Program Overview

Introduction to the Humanities & Social Sciences Scholars Program

The Humanities & Social Sciences Scholars Program (H3SP) is an initiative designed to provide full funding, program support, and bridge activities to foster an undergraduate-to-graduate-school pipeline for undergraduate students in the humanities and social sciences.

About the Program

The Humanities & Social Sciences Scholars program partners with scholars from Howard University's College of Arts and Sciences, the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts, the Cathy Hughes School of Communications, and the School of Business to support them holistically and aid them in the study of their humanities and social science disciplines at Howard.

Vision

The Humanities & Social Sciences Scholars Program will initiate a formalized undergraduate-to-graduate school pipeline that focuses on the identification of intellectually curious and academically well-prepared students who are committed to pursuing a PhD in a humanities or social science discipline.

The Complete Package

The program offers a comprehensive package, including:

• Tuition Scholarship (either 75% or 100%)
• Room + Board
• Books + Supplies Stipend
• Mandatory Summer Bridge Program (incoming freshmen)
• Internships (required during summers)
• Study Abroad
• In-program Advising
• Large & Small Study Groups
• Tutoring
• Mentoring
• Cultural Activities

Addressing the Need for Underrepresented Humanities & Social Sciences Scholars

There is a crisis in the humanities and social sciences with regard to the underrepresentation of African Americans and other minorities. The need for more Underrepresented Minorities (URMs) to earn PhDs to possibly join the professoriate, conduct needed research, participate in policy development, and/or become leaders in related governmental and private organizations is critical.

How to Apply to the Humanities & Social Sciences Scholars Program (H3SP)

To apply, students must:

1. Complete an application for admission to Howard University using the Common Application.
2. Complete the Humanities & Social Sciences Scholars Program application.
3. Complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
4. Submit a copy of their high school transcript.
5. Submit SAT and/or ACT test scores (optional).
6. Submit one recommendation letter from a teacher who has taught the student in a writing-intensive high school or college course.
7. Complete and submit scholarship essays and question responses.

Eligibility Criteria

Applicants must:

• Have an overall high school GPA of 3.30 or higher
• Be committed to pursuing a PhD in a humanities or social science discipline
• Have documented previous community service experience
• Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
• Additional consideration will be given to applicants with documented leadership and research experience

Humanities & Social Sciences Scholars Program's Recruitment Calendar

The recruitment calendar includes:

• Application Opens: November 1, 2025
• Application Closes: January 31, 2026
• Virtual/Online Placement Testing: March 1, 2, or 3, 2026
• Selection Weekend: March 27 and 28, 2026
• Offer Notifications: Early April
• Decision Day: May 1, 2026
• Summer Bridge Program Move-In: June 13, 2026
• Summer Classes Begin: June 22, 2026
• Summer Classes End: July 25, 2026
• Leave for Educational Experience Abroad: July 27, 2026 (estimated date)
• International Experience: July 27 - August 9, 2026 (estimated dates)

Eligible Degree Programs

Applicants must be interested in pursuing a career that corresponds with one or more of the program's six Academic Pillars, and must commit to majoring in one of the humanities and social science bachelor's degree programs offered at Howard, including:

• Accounting
• African Studies
• Afro-American Studies
• Art
• Economics
• English
• Environmental Studies
• History
• Interdisciplinary Humanities: Ancient and Modern Philosophy
• Management
• Marketing
• Media, Journalism, and Film
• Music
• World Languages and Cultures
• Philosophy
• Political Science
• Psychology
• Sociology & Criminology
• Theater Arts

The Six Academic Pillars of the Program

The program's six Academic Pillars represent broad areas of knowledge in which students will pursue expertise:

1. Academic exploration: Provides traditional preparation for advanced academic study in the humanities and social sciences with a focus on research, scholarship, and pedagogy.
2. Public exploration: Prepares scholars for the work of extending engagement beyond the classroom by developing public content and programming for diverse audiences.
3. Digital exploration: Prepares scholars to apply digital tools, methods, and resources to inquiry and analysis while simultaneously interrogating and critiquing the human impacts of technology use and digital culture.
4. Legal exploration: Explores relationships between jurisprudence (legal theory) and law (legal practice) and human experience and interaction.
5. Medical and health exploration: Explores experiences of health, disease, and illness in their broader social, cultural, historical, and ethical contexts with the goal of developing insights that inform humane medical and healthcare policy and practice.
6. Workforce exploration: Explores experiences of workers in a variety of corporate, professional, industrial, and entrepreneurial settings with the goal of using inquiry to gain insight into 21st century labor relations.

Program Model

The program model includes:

• Recruitment & Selection: Offers will be made to selected finalists to build a cohort of scholars for each academic year.
• Summer Bridge Program: Incoming Humanities and Social Science Program Scholars will be required to participate in a 6-week Summer Bridge Program, which will begin in late June.
• Educational Experience Abroad: The Summer Bridge Program will conclude with a 14-day trip to an international location.
• Summer Internships: Scholars will be required to engage in internships every summer after their freshman year.