A Community of Scholarly Excellence

The University of Detroit Mercy

The University of Detroit Mercy is Michigan's largest Catholic university, with nearly 6000 students total and a very low student/faculty ratio of 16:1. More than half of all undergraduate classes have only 8-19 students in them. This makes UDM large enough to offer a variety of degree options, but not so large that students lose the advantage of smaller class size. In The Honors Program at UDM , courses are capped at 20. Furthermore, Honors courses are taught by the best of a remarkable group of experienced faculty known for its accessibility, its commitment to teaching, and its interest in your ultimate academic and professional success. More than 90% of UDM faculty have a Ph.D. (or other highest possible degree) in their various fields of expertise.

The Honors Program at UDM

The Honors Program at UDM serves the Colleges of Business, Engineering & Science, Liberal Arts & Education and the School of Architecture. The Program strives to integrate the intellectual, spiritual, ethical and social development of its members by fostering a community of scholarly excellence, encouraging exploration of the larger world beyond the classroom, and promoting compassionate service to society at large and persons in need. The Program Director reports directly to the Academic Vice President, and three Student Deans help administer the Program with the advice and consent of the general membership.

The Honors Students

The Honors Program at UDM is highly selective: invitations to apply are only sent to those high school students with very high GPAs and standardized test scores.  Just receiving an invitation means you’re already among select company.  Of those applying to The Program, only twenty freshmen are accepted every year.  So if you’re one of these twenty freshmen, not only will you be among even more rarefied company; your classmates will be the brightest students on campus.

The Honors Curriculum and Courses

Each new group of Honors students move through the Honors curriculum together: six specially designed courses that will be like nothing you’ve ever experienced before--intimate, exciting, intensive, interactive and demanding classes taught by the best of a great teaching faculty who will help widen your world.  Honors classes are scheduled so they won’t interfere with the required courses in your major, and each Honors class earns core credit, which means that being in The Honors Program won’t delay your graduation from UDM.  Special Honors advisors will make sure you move through The Program efficiently, and in the following way:

The Honors Senior Thesis Project

As your Honors coursework winds down you will start your Honors Senior Thesis Project.  The Thesis Project is a required three unit academic endeavor you will develop under the close guidance of your own thesis committee and a faculty director who will work closely with you to bring this capstone Honors project to a fruitful conclusion.  The Thesis Project demands a very high degree of rigor, motivation and achievement on the part of the Honors student and should commence in the first term of your junior year.  The Thesis Project concludes after a successful oral defense in early January of your final term at UDM.

The Honors Community

Out of the Honors classroom a small but diverse scholarly community emerges to plan activities outside the classroom.  From Movie & Pizza Nights in the Gardella Honors House to off-campus group service projects to the plentiful cultural offerings of the Detroit metro area (film, theater, dinners, the opera, the symphony, the DIA, Tigers games, even curling), you will immerse yourself in this intimate community, making friends for life.