Honors Collective

The Collective Read Your Honors journey starts before you ever set foot on campus. Over the summer, you’ll dive into a shared book and then gather online with your future classmates to swap questions, ideas, and first impressions. It’s a first taste of the big conversations ahead.

ACE Honors Orientation Section In your first semester, you’ll join a course that turns the lens on you: What does it mean to be a human learner? You’ll explore curiosity, how the brain works, how stress shapes learning, and what perfectionism does to the process. You’ll come away knowing how you learn best, with a community of classmates ready to learn alongside you.

The Curiosity Curriculum Honors courses at MC are designed to stretch your mind, not just fill your schedule. You might shadow a professional, lead your own research, edit a collection of student work, or go deeper on course material with your professor.

Collective After Dark Once a month, the Collective gathers after hours for a workshop or seminar over pizza or dessert. Topics range from managing perfectionism to engaging in a divided world. Do a little reading, bring your thoughts, and join the conversation.

Collective Expeditions We learn by doing. Each year, the Collective hits the road for a field trip within a day’s drive of McPherson, whether that’s a touring Broadway show, the Tallgrass Prairie, or the Kansas Legislature.

The Collective Passport When you arrive on campus, you’ll receive your Collective Passport: your guide to the Honors experience over the next four years. Honors at MC doesn’t mean taking more classes. It means having a bigger college experience.

Your Passport has eight pages. Each one serves as an invitation:

• Think: Join the Collective Read, come to Collective After Dark, and attend lectures, seminars, performances, and debates.
• Explore: Travel somewhere unfamiliar.
• Learn: Dive into honors classes, research, or creative inquiry.
• Connect: Meet with alumni, professionals, and community leaders.
• Serve: Take part in meaningful community engagement.
• Share: Present an idea publicly.
• Create: Make something.
• Try: Do something that scares you a little.

Earn three stamps on every page, and you’ll complete the Honors curriculum and graduate with the Honors designation. Many stamps come from Collective events, like the Collective After Dark, or Collective Expeditions. The rest are yours to chase down through opportunities already available at MC. Follow your curiosity, and the stamps will follow.

Honors at MC is about having a bigger college experience, not piling on more work. Here’s what the Collective puts in your corner.

SUPPORT FOR YOUR AMBITIONS

The Collective Scholarship. Honors students are eligible for a $2,500 academic scholarship that stacks with your other scholarships and financial aid.

Courses without the extra cost. Apply to overload for up to two semesters without paying overload fees, and take up to two online consortium courses with all associated fees waived.

The Curiosity Fund. Apply for a $100-$400 mini-grant to fund your exploration: attend a conference, present your research, visit grad schools, buy materials for a creative project, or launch a small entrepreneurial or community venture.

Collective Opportunities Office. Thinking about a Fulbright, Truman, or Goldwater? Grad fellowships, internships, research? You want to apply? We’ll help you.

A PATH THAT’S YOURS

Design Your Degree. Work with advisors to build a major around your passions. Pair Communication, Psychology, and Business into Human Influence and Organizational Leadership, or blend Art, Communication, and Psychology into Human-Centered Design.

Major-based advising from day one. From your first semester, you’ll work with an advisor in your area of interest who can connect you early to research, specialized courses, internships, and professional contacts.

Priority registration. Enroll in classes before the rest of your class.

A PLACE TO BELONG

The Collective Commons. Your home on campus: a dedicated space for studying, collaborating, and connecting, with room for seminars and conversation, and plenty of time for coffee, board games, and simply hanging out.

RECOGNITION YOU’LL CARRY WITH YOU

Honors designation. Finish your coursework and Collective Passport, and you’ll graduate with a gold sticker on your diploma, a notation on your transcript, and a micro-credential badge for LinkedIn and social media. Your family is invited to celebrate with you at the Honors Graduation Reception.

Curiosity comes in many forms, and so do Honors students. After you apply to McPherson College, you can submit a separate application to the Honors Collective. To be considered, you’ll need to meet at least four of these seven:

• A GPA of 3.5 or higher
• An ACT score of 27 or higher, or an SAT score of 1260 or higher
• A place in the top 15% of your graduating class
• A history of Honors, AP, or IB classes
• Service activities
• Work leadership experience
• A strong letter of recommendation from a teacher or high school counselor

Then, show us how you think. Every applicant also submits a video essay on a topic we choose each year. We’re not looking for a polished performance. We want to hear your ideas in your own voice.

Key Dates

• November 1: Applications open
• February 15: Application deadline
• Early March: Decisions announced

We review applications on a rolling basis, and early applicants get priority. So if you’re curious about the Collective, don’t wait.