Characteristics of High-Achieving Students

In many ways, honors students are like all college students. However, there are some attributes that characterize high-achieving students that may be helpful for advisors to know.

• Multiple talents and interests that may lead to career and major indecision
• High expectations of themselves, which means that disappointments are felt keenly. They may also feel, whether they exist or not, that their family and teachers have high expectations of them.
• The desire to participate in many extracurricular activities and the tendency to become overextended
• An intrinsic motivation
• A smaller range of what they consider to be “good” grades. Falling below this range can be unsettling, especially if it is happening for the first time.
• A tendency to be perfectionists, which creates a lot of self pressure
• More interest in attending graduate or professional school than non-honors students
• Often have never taken a course that really challenges them. When they encounter the first challenge there will be a period of adjustment in their expectations, their stress levels, their study methods, and perhaps their goals.