James Scholar Program

Incoming first-year students

When you apply for admission to University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, you’ll be automatically considered for participation in the James Scholar Honors Program. There is no additional application required.  

If determined as eligible, you’ll receive an invitation to participate in the program prior to your arrival on campus. Typically, the top 10% of incoming first-year students are eligible to participate.

Continuing Students

Students preparing to enter their sophomore year at Gies Business – or transferring in – will also be evaluated for James Scholar eligibility. If you meet eligibility requirements, you’ll be invited to submit a short application to the program.

Juniors and seniors are not eligible to apply to the James Scholar Honors Program at Gies Business.

Transfer students

Off-Campus Transfers (OCT): If you are transferring into Gies Business as a sophomore or junior from a community college or another university, you will be extended an invitation to the James Scholar Program upon certifying your membership in an academic honors program, college, or society at your originating institution.

Inner Collegiate Transfers (ICT): If you are currently a James Scholar in another college at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, you will maintain your James Scholar status upon transferring into Gies Business, provided you are still meeting eligibility requirements for the program.

If you are transferring into Gies Business without James Scholar status, you may be invited to join the program if you are in the top 5% of incoming ICT students.  

Freshman James Scholar Requirements

3.5 GPA Minimum
All freshmen James Scholar students must have earned an Illinois GPA of at least 3.50 (transfer credit from other institutions is not included in the Illinois GPA) at the conclusion of their first year. Illinois GPA will be reviewed at the conclusion of freshman year (first year of college), then every fall and spring semester thereafter. Should GPA fall below 3.50, the student will be dismissed from the program and lose all associated privileges. If extenuating circumstances prevented a James Scholar from maintaining the minimum GPA, they may fill out the appeal form (see Appeal Process section at bottom of page) to request reinstatement into the program.

12 Graded Credit Hour Minimum
All James Scholar students must complete 12 graded credit hours at the University of Illinois each fall and spring semester. Graded hours do not include Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory, Credit/No Credit, or Guided Individual Study courses. You must receive a letter grade for the class to count towards this requirement. Please note that if you receive a MAP or Pell Grant, you will be required to complete 15 credit hours a semester.

Academic Integrity
All James Scholar students must adhere to the rules for Academic Integrity at Illinois. James Scholars who are found to have committed an Academic Integrity Violation may lose their James Scholar status.  Students in this situation will be notified of the impending removal of their James Scholar Honors status and will have the opportunity to appeal the Gies Honors Program leadership.

BUS 101
Satisfactory completion (B- or higher) of a James BUS 101 during the fall semester of your freshman year

BUS 115 - Gies Honors First Year Seminar
Satisfactory completion (B- or higher) of the course during the fall semester of your freshman year.

Sleeman Leadership Institute
Participation in the Sleeman Leadership Institute. This unique leadership experience partners with units across campus, the college, and corporations.

Sophomore, Junior & Senior James Scholar Requirements (including ICTs and OCTs)

3.5 GPA Minimum
All sophomore, junior, and senior James Scholar students must earn a semesterly Illinois term GPA of at least 3.50 (transfer credit from other institutions is not included in the Illinois GPA). Illinois term GPA will be reviewed at the end of every fall and spring semester. Should term GPA fall below 3.50, the student will be dismissed from the program and lose all associated privileges. If extenuating circumstances prevented a James Scholar from maintaining the minimum GPA, they may fill out the appeal form (see Appeal Process section at bottom of page) to request reinstatement into the program.

12 Graded Credit Hour Minimum
All James Scholar students must complete 12 graded credit hours at the University of Illinois each fall and spring semester. Graded hours do not include Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory, Credit/No Credit, or Guided Individual Study courses. You must receive a letter grade for the class to count towards this requirement. Please note that if you receive a MAP or Pell Grant, you will be required to complete 15 credit hours a semester.

Academic Integrity
All James Scholar students must adhere to the rules for Academic Integrity at Illinois. James Scholars who are found to have committed an Academic Integrity Violation may lose their James Scholar status. Students in this situation will be notified of the impending removal of their James Scholar Honors status and will have the opportunity to appeal the Gies Honors Program leadership.

Service Option 1: 20 Hours of Service
In addition to the GPA and credit hour requirements above, sophomores, juniors, and seniors must fulfill a commitment to at least 20 hours (10 hours if studying abroad or choosing the research option - see Service Option 2 below) of voluntary (unpaid) service each academic year -one week before start of Fall semester classes through April 30. This service can be completed through volunteer community-based service, unpaid service within Gies College of Business, or a combination of both. Neither community-based service nor Gies College of Business service can be for pay. Internships, course work, religious education-related work, paid work, or work for a family business cannot count toward service hours.

Service Option 2: 10 Hours of Service + URS Research Presentation
You also have the option of completing 10 hours of service (see guidelines above) and presenting at the annual Undergraduate Research Symposium (URS) hosted by the Illinois Office of Undergraduate Research. Presentation options include poster presentations, oral/performance presentations, and demonstrations. In order to receive credit for this option, your name must be listed in the symposium's program. You may present individually or in a group.

Presentation applications are typically accepted from November through early spring via the Illinois Office of Undergraduate Research’s website. The Undergraduate Research Symposium is usually held in late April at the Illini Union. Specific dates and deadlines will be updated soon.

Tracking Service Hours

Students must track their 20 hours of service activity on a spreadsheet that includes the following:

• Student's Name and Net ID
• Dates and times the service hours were completed
• Full name of community-based organization or Gies Business department/event the hours were in service of
• Description of work completed and the community need met by the service work
• Contact information for a supervisor/organizer who could verify that you completed the hours
• Total number of hours

Students may use the service hours tracking template. This spreadsheet will then be uploaded through the annual activity report (linked above) by April 30, 2026. (December graduates must submit form by December 6, 2025.)

Guidelines for Community-Based Service

The Gies James Scholars program values community service because spending time enriching your community is a great way to broaden your perceptions of the world. By immersing yourself in a community and surrounding yourself with people who are dedicated to bettering the world, you can learn so much about how the world works. You gain a unique sense of purpose by serving those around you, one which often manifests in other areas of your life - and isn't the Gies experience all about purpose?

Of course, it’s also important for your community! Without volunteers, many of the services and events we enjoy in our communities would not be so readily available. Spending time helping out at local shelters, food banks, or afterschool programs provides an important service to your neighbors. Giving back to the place you call home (even if just for four years) helps to unite the community and bridge some of the social, economic and political gaps.

When considering how to best fulfill your community service requirements, it will help to ask yourself and research the following:

• What do I care about?
• What are the greatest needs in my community?
• What non-profits/charitable organizations are working toward meeting these needs?
• How can I best invest in these non-profits/charitable organizations?
• How can I add value to these non-profits/charitable organizations?
• What do I have the opportunity to learn about myself through community service?
• Who can I ask to serve with me? (Doing community service with a friend or two can be more fun and less intimidating than doing so alone)

You are highly encouraged to connect with non-profits/charitable organizations in the Champaign-Urbana area, but many students also find ways to engage in community service when home over breaks. Both means for fulfilling community service hours are great, just make sure to track the required information. Information about local opportunities will also be provided in the weekly James Scholars Updates newsletter. Additionally, you can get information about volunteer opportunities through the Office of Civic Life. Other service opportunities must first receive approval by Assistant Director for Gies Honors Rachel Newell rmnewell@illinois.edu.

Community Service Exclusions

1. Simply "volunteering" for something isn't the same as community service. For example, teaching religious classes, leading ministry small groups, attending choir rehearsals for your religious organization's holiday concert, or mentoring other members of an RSO does not count toward community service hours. However, if your religious organization or RSO hosts a food pantry or winter coat distribution event, volunteering for this could count toward community service hours.
2. Donating money or items to a non-profit/charitable organization will not count as community service. However, service as a volunteer at a fundraising or outreach event hosted by and in benefit of that non-profit/charitable organization could count toward community service hours.
3. Virtual volunteer service including participation in SONA surveys must be limited to no more than 5 of the required 20 hours (or 2.5 or the required 10 hours). The majority of service hours should be spent in work that allows you to have direct contact with the organizations and/or those being served by the organization.
4. Membership on a RSO or fraternity/sorority board cannot be counted toward this service hour requirement. Additionally, volunteering done in service of an RSO or fraternity/sorority cannot be counted toward this service requirement.

Options for earning service hours through Gies

Below are some options for earning service hours through Gies College of Business Service Hours. Time must still be tracked and submitted and time served must equal the required number of hours.

• Serve as an unpaid Peer Advisor for at least one semester (following satisfactory completion of BUS 199: Coaching for Success).
• Serve as a Gies Ambassador
• Serve as a Career Ambassador with the Office of Career and Professional Development
• Volunteer for large Gies College of Business events such as New Student Welcome, Career Fair, Fall Fest, Signing Day, etc.
• Dean's Student Advisory Board
• Council of Presidents Advisory Board
• Provost's Undergraduate Student Advisory Board
• Participating in SONA research projects (up to 5 hours only)
• Other activities directly related to and in service of Gies College of Business must first receive approval by the Senior Assistant Director of Gies Honors (Rachel Newell - rmnewell@illinois.edu)

Annual Activity Report

Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors are required to complete the annual activity report (linked above) by December 6, 2025 (fall graduates) or April 30, 2026 (spring graduates and continuing students). As part of the report, you will upload your service hours tracking spreadsheet, and/or information about your presentation at the Undergraduate Research Symposium, and provide a brief reflection.

Exceptions

• There is no minimum graded credit hour requirement during the final semester prior to graduation. 
• There is no required minimum graded credit hours for James Scholars studying abroad for a semester during that semester. James Scholars completing a winter internship and/or semester long cooperative internship are also granted an exception to this requirement. Registration in ACCY 290 or departmental confirmation of the internship is required.
• If you will be studying abroad for a full semester or will not be enrolled during one semester of the academic year (due to December graduation, stopping out, winter internship, etc), you may complete 10 hours of service and submit the online reporting form by the fall enrollment deadline or the spring enrollment deadline, whichever is sooner.
• Due to delays with final grade reports and varied international grading systems, semester GPAs of students who have studied abroad for a full semester will not be subject to the 3.5 minimum requirement for the semester they are abroad. 
• Students requesting an underload from the college for extenuating circumstances may also be granted an exception to the 12-hour graded credit hour minimum.
• If there are extenuating circumstances (such as a health concern) that would prevent you from participating in the required 20 hours of service, please complete the online reporting form to request an exemption from completing the James Scholar Service/Research requirement.

Appeals

For freshmen, James Scholar status is evaluated at the end of the first year. For sophomores, juniors, and seniors, James Scholar status is evaluated at the end of each semester (based on GPA and credit hours for fall, and based on GPA, credit hours, and online reporting form for spring). James Scholars who do not successfully complete all requirements may be removed from the program. However, we recognize that sometimes unforeseen situations beyond students' control may occur. If extenuating circumstances affected the completion of requirements, we offer an appeal process for possible reinstatement of James Scholar status. Students will need to upload a personal statement and any relevant documentation. Appeals are reviewed by the Honors team on a case-by-case basis, and students will be contacted about the decision within a few weeks of submitting the form.