What's New With Honors

MATT BAROCAS: UF’S SECOND SCHWARZMAN SCHOLAR

UF Honors has yet another reason to be proud: Matt Barocas, a senior in the Honors Program, is the second-ever Schwarzman Scholar from the University of Florida. The Schwarzman Scholarship is a prestigious program that pays for students to earn their master’s degree at the Schwarzman College at Tsinghua University in Beijing.

Barocas is a political science and history major from Pinecrest, Florida. After he gets his masters through the Schwarzman Program, he hopes to go to law school or graduate school. He plans to have a career in diplomacy or public service, which his experience in Beijing will certainly prepare him.

Barocas was attracted to the Schwarzman Program’s “call for future global leaders” featured on their website. The program offers renowned academic and leadership development as well as cultural enrichment from living in China for ten months, which made the opportunity too enticing to pass up. Barocas previously had little knowledge on the country, and he wanted to change that. “The US-China relationship is going to be really important,” he said. “No matter what I do, it’s going to factor into my career, so not having a background in it was a deficiency that I was looking to fill.”

Applying to the program was quite the undertaking. With the help of Kelly Medley from the Honors Office, Barocas wrote multiple essays, gathered letters of recommendation and put together a video to demonstrate to interviewers why he was the best candidate for the scholarship. The interviewers were particularly impressed with his video, which involved him baking bread. “It was kind of cheesy. It was a metaphor for cultural understanding: baking bread and coming together.” When asked about why he chose to focus on bread, Barocas laughed and clarified that he liked baking bread before quarantine made it trendy. The interview itself was 20

nerve-wracking minutes of questions, but he felt prepared thanks to his mock interviews with Medley.

By immersing himself in a cultural and political environment that is distinct from America, Barocas hopes to engage with new ideas he never had the opportunity to before. He encourages other UF students to apply for the scholarship as well. “I don’t know how many people from UF have ever applied. Maybe that’s why there’s only two,” he said. UF is fortunate to be represented by someone as committed as Barocas, and hopefully other Gators will follow in his footsteps.

Story by Holly Smith

PROGRAM WELCOMES HONORS CLASS OF 2025

On Feb. 26, the UF Honors Program welcomed 1,549 applicants to join its class of 2025.

Receiving just over 11,300 applications, the Honors Program saw an acceptance rate of about 13.7% this year--a slight increase from 2020’s acceptance rate of 13.3%. The accepted class had an average GPA of 4.67, SAT of 1497 and ACT of 34. The program also welcomed eight Lombardi Scholars and three Stamps Scholars who were hand-selected from a pool of over 200 nominees by distinguished Honors faculty.

Through general admission, UF accepted 15,220 students out of a record applicant pool of 52,513 for an acceptance rate of 28.9%. Accepted students had an average GPA of 4.51, SAT of 1392 and ACT of 31. The university expects 6,400 students to enroll.

This year was especially competitive for the University of Florida and the Honors Program. Prospective students completed their applications under the added stress of the pandemic, which has made for an unconventional college admissions season.

Claudia Johnson from St. Petersburg, Fla. was one accepted Honors student. Currently attending school remotely, she said getting accepted to UF was the highlight of her week. “I was so excited to see the confetti that I stopped reading the letter and didn’t know I was accepted to the Honors Program until 30 minutes later,” Johnson said.

As an IB student, Claudia enjoyed the benefits of the program within her large school and hopes to gain the same intimate learning and social experience in the Honors Program. Claudia will join the Gator Nation this fall and is excited to pursue involvement opportunities and live on campus at Hume Hall. She hopes to major in economics on the pre-law track. As the class of 2025 continues to take shape, Honors students look forward to welcoming the next generation of uncommon scholars to our community.

Story by Karina Bravo

MONICA BEYROUTI: THE NEW FACE AT UF HONORS

The Honors Office has a new administrative support assistant: Monica Beyrouti. With more and more people working in the Honors Office, sometimes it can be tricky to know who to go to when you need help. That’s where Beyrouti, the “frontliner” of the Honors Office, comes in to help. Beyrouti takes the phone calls and walk-ins at the office, schedules advising appointments, helps other staffers with their work and handles maintenance orders for the building. Essentially, she’s the central hub to connect students and staffers with what they need. “I know where to point you,” Beyrouti said. “If a student has any questions, I can tell them, ‘This is the person you need to speak with.’”

Beyrouti is originally from Miami, but she got her bachelor’s degree in hospitality management from UCF in Orlando. She previously worked in UF’s Office of Admissions, but when there was an

opening in the Honors Office, she was eager to work with a smaller number of students who were more academically ambitious. She is currently earning her master’s in management from UF as a parttime student on top of working full-time at the Honors Office. Even with all of that work on her plate, Beyrouti still finds time for fun around campus; she loves attending gymnastic meets and watching the bats emerge from their houses at sunset. “You have to go!” she said. “It’s so beautiful, the way they come out in a spiral formation.” If any readers go to observe this phenomenon, maybe they’ll be lucky enough to encounter a friendly face among the spectators!

In her work as an administrative support assistant, Beyrouti strives to help everyone adjust to the expanding Honors Office. “I don’t want everyone to focus on the tedious tasks; my goal is to help them be better in their jobs. If they’re doing a good job, then the students get better service,” said Beyrouti. She herself rather enjoys being the go-to at the office, because she is never bored with all the different tasks she is given. From sending numerous emails to cleaning up reports for Dr. Law to ordering supplies, she is always engaged in her work. “It’s challenging, and I enjoy that,” Beyrouti said.

Beyrouti wants Honors students to know that they are fortunate to have such committed advisers in the Honors Office to support them. “We’re here to help Honors students succeed academically by giving them the resources and guidance they need.” With staffers as eager as Beyrouti, there’s no doubt students will have an easier time finding their way.

Story by Holly Smith

Photos courtesy of Honors Office

Design by Erin McLoughlin