Honors and Awards
Dean’s List
Dean’s List honors are awarded to students achieving high scholarship and a notation is placed on their official transcripts at the end of each session. To be eligible for the Dean’s List in a session a student:
- Must achieve a 3.7 or higher grade point average for that session.
- Must have completed 12 letter graded units or more.
- Must have no I, NP, or F grades.
- Must have had no academic disciplinary action taken against him or her.
Graduation with Honors
A student with outstanding academic achievement throughout his or her university career may be graduated with university honors. To be eligible for honors, the student must have an outstanding cumulative GPA for all work leading to graduation. Categories of honors are: cum laude (3.5 GPA); magna cum laude (3.7 GPA) and summa cum laude (3.9 GPA).
The Ikeda Scholarship
The Ikeda Scholarship is the most prestigious scholarship program at Soka University of America, Aliso Viejo. This scholarship provides students with all expenses paid, including tuition, room and board, books, and incidental expenses for the academic year. It is based on merit alone, primarily academic accomplishment with experiences in leadership and service also taken into account.
Ikeda Scholarships are awarded annually in September to a student in the Sophomore class, the Junior class and the Senior class for a total of three scholarships per year.
A committee consisting of SUA’s Dean of Faculty and Dean of Students acts as the selection committee, making final recommendations to the University President who announces the recipients in the Fall of each academic year.
Annual Awards of Excellence
Excellence in Academics: The committee will review grades, narrative evaluations, papers and projects.
Excellence in Community Service: The committee will review student essays and letters of recommendation.
Excellence in Creative Arts: The committee will review art, literature, music, performance, in any form. May be awarded to an individual or to a group.
Excellence in Research: The committee will review papers or projects. May be awarded to an individual or to a group.
Excellence in Academic Mentoring: The committee will review essays and letters of recommendation.