
Research & Honors
Discover the world as it is. Imagine the world as it could be.
At HWS you can engage in collaborative research that tackles age-old problems and emerging issues. Build analytical skills that are portable to any profession. Publish and present your work at professional conferences. Be part of building a better world.
It’s the kind of opportunity most students don’t get until graduate school. But it’s all here for you from day one.

We’ll pay you to find the solution.
Undergraduate Research
Working directly with a faculty mentor on their research, you’ll dive deep on a topic of interest while honing your critical thinking and problem solving skills. To top it off, you’ll spend your summer lakeside, living rent-free and receiving a stipend for your efforts.
Projects range in length, type and discipline, and the application process is competitive. This past summer, more than 90 students engaged in a research opportunity.
A recent sampling of projects:
- Aquatic Ecology Research in the Finger Lakes
- Chemistry of Art
- The Dark Sides of Development and Entrepreneurship
- Drug Development of Anti-Cancer Agents
- From Beyond: Staging Geneva’s Unheard Voices
- Shakespeare on Screen
- Stream Salamanders and Land Use Legacy
- Winter Weather and Lake Effect Snow Storms
Honors Program
Graduate with Honors by undertaking a year-long independent research project or creative work under the guidance of an Honors Faculty Adviser. The most sophisticated work in our curriculum, projects culminate in a written and oral examination and are assessed by your faculty adviser as well as an examination committee.
25-35 students complete honors each year. Recent projects include:
- An Assessment of Canada’s Position in a Global Economy
- Becoming Empathetic: An Exploration of Empathetic Masculinities on Campus
- Exploring and Abstracting Intimacy in the Female Form
- Ivory, Ink, and Onionskin: Lyric Essays
- Mercury Bioaccumulation in Fish Food Webs of New York State Finger Lakes’ Tributaries
- Professionalization of Past Criminality and Addiction: How Former Prisoners and Addicts Manage a “Professional Ex” Identity
- Portable Hydroelectric: Generating Energy in Remote Locations
- Roman Red Sea Trade: An Analysis of Trade in the First and Second Centuries C. E.

Is One We Make Together
The Finger Lakes Institute (FLI)

The William Scandling
The Colleges steel hulled, 65 ft., research vessel has access to various lakes including Seneca, Cayuga & Ontario for student and faculty classroom and research activities.
Explore marine ecology on board the Colleges’ research vessel, do collaborative, interdisciplinary research with an HWS professor, and advance environmental education for local middle and high school students. FLI promotes environmental research and shares information about the Finger Lakes Region while fostering environmental stewardship and sustainable development.
Learn more about The Finger Lakes Institute
Community-Based Research
Work collaboratively with a partner from the Geneva area and a faculty mentor to help solve an issue that is vital to our community. These semester-long projects occur independently or as part of a class and are completed by students from across disciplines.
Happening at HWS
ResearchNational Research Recognition: HWS Receives “Research College” Designation from Carnegie Classification of Colleges and Universities
Carnegie recognizes HWS as one of the most committed institutions among colleges and universities across the country for research and development, highlighting opportunities for faculty mentored study and impact of cutting-edge research.
ResearchMore Than Adornment: The Magical World of Renaissance Gemstones
In her translation of a 1502 treatise, Associate Professor of