KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The University of Tennessee, Knoxville’s University Honors program has been ranked among the nation’s top honors colleges, placing No. 8 in College Transitions’ list of the 50 Best Honors Colleges for 2026.
The ranking highlights universities with strong, comprehensive honors programs and evaluated hundreds of institutions based on selectivity, academic rigor, and the benefits offered to honors students.
According to College Transitions, UT’s University Honors program stood out for its specialized advising, research funding opportunities, honors-specific curriculum, and its living-learning community. The organization also cited student outcomes, noting that honors students at UT graduate at rates nearly 20 percentage points higher than non-honors students and are almost twice as likely to pursue graduate or professional education.
University Honors enrolls roughly 2,000 students, representing about 7% of UT’s undergraduate population. Students entering the program in fall 2025 had an average high school GPA of 4.6 and an average ACT score of 34.
Selectivity accounted for 25% of the ranking methodology, while academic rigor — including required honors coursework and GPA standards — made up another 25%. UT’s program requires students to complete an honors thesis and capstone project, maintain a minimum GPA of 3.5, and complete an 18-credit-hour honors minor. About half of honors students also participate in discipline-specific honors coursework within their majors.
The remaining 50% of the ranking score was based on program benefits such as research opportunities, experiential learning, scholarships, living-learning communities, and support for competitive fellowships and scholarships. UT’s honors program offers grants for experiential learning, priority registration, specialized advising, and an honors lounge, and provides scholarships rather than charging additional program fees.
University Honors students at UT have also earned nationally competitive awards and opportunities, including the Churchill Scholarship, Amgen Scholars Program, Gilman Scholarship, Fulbright Grants, and internships with major organizations such as J.P. Morgan. UT has been recognized as a Fulbright Top Producing Institution for seven consecutive years.
University Honors is open to qualifying students across all academic disciplines at UT and is supported by the Office of Undergraduate Research, Fellowships, and Service-Learning, which provides additional programming and resources for honors students.
