202 South Street
Big Rapids, MI 49307
(231) 591-2216
[email protected]
Honors students achieve enormously, but they need enormous support to do so. Here we provide resources for those supporting our students.
Answers to Questions 'Every parent should ask'
There are innumerable advice columns, books and blogs offering suggestions about the things parents must know when helping their student choose a college. Here are a few of the most common, with our answers in the clearest, direct language we can muster.
Costs and Financial Aid
Ferris State has an automatic scholarship program for high-achieving students called the 'Incoming Freshman Scholarships.' These scholarships are awarded on the basis of cumulative high school GPA (on a 4-point scale) and ACT or SAT score. Your student does not need to be in Honors to get this scholarship. Taking college courses while enrolled full-time in high school (i.e. dual enrollment) does not make your student a full-time college student.
Graduation Rates and Academic Support
About 80% of students who enter Honors graduate from Ferris with their desired degree. More than 95% of students who start Honors return to Ferris after 1 year. That is higher than the rate of equally qualified students who started Ferris without Honors.
Adjusting to Campus
The Honors Peer Mentors match new students with returning students to serve as resources during their adjustment to campus and to Honors. Housing staff are also helpful as students develop the independence necessary to succeed. The Honors office always welcomes student questions and will work hard to connect them to appropriate resources.
Campus Health and Counseling Services
Honors provides a secondary academic advisor. While the advisor is available to talk with your student, he or she is not able to provide counseling. When appropriate, the advisor can make referrals to Birkham Health Center for personal counseling with professionally trained staff. Students can typically receive this support without additional cost.
Roommates / Housing
As most students in Honors have single rooms, there are few, if any, roommate conflicts. When they do occur, they are handled by the professional housing staff. The Honors halls are very quiet and studious. The environment tends to be academically-focused, supportive by challenging.
Communication with Parents
Most of the communication conducted by the Honors program is targeted at your student. But there are a couple of places (noted below) where communication with Parents and Friends of the Program occurs. More importantly, the vast majority of mass communication with our students is done in public through the honors program blog, Facebook or Twitter. Feel free to browse these resources, so you can bring opportunities to your students attention that he or she may have missed.