Scholarship and Honors Programs
Scholarship Program
The Scholarship Office provides guidance and oversight to the scholarship process and maintains a website of available scholarships.
Please visit the Scholarship Office website for more information. Scholarship applications and the required letters of recommendation form are available on the website.
If you have questions, please contact the Scholarship Office at x. 5244 or visit AC-4DA1.
Honor Societies
Liberal Arts Honor Society of York College: The purpose of this organization is to recognize students for academic excellence and broad intellectual interests and integrity and to encourage scholarly pursuits. Every spring the Society elects to membership from the graduating class, and in exceptional cases from the junior class, those students who excel in the above respects.
Phi Alpha Theta, International History Honor Society
Psi Chi, National Psychology Honor Society
Sigma Delta Pi, National Spanish Honor Society
Kappa Delta Pi, National Honor Society in Education
Eta Sigma Gamma, National Health Education Honorary
York College Honors Program
Web address: https://www.york.cuny.edu/honors
Mission Statement
The Honors Program at York College seeks to provide academic, cultural, and social opportunities to enhance the intellectual development of serious, highly able, and motivated students.
Honors Program Goal
1. Engage students in challenging classroom discussions within designated honors courses.
2. Introduce students to a wide array of topics by means of their attendance at seminars, lectures, and cultural programs, both on and off-campus.
3. Provide students opportunities for research and exploration in a wide array of courses, in multiple disciplines as well as interdisciplinary learning experiences.
4. Provide students the experience of being part of a group of peers, and the rapport with faculty members and designated advisers constitutes fine ingredients for a truly rewarding learning experience.
5. Provide students opportunities for cultural and social engagement to grow in and serve the community.
Application Process
Rolling Admissions! Apply online Today!
Students must go through the orientation in order to be a member of the Honors Program.
Students that are accepted in the program, but did not reply to the acceptance e-mail or did not attend the orientation will no longer be admitted into the program. Students have ONE MONTH to reply to the acceptance e-mail and attend orientation. If there is still no response, then their position in the honors program will be denied and they will have to reapply.
For Current and Transfer Students
GPA of 3.5 and Higher (Submit Official Transcript)
Completed Online Application
Personal Statement
Two-Year Graduation Plan
For High School Students/ Incoming Freshmen
90+ Average (Submit Official Transcript)
Proof of York acceptance/registration
Completed Online Application
Personal Statement
Academic Requirement
The Academic Requirement for current program (3 Tracks) members
Complete Three Honors-Contract Courses
Submit the Honors Contract by FIRST THURSDAY of each semester
Conduct the research no later than the first semester of Junior year
Complete An Honors Thesis (Scholar) or present a Poster Presentation Present at a Professional Conference (Fellow)
Attend Honors Seminar meetings each semester
Attend One Cultural Event Per Semester
Attend One Extra-Curricular Academic Event Per Semester
Complete the required service hours
Current Honors students needs to maintain A 3.3 Or Higher GPA Each Semester To Stay In Honors Program as Cadet Tack
Achieve A 3.5 Or Higher GPA, 75 service hours per semester, and a Poster Presentation/Honors Series To Graduate As York Fellow Track
Achieve A 3.5 Or Higher GPA, 50 service hours per semester, and a Thesis Defense To Graduate As York Scholar Track
Important Dates
Important Dates for current program members
Honors Course Contract: 1st Thursday of each semester
Research Proposal Form (1): End of the second research semester (must be before the graduating semester)
(Thesis/Poster) Committee Roster Form (2): End of the second research semester (must be before the graduating semester)
Research Registration Form (3): End of the semester before graduating semester (by Dec for Spring Graduates)
Graduating Senior
Thesis submission to Committee members (York Scholar Track only) (4): within the first month of the graduating semester
The Day of Thesis Defense/Poster Presentation (5): 7 weeks before the graduation date
Thesis Defense/Poster Presentation Result Form (6): 1 week after thesis defense
Graduation Application Form (7): 6 weeks before graduation
Why Join?
For Prospective York College Honors Program students: why should I apply? what is the program? what are the requirements to apply? how to apply?
Why Should I Apply?
For the community! York College Honors Program students attend special classes and events with other honors program students. Your peers in these classes will be, like you – academic leaders – and they will challenge you to excel academically. You and your peers will also be able to support each other in your academic pursuits.
