University Honors Program
Marquette’s University Honors Program is designed for intellectually curious, academically engaged students who want to learn in a close-knit community of their peers at the heart of a vibrant research university. Its broadly based, interdisciplinary curriculum addresses our most pressing contemporary challenges with cutting-edge knowledge and research and the wisdom of centuries of Jesuit values and pedagogy. The University Honors Program offers an intense, individualized and experiential education by which students learn to become leaders — at Marquette and in their careers.
The UHP offers two ways to participate in Honors: Core Honors, in which students follow an Honors version of the Marquette Core Curriculum throughout their undergraduate career; and Disciplinary Honors, in which students do Honors work in their majors. Students may participate in either program or both. Core Honors is open only to incoming first-year students who are eligible to apply after being accepted to Marquette; students apply to Disciplinary Honors programs in their sophomore year. Core Honors offers an Honors Living-Learning Community in Straz Tower for first-years and sophomores. For more information on both programs, please browse our website or contact us!
News and Events
Congratulations to the 2021 Honors Summer Research Fellowship Award Winners!
Each student has been awarded $3500 for their research projects to be carried out June - August 2021. Browse the winner's projects here.
Natalie Allen, A&S, Biological Sciences
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Tony Gamble
Shir Bloch, A&S, Political Science, Philosophy, and Applied Mathematical Economics
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Amber Wichowsky
Grace Dawson, A&S, Writing-Intensive English and Digital Media
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Elizaveta Strakhov
Abigail Dobbins, HESC, Speech Pathology and Cognitive Science
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Maura Moyle
Macnessa Fidlin, A&S, Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Philosophy
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Chelsea Cook
Ryan Grace, A&S, Biological Sciences
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Joseph LaManna
Lexi Harwick, A&S, Social Welfare & Justice and Psychology
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Theresa Tobin
Nick Howard, A&S, History
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Patrick Mullins
Zelda Kieser, A&S, Philosophy and Cognitive Science
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Gerry Canavan
Pouya Mirzaei, HESC, Biomedical Sciences
Faculty Mentor: Dr. M. Behnam Ghasemzadeh
Rebecca Odeh, A&S, Biological Sciences
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Emily Sontag
Abbi Ouimet, HESC, Biomedical Sciences
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Matthew Hearing
Qwanzo Rodriguez, A&S, Philosophy
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Robert Smith
Heidi Schuler, ENGI, Biomechanics
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Leigh Mrotek
Alyssa Spies, A&S, Criminology & Law Studies and Sociology
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Richard Jones
Aditii Wakhlu, HESC, Biomedical Sciences
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Matthew Hearing
Austin Walker, ENGI, Mechanical Engineering
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Philip Voglewede
Samuel Wilsdorf, ENGI, Mechanical Engineering
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Allison Murray
Gretchen Zirgaitis, HESC, Exercise Physiology
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Sandra Hunter
Congratulations to the 2021 Summer and Fall Study Abroad Award winners!
Natalie Allen, A&S, Biology Major
Program: Loyola University Chicago – Semester Program in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Patrick Boos, HESC, Biomedical Sciences Major & Spanish for the Professions Minor
Program: Saint Louis University in Madrid, Spain
Max Mantych, HESC, Biomedical Sciences Major & Spanish for the Professions Minor
Program: Madrid at Universidad Pontifica Comillas
Natalie Wucherer, ARSC, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Major, Fine Arts Minor
Program: John Cabot University Summer
Panadanza Dance Class
March 12, 2021 4:30 – 5:30pm
Honors students have the opportunity to join Karlies Kelley, founder and director of the Milwaukee-based Panadanza Dance Company, for a live virtual Latin dance class. Take a study break, clear some floor space, and try something new!
Conversations on Race & Honors Education
February 18, 2021 | 6:00 – 7:30pm CST
Save the date for a virtual conversation between the Marquette University and Creighton University Honors Programs about addressing race in honors education.
Spreading Positivity through Authentic Art
December 9, 2020
Inspired by the short documentary film "The Guerilla Bunny" which showcases a public art project in Massachusetts, Dr. Melissa Shew's HOPR 3957 class created painted rocks to spread positivity around campus. Read more about the project here.
2020 Virtual Undergraduate Research Fair
November 5, 2020UHP celebrated research from the 2020 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship awardees and MU4Gold Research Scholars in a virtual setting. Browse the student’s research posters and watch videos introducing their research on the Research Fair webpage.
Honors Research on Covid-19
September 3, 2020
Honors student Gretchen Zirgaitis delves into research with COVID-19 Student Commentaries, an outlet for Marquette undergraduate students to perform research stemming from the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and gain experience writing research pieces. See Gretchen's commentary.
Prestigious Fellowships
Competitive fellowships and scholarships offer unique opportunities, both nationally and internationally, to expand your horizons and deepen your understanding.
Upcoming Fellowship Deadlines:
Udall Undergraduate Scholarship - Due March 2, 2021
Apply for up to $7000 in eligible academic expenses for pursuing leadership, public service, and commitment to issues related to Native American nations or to the environment.
Honors Digest
Published Bi-Monthly
Read through the Honors Digest, a bi-monthly roundup for current students of various upcoming campus events, career and internship opportunities, fellowships, research announcements and more!
Student News & Accomplishments
Congratulations to Honors Senior Kate Gustafson who has been recognized as the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding Senior! This honor is given on the basis of academic record, service, leadership integrity, and evidence of commitment to the ideals of a liberal arts education. Kate will record a message to the Class of 2021 that will be shared with College students, faculty and staff through our social media accounts and college website.
Congratulations to the many Honors students who have been named as 2020-2021 Student Affairs award winners!
Emerging Leader Awards:
Katie Darragh, Freshman, Diederich College of Communication
- Sebastián La Rosa, Freshman, College of Health Sciences
- Michael Mastri, Sophomore, Klingler College of Arts and Sciences
- Claire Schomogyi, Freshman, Klinger College of Arts and Sciences
- Bryanna Spietz, Sophomore, Klinger College of Arts and Sciences
- Noah Smith, Sophomore, Klinger College of Arts and Sciences
- Melissa Variny, Sophomore, College of Business Administration
- Liz Wiltgen, Sophomore, College of Nursing
Contemplative in Action Leadership Awards
Ryan Anselment, Junior, College of Business Administration
- Katie Breck, Junior, Klinger College of Arts and Sciences
- Carissa Burnes, Senior, College of Education
- Savannah Charles, Senior, Klinger College of Arts and Sciences
Additional compliments go to Honors Freshman Stephanie Waldschmidt, named runner-up for her two stories “Aquarium for sale, not cat proof” and “Missing goldfish, last seen in tank.”
Congratulations to Honors Senior Abigail Kuborn on receiving two Undergraduate Awards from the Department of Biological Sciences for the 20/21 academic year - an Academic Achievement Award and Catherine Welsh Smith Award for Research.
Congratulations to Honors Junior Katie Breck and Freshman Cameron Heiser on their election as Marquette University Student Government's (MUSG) 2021-2022 President and Vice President, respectively!
Honors Sophomore Noah Smith (German and Literature Major), has been accepted to attend the Newberry Center for Renaissance Studies’ inaugural undergraduate seminar, “The World in the Book: 1300-1800,” in Fall 2021. The 10 week seminar will use the multidisciplinary field of book history to explore how medieval and early modern people used different media—theological texts, maps, travel narratives, reference works, literature, and more—to make sense of a changing world.
Kate Gustafson, Honors senior and Psychology major and a member of the inaugural MU4Gold class, was accepted to present her research “Empathy Building: Assessing the Effectiveness of a Virtual Reality Intervention to Improve Community-Police Relationships” at the Council on Undergraduate Research’s Posters on the Hill 2021, which will take place as a virtual event on April 27-28, 2021. Kate is one of only sixty students chosen to present research from hundreds of applications.
Honors Senior Lily Regan (Secondary Education in English Language Arts Major) has been accepted to present her research, “Building Relationships and Breaking Barriers: Culturally Relevant Professional Development for Secondary Educators," at the 2021 Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC). The CCCC Research initiative sponsors research that produces knowledge about language, literacy, communication, rhetoric, and the teaching, assessment, and technologies of writing. The Conference will be in a virtual format April 7-10, 2021.
Two Honors students have been selected as McBeath Interns for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Annie Mattea (Senior majoring in Journalism) will intern in the summer of 2021 and Alexa Jurado (Senior double majoring in Journalism and Digital Media) will intern in the fall of 2021!
Honors Senior Noelle Douglass (Double major in Communication Studies and Philosophy) is working towards a senior thesis, the first communication studies department undergraduate thesis in over a decade. Her project researches the terms used for female attractiveness, how these terms are valued, and how social media platforms mediate these valuations. Noelle is seeking individuals of all ages, genders, races, sexualities, and backgrounds to participate in her research by taking an online, 15-minutes-or-less survey. You can find out more about Noelle’s project here and follow the results of her research on the project's instagram page, @whatkindofpretty.
Kaitlyn Hill, an Honors Junior double majoring in Political Science and Spanish, has accepted an internship to work with Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin in Washington DC during the 2021 summer. As an intern, Kaitlyn will work on a wide range of projects and assist staff in an administrative capacity to address constituent requests and concerns.
Through her work with the MU Center for Peacemaking, Honors Junior Katherine Walsh (Economics & International Affairs Major) has collaborated on creating the Relational Learning Project. In conjunction with the Afghan Peace Volunteers and other international nonviolence organizations, the project aims to connect people from around the world to learn more about one another’s views on nonviolence. Find out more on the Relational Learning Project webpage.
Honors Freshman Macnessa Fidlin (Double major in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Philosophy) has joined Dr. Chelsea Cook’s research lab to study the social behaviors of bees and how social environments influence group behavior. This summer, the lab will continue research studying the thermodynamic behavior of social fanning, among other experiments. Find out more about the Cook Lab at MU.
Tess Murphy, an Honors Junior double majoring in Political Science and Writing-Intensive English, is the Spring 2021 intern at the Progressive Policy Institute in Washington D.C. this summer. As an intern, Tess works on various research and writing projects, specifically in areas of social policy, congressional outreach, education, and women in economics/technology.
Honors Freshman Victor Zarate (Mechanical Engineering major) won the Midshipman of the Semester in the Marquette University Navy ROTC program for the Fall 2020 semester. NROTC focuses on academics, leadership, physical fitness and community involvement in order to provide students with the necessary skills to become future leaders of this great country.
Honors Senior Zoë Comerford (Double major in Journalism and Digital Media) is the 2020 Pete & Bonnie Axthelm Memorial Scholarship recipient, a merit-based award for outstanding MU journalism students with an expressed interest in sports journalism.
