Want to take a class about Batman and run a tough mudder? Join the Honors College

There is no doubt about it- college is challenging. It doesn't matter the major or field of study you choose, every degree will have it's individual challenges. College comes with so many rewarding opportunities, I promise you won't want to miss out! Now let's say on top of majoring in Chemistry or perhaps pursuing a program in Political Science, you may be considering joining our Honors College. Now, I know what you might be thinking, "Is the Honors College really hard?"

It's a very common misconception to assume Honors programs are harder than other academic programs. Here at UNLV, we urge students to challenge that stigma, and join our Honors College to get a more well-rounded, liberal arts education. Students have the opportunity to take a wide range of classes including public speaking, interpersonal communication, and many of our upper division seminar courses.

For instance, one of our students this semester is enrolled in 3 upper division honors courses: HON 410-1004: Batman Begins: How the Nineteenth Century Created the Dark Night; HON 420-1002: Is it Art? And how should we experience it, value, and categorize it?; and HON 440-1001: The Courts in American Politics. These classes all range in subject and difficulty, but it provides students with the opportunity to learn more about subjects outside their academic majors.

For other students, it's not just about the classes, but it exceeds beyond academics. Getting involved is made easy on most college campuses. Personally, I did not know exactly where to start, but the Honors College really helped me branch out and make connections across campus.

The Honors College holds multiple events throughout the semester to meet new people in the college. Friendships were indeed ruined by pieces of cardboard at board game night, my team CRUSHED others in a campus wide scavenger hunt (we did not cheat... but 3/4 of us were tour guides), and have made so many friends over my years in the program.

There is an Honors College Student Council my friends love participating in. They receive the funding and plan all of our events. We have a String Ensemble comprised of Honors students who play instruments from guitar, to violin, to the oboe. Our professors even practice and perform on stage with them at our talent shows.

According to an Honors student, Ki Ana Tseu: "My favorite event that the Honors College does is run in a Tough Mudder competition. I have participated in two Tough Mudders so far, and my third is coming up in the fall. The community in the Honors College is strong and we pride ourselves on our camaraderie, but it really shows while we are running through the desert terrain of Las Vegas. I have had strangers lift me over these walls and carry me through parts of the course I did not think I could complete in a million years. Our community is nothing but uplifting, and I am honored to be apart of it."

"So yes- I chose to challenge myself. In the classroom I am constantly growing intellectually and as a person. Outside of the classroom, I am challenging myself to be the best version I could be. All of the progressions I have made in college all lead back to applying to the Honors program. I would not have been able to survive Anatomy & Physiology without the friends I made, run 10 miles in the desert, or have made the memories I have without choosing to challenge myself."