploration beyond the classroom while building the skills, knowledge, and confidence needed to make an impact in the world.

Fellowship Tracks

• African Studies
• Catholic Intellectual Tradition
• Community Engagement
• Creative Arts
• Liberal Arts
• Phenomenology

What Fellows Do

• Conduct original research
• Collaborate with faculty mentors
• Launch community-based initiatives
• Create artistic works and performances
• Travel domestically or internationally
• Explore archives and special collections
• Present at academic and professional conferences

Fellowships & National Scholarships

The Honors College is home to the Office of Student Fellowships, which helps students identify, apply for, and compete for prestigious national and international awards.

Students receive individualized guidance, application support, interview preparation, and mentorship throughout the fellowship process.

Featured opportunities include:

• Fulbright U.S. Student Program
• Goldwater Scholarship
• Truman Scholarship
• Marshall Scholarship
• Luce Scholars Program
• Critical Language Scholarship
• Boren Scholarship
• Gilman Scholarship

These opportunities help students pursue graduate study, research, public service, international experiences, and leadership development.

Phi Kappa Phi

The Honors College is home to Duquesne University's chapter of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation's oldest, largest, and most selective all-discipline collegiate honor society.

Phi Kappa Phi recognizes exceptional academic achievement across every field of study and celebrates students who have distinguished themselves through scholarship, leadership, and service.

Membership is by invitation and represents one of the University's highest academic honors. Eligible students join a network of high-achieving scholars and professionals while gaining access to scholarships, fellowships, awards, and professional development opportunities.

Learn More

Campus Link

Dinner & Dialogue

Through our Dinner & Dialogue series, Honors students come together to share the traditions, stories, and experiences that shape their lives. These events foster meaningful conversation, broaden perspectives, and strengthen the close-knit community that defines the Honors College experience.

Past programs have featured New Orleans culture and food, Jewish traditions, Caribbean heritage, and African cultures, with future gatherings focused on Italian, Slovak, Polish, Chinese, and other traditions represented within our community.

Life Beyond the Classroom

The Honors College is more than an academic program. It's a close-knit community where students build friendships, share experiences, and help shape the future of the College.

Honors College Breakfasts

Each month, students gather for complimentary breakfasts that provide opportunities to connect with classmates, faculty, and staff in an informal setting.

Honors College Night Out

Each year, Honors students come together for a Pittsburgh Pirates game, one of the College's favorite traditions and a chance to enjoy the city beyond campus.

Town Hall Meetings 

Held each fall and spring, Town Hall meetings give students a direct voice in the Honors College experience. Through this tradition of participatory governance, students share feedback, discuss new ideas, and help guide future programs and initiatives.

Honors College Society for Engagement and Excellence (HCSEE)

The Honors College Society for Engagement and Excellence (HCSEE) is the student organization of the Honors College.

HCSEE provides opportunities for students to develop leadership skills, build community, and enrich the Honors experience through service, scholarship, and campus engagement.

The organization sponsors a variety of social, service, and academic programs throughout the year, including beloved traditions such as Race to the Campus and the Duquesne University Academic Challenge (DUAC). HCSEE also offers students opportunities to serve in elected leadership roles, helping shape the direction of Honors College activities and initiatives.

Campus Link  

C.S. Lewis Day

Each November, the Honors College community gathers for C.S. Lewis Day, a tradition dedicated to exploring the life, ideas, and enduring influence of one of the twentieth century's most celebrated writers and Christian thinkers.

The day features faculty and student presentations, seminar-style discussions, and a shared meal that brings the Honors College community together for thoughtful conversation and reflection.

Inspired by Lewis's commitment to intellectual curiosity, imagination, and the pursuit of truth, the event invites students to engage with big questions while building connections with fellow Honors students, faculty, alumni, and guests.

Harry Potter Day

Since 2012, the Honors College has hosted Harry Potter Day, a campus-wide celebration that recognizes the impact of the Harry Potter stories on a generation of readers while focusing on the themes, imagination, and community inspired by the books.

Each year, students transform campus spaces into an immersive experience featuring games, activities, competitions, and prizes.

Led in part by students in the Honors tutorial Theological Worlds of Harry Potter, the event brings the campus community together for one of the University's most distinctive and popular traditions.

August Wilson House Partnership

Since 2011, the Honors College has been home to Duquesne's partnership with the August Wilson House, preserving and advancing the legacy of one of America's most influential playwrights. A Pittsburgh native, August Wilson earned a Pulitzer Prize for Drama and is celebrated nationally and internationally for his powerful portrayals of the Black American experience.

Through this long-standing partnership, Honors students gain hands-on experience working on real-world projects that support the House's mission and engage the surrounding community. Students have contributed business plans, marketing and communications initiatives, community events, and service-learning projects while collaborating with partners in Pittsburgh's historic Hill District.

The partnership also provides opportunities to explore issues of social justice, community development, poverty, inequity, and cultural preservation through meaningful engagement beyond the classroom.

Learning Beyond Campus

The city of Pittsburgh serves as an extension of the Honors classroom. Through community partnerships, cultural events, academic excursions, service experiences, and professional networking opportunities, students connect their coursework to real-world challenges and opportunities throughout the region.

From the Hill District and August Wilson House to museums, theaters, cultural institutions, and civic organizations, Honors students engage directly with the city around them while developing as scholars, leaders, and citizens.