You'll meet with top business leaders from around the globe, enjoy smaller classes, and build a lifelong network of peers and professionals.
Earn a bachelor’s with honors for swiftly paced learning and valuable networking
Join the Business Honors community
What is the Business Honors Program at Kelley?
The Kelley Business Honors Program is a community of academic leaders from the sophomore through senior class and makes up approximately 10% of the Kelley undergraduate population. Students apply for business honors admission during the spring of their first year at IU. Key values displayed by Honors students include:
- Intellectual curiosity: possessing an innate love of learning and a desire for academic challenge and rigor
- Independence: being self-motivated, having original ideas, and the perseverance to see them to completion
- Citizenship: commitment to make a difference in one’s community and lead others by example
- Critical thinking: the ability to analyze underlying assumptions, ask probing questions, and maintain openness to others’ points of view
Once admitted, Business Honors students at Kelley enroll in honors versions of some courses, attend a variety of special events, and meet regularly with their senior mentor and academic advisor.
While compatible with the Hutton Honors College, the Kelley Business Honors Program is a separate program that students apply to once they start their college career at IU.
Our mission
The mission of the Kelley School of Business Honors Program is to foster a sense of community among academically talented student leaders, stimulate and challenge them intellectually in and outside of the classroom, and encourage the development of their leadership skills.
Everything we do in the Honors Program helps strengthen this mission and bring it to life. This includes fun get-togethers, from ice-cream socials to professional development with our robust alumni network. The Honors courses and opportunities for research add rigor and enhancement to the curriculum.
Benefits of the Business Honors Program
As a Kelley Business Honors student you gain access to:
- A community of students who want to learn and make a difference
- Special events and access to corporate networking partners
- Engaging coursework, smaller class sizes, and connections with faculty
- Personalized mentoring from senior leaders and advisors
- Bachelor’s with honors recognition on your diploma
Steps to apply
Step 1: Attend a Phase 1 meeting in order to gain access to the business honors application. Here you’ll learn about the program expectations as well as tips for the application process. Phase 1 meetings are held in the fall and early spring semester.
Step 2: On February 1, Phase 1 meeting attendees will receive an invitation to apply. The Phase 1 online application is due February 15 and includes an essay and a resume upload.
A preliminary round of decisions will be made by mid-March. Those who advance to Phase 2 will do the following:
Step 3: Participate in an in-person group interview. Interviews are held in late March and early April.
Step 4: Fill out the Phase 2 application between April 1 and April 15. Here you will be asked to enter names for your faculty and leadership evaluators. You also have an opportunity to share an updated resume.
Step 5: Get your results! Notifications are sent out by early July. Late applications are not accepted and only first year students may apply.
More details about the steps above are covered in the Phase 1 meetings.
| Date | Time | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Wednesday, January 14 | 9 to 10 a.m. | HH 1059 |
| Tuesday, January 20 | 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. | HH 2083 |
| Tuesday, January 27 | 2 to 3 p.m. | HH 1059 |
| Monday, February 2 | 7 to 8 p.m. | HH 1006 |
| Thursday, February 12 | 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. | HH 1055 |
“My Kelley experience would not have been the same without the tight-knit community of motivated students and the hands-on mentorship of the Business Honors Program.”
Gracie Fisher, BS’26
Honors leadership program
As an honors student, you’ll have the support of a senior mentor.
Real-world experience
Honors students must hold an internship or participate in a study abroad program.