For the mentoring! York College Honors Program students spend their last year working in a one-on-one relationship with a professor. With your mentor you will develop and complete an honors thesis, a professional-level research paper.
For the recognition! Your official York transcripts will show that you have graduated from the York College Honors Program. Also, after you graduate you will be able to proudly place on your resume that you are a graduate of the York College Honors Program. Employers and graduate programs will know that you reached higher academically than most students. Your honors thesis will serve as evidence of the high level of academic work you have proven you can do!
The York College Honors Program
The York College Honors Program seeks to provide academic, cultural and social opportunities to enhance the intellectual development of serious, highly able and motivated students. The program is designed to provide students opportunities for research and exploration in a wide array of courses, in multiple disciplines as well as interdisciplinary learning experiences. Students accepted in the program will be engaged; in challenging classroom discussions within designated honors courses, and will be introduced to a wide array of topics by means of their attendance at seminars, lectures and cultural programs, both on and off campus. The experience of being part of a group of peers, and the rapport with faculty members and designated advisors, constitute fine ingredients for a truly rewarding learning experience.
For more information about the requirements of the program, you are encouraged to contact the Coordinator or Director of the program.
Requirements to Apply
Students can apply to the Honors Program as incoming first year students, or prior to the Sophomore and Junior years. To be considered for the program, students must meet the following criteria:
High School Students (incoming freshmen):
90 average or higher (submit official transcript)
Proof for York acceptance/registration
Academic course of study, including science and math courses
Complete application, including writing sample & biographical essay
Two academic letters of recommendation
Current York Students/Transfer Students (12-60 credits):
3.5 GPA or higher (submit unofficial transcript)
Complete application, including writing sample & biographical essay
Two academic letters of recommendation (must include college faculty)
The York College Honors Program Admission Process
The York College Honors Program admission process is highly competitive with attention to a student's scholarly record and evidence of potential for academic leadership.
To apply, students must:
meet the above criteria, & fully complete the application online.
Office of Undergraduate Research
Program Mission
To promote and facilitate student engagement in research and other creative activities in order to demystify research, increase knowledge about its nature and methodologies, and secure competitive advantage for graduate and professional school and the workforce.
Getting Involved In Research
There are several ways to get involved with undergraduate research at York College. The York College Honors Program provides opportunities to enhance the intellectual development of motivated students. The Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP) seeks to increase the number of underrepresented minority students in STEM. York College conducts a federally funded Summer Research Program. The CUNY Pipeline Program provides orientation to the academy through a six-week summer research institute at the Graduate Center and research projects conducted with a CUNY faculty member. The Systems Biology Center New York (SBCNY) Undergraduate Research Program offers summer research fellowships to City University of New York (CUNY) undergraduates who are planning to pursue PhD or MD/PhD degree programs after graduation and who are interested in incorporating systems biology approaches into the research that they pursue. The CUNY Summer Undergraduate Research Program (C-SURP) provides students with 10 weeks of hands-on research experience in a CUNY laboratory. Students are matched with a faculty mentor and research team based on their expressed interests. To find a mentor or program that suits you, please visit the Undergraduate Research website.
Student Research Day
Every April, York College students engaged in undergraduate research present their findings through poster and panel presentations. In 2011, the 2nd Annual Student Research Day involved more than 200 participants, including keynote speaker Staceyann Chin, performer and Co-writer of Russel Simmons Def Poetry Jam on Broadway, The Other Side Of Paradise. In 2012, the 3rd Annual Student Research Day involved more than 250 students, and featured award-winning novelist Hari Kunzru, author of Gods Without Men. Participation continued to grow to nearly 300 students for our 4th Annual Research day, which featured Dr. Partha P. Mitra, Professor of Neuroscience and Theoretical Biology at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.
Program History
The launch of a York College Undergraduate Research Program was first announced by Provost Ivelaw Lloyd Griffith at the CUNY Academic Council on January 6th, 2010. He subsequently named Dr. Rishi Nath, Assistant Professor in the Department of Mathematics and Computer Science at York College, as the first Director. The first annual Student Research Day was held on April 15th, 2010 with over 150 participants. The York College Office of Undergraduate Research, located in room AC-3E07b, was opened on September 30th, 2010. Dr. Robert O. Duncan, Assistant Professor of Behavioral Sciences, was appointed as the second director on July 1, 2013.