Developing Academic Excellence

The Scholars Program transforms students for global citizenship and individual excellence. It recognizes, supports and develops academic excellence in motivated and high performing students.

The program is an invitation-only opportunity, extended to students who have demonstrated individual excellence through outstanding academic achievement. Those with a grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale are considered by the scholars committee for review and potential invitation to the program.

The program fosters a sense of intellectual curiosity among participants, as well as individual autonomy with regard to their coursework, co-curricular activities and career aspirations. It is integrated into the bachelor experience so that an outstanding student from any of our bachelor's degree programs (from various academic majors) who is invited can pursue the Scholars Certificate.

Student sits writing on paper at desk

Webster Geneva Campus Scholars Program

A major component of the Scholars Program focuses around a bachelor thesis. The topic of the thesis is chosen by the Scholars student during a special research course designed specifically for Scholars students.

Students will be guided by a Professor through two courses and meet individually with a Faculty member within their respective academic discipline over the course of two semesters.Students will present their theses publicly at the end of their Spring semester to their peers and campus community.

This academic learning experience strengthens students’ skills in research and writing. Completing a thesis can provide students with a competitive advantage when applying to graduate school or when entering the job market.

As mentioned, the program is invitation-only, and a Scholars Committee selects students who will have demonstrated a grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.5/4.0, with a preference toward students who have had regular involvement with extracurricular activities (on campus or in the community).

Some students are invited as Freshmen as part of the admissions process, while others may be able to earn a Scholars’ Program invitation during their studies. Note that continuing students can be considered after at least two full-time, 16-week semesters at Webster (but not more than 80 credits earned).

First-year freshmen who are selected from high school will enter the Scholars Program track, and will be able to remain in the program with by maintaining a GPA of 3.5 or higher during their studies. Upon successful completion of the program, students can earn a Scholars Certificate upon graduation.

The program is also open to transfer students from other universities who will spend at least four semesters at Webster before graduation.

  • Maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or above.
  • Successful completion of the 16-week Scholars Research Seminar during the Fall semester of their junior or senior year. The Research Seminar focuses on developing research skills, with the completion of a literature review as part of their research proposal for their thesis.
  • Successful completion of the 16-week thesis (within their disciplines) during the following Spring semester of their junior or senior year, under a dedicated faculty mentor’s supervision.

Students who have completed the Scholars Program have been admitted to competitive graduate degrees offered by prestigious universities, including Cambridge University, London School of Economics, and John Hopkins University. (see below for a selection of schools and programs).

Scholarships The program offers a number of merit-based scholarships of up to CHF 10,000 per year, to selected incoming first-year Freshmen (who will spend multiple years at Webster Geneva Campus). The committee may also offer limited number of partial-tuition awards of up to CHF 5,000 per year to continuing students who are invited to join the Scholars Program, based on available funds. Scholars Program awards can also be combined with need-based financial aid awards from Webster Geneva Campus, for those students whose families are eligible. Combined award packages offered by the Geneva campus (Scholars Program scholarships plus need-based funds) do not exceed 50% of tuition (yet US citizens may have access to additional federal loan programs).

Recent graduates of the Scholars Program have been admitted to competitive graduate programs including:

  • MPhil in Education, Globalization and International Development Cambridge University, Cambridge, U.K.
  • MSc in Political Economy of Late Development London School of Economics, London
  • MSc in Mental Health, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland
  • MSc in Digital Marketing and Data Science, EmLyon (a French Grande Ecole), Lyon, France
  • MA in Public Policy, Hertie School of Governance, Berlin, Germany
  • MSc in Finance, University of Leuven Leuven, Belgium
  • MSc in Psychology University of Geneva
  • MA in Peace and Conflict Studies Oslo University, Norway
  • MA in Political Communication John Hopkins University, U.S.
  • Law Degree, Faculty of Law McGill University, Canada
  • MA Conflict, Security, and Development, War Studies Department Kings College London, Prev. Certificate in International Law University of Geneva
  • MSc in Finance, Rotterdam School of Management Erasmus University, The Netherlands
  • MA in International Conflict Studies King’s College, London

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