Self-Guided Walking Tour

South Entrance and Main Staircase

Welcome to the Honors College! The South Entrance is the street level entrance to the Honors College building. You will notice that there is a card swipe function outside both doors. All Honors College students have access to the first floor until 8pm and residents of the building have 24/7 access. Our elevators to the residential spaces also require swipe access so only residents can travel to those floors. 

As you walk into the building, you will notice a staircase on your right side. At the top of the staircase, you will see a number of historic and spirited Rutgers photos. Take some time to learn about our university and the members of our community throughout history.

After you get to the top of the stairs you will see the cozy "Plant Lounge" on your left. This sitting area is one of the many available for our students. A few steps further and take a slight right turn to enter the Druskin Lounge.

Druskin Lounge

The Druskin Lounge is home to many Honors College activities, including scheduled, formal HC events and informal social gatherings of students. Here we host celebrations, all-College workshops, major meetings, Affinity group events, and holiday celebrations. This is the social hub of the College.

The Druskin Lounge was made possible thanks to a gift from Bob and Harriett Druskin. Bob is a Rutgers alumnus and former COO of Citigroup, and the Druskins are longtime supporters of the Scarlet Knights.

On your right, you will see three seminar rooms. 
 

Seminar Rooms

The classrooms are open to Honors College students whenever classes are not in session and until midnight. Students use these rooms to study, host meetings, movie nights, or watch sporting events. The adjustable tables and rolling chairs give students the flexibility to change the layout of the room, while the whiteboards are helpful for visual learners or thinkers, and students have complete access to the classroom technology.

Our seminar rooms are home to Honors College core courses including Forum, Cross-Cultural Competency (CCC), and interdisciplinary honors seminars. They also play host to many Byrne Seminars as well as other classes from across the University. All told, we host over seventy-five courses a semester.

Walk along the seminar rooms toward the Fireside Lounge and Coffee Bar.
 

Fireside Lounge and Coffee Bar

The Coffee Bar is our central area for social events that include food. The bar itself can be used for eating, but also serves as our buffet line during events. Behind the bar there is a sink, microwave, convection/toaster oven, and two mini-fridges for general student use.

The Coffee Bar was made possible thanks to a milestone gift from the Class of 1964’s 50th Reunion. 

The Fireside Lounge is a low-key and quiet space. Students can eat lunch, hold small group meetings, get work done, or just relax. In the corner, you will see our beautiful piano. The piano is open for all students to enjoy except during designated quiet hours. 

For our next stop on the tour, take the doors on your left near the HC Events Bulletin Board. This board showcases upcoming events and happenings around the HC. 

Walk out of those doors and take a right to view the Druskin Terrace.
 

Druskin Terrace

Welcome to the Druskin Terrace! This space is used for social programming and includes an outdoor fireplace as well as ample seating, and is a place for students to relax and gather. The Druskin Terrace was also made possible thanks to a gift from Bob and Harriett Druskin. 

Looking ahead, admire the view of the Raritan River. You'll also see the headquarters for Johnson & Johnson, which provides fellowships, scholarships, and internship opportunities to Rutgers students. You can also see the tracks leading to the New Brunswick Train Station serviced by NJ Transit. This train station, just two blocks south, provides direct access to New York Penn Station, Newark Airport, and SEPTA connections to the south. 

After admiring the view, take the next set of doors into the East Lounge.
 

East Lounge

The East Lounge is a dedicated lounge space for students who prefer a more quiet area to study and relax. Here is where you will find study groups, mentoring sessions, and interaction with many of our professional staff. 

Historical Rutgers photos frame the walls to showcase some of the spirit and tradition on our campus, including alumnus Paul Robeson, a professional football player, performer, and activist.

As you walk through the lounge, you will see the Honors College Administrative Suite on your right-hand side (glass doors).
 

Honors College Administrative Suite

The Honors College staff offices are located in the Administrative Suite. Our staff includes Academic Advisors, Student Support staff, Deans, and other administrative professionals.

1. Advisors are accessible during business hours via appointments and email. Advisors serve all HC students in all schools and focus on Honors College requirements, academic planning, and student success.

2. Student Support staff are available to engage students in leadership and social activities, provide wellness opportunities, direct students to other campus resources, maintain our web and marketing services, and produce two different newsletters a week—one for community events and notices and one for professional opportunities. 

We also have our Residence Life Coordinator here, who guides the community programming in our four-floors of residence rooms, and works with our RAs to help support our students.

3. Our Deans provide students with direct guidance and support related to professional/career development, academics, engagement and well-being, and administrative responsibilities. Each dean has oversight over a broad portfolio of programs and areas, all designed to ensure the opening of pathways to student success.

Walking down the hallway and turning left, you will see two more seminar rooms and the Rutgers Makerspace on your left.
 

Makerspace

The Rutgers Makerspace is a collaborative workspace designed for students, faculty, and staff from all academic disciplines who love to learn, design, and create. Services, tools, and training are available to all Rutgers students in this space including 3D Printing and Design, Digital Fabrication and Manufacturing, and more traditional making methods like woodworking and sewing.

Honors College students can use this space to create prototypes, tinker for fun, or even make a Halloween costume!

On the right-hand side of the hallway, you will pass several key areas of our learning-living space.
 

Learning-Living Space and North Lounge

As you pass various doors on your right, you are walking by our CAPS office and our faculty apartments.

Our CAPS (counseling and well-being) counselor is in-residence two and a half days a week and meets with students individually, in small groups, and in all-College workshops and presentations. 

You are also passing by two of our Faculty Fellows apartments. We have three residential Faculty Fellows who live in the Honors College, including the Dean. Together, they engage students with meals, snack breaks, guest speakers, interactive activities, game nights, and hosting a variety of events. We also have two Affiliated Faculty Fellows who, while not living in the College, sponsor a wide array of academic, co-curricular, and inter-personal programs.

Straight ahead is the North Lounge, which is a space where students can hang out and socialize with each other. This is a social space featuring a pool table, ping-pong table, and air hockey table. Students use this lounge to relax and decompress, especially during midterms and finals.

In the North Lounge, you’ll see the Resident Assistants' on-duty desk and bulletin board. Resident Assistants support residential students along with our staff Residence Life Coordinator. These student and professional staff members serve in on-call campus duty rotation to ensure student safety. They are joined by the HC Changemakers, who are upperclassmen also living with our first-year students. They help provide guidance, mentoring, and programming for the betterment of our community.
 

Rodkin Family Courtyard

As you walk out the doors, you can see the entire Honors College building from our courtyard. 

The Rodkin Family Courtyard is home to many Honors College activities. When the weather is nice you can see students having picnics, playing spikeball, reading, swinging from hammocks, and so much more.

The Rodkin Family Courtyard was made possible thanks to a gift from Gary and Barbara Rodkin. Gary, a Rutgers alumnus and former CEO of PepsiCo and ConAgra Foods, has visited our community to host Master Classes about professional development with Honors College students and also served as a previous HC Convocation speaker.

The building on your right is the west wing of the Rutgers Academic Building. Students often attend classes in the Academic Building or access resources including a Computer Lab, Learning Centers for tutoring and writing support, several academic departments, and Cafe West, which is a small cafe that accepts meal swipes for students. This is where the HC often hosts two Navesink Endowed Lectures every year, Plenary (an all-section meeting of our Forum course), and other major events.

And during the warmer months—from spring to late fall—at the North end of the Academic Building you may see the President's Tent, which is where the HC holds its Convocation, marking the passage from a student's first day at move-in coming through the South Entrance, to leaving through the tent as an Honors College Scholar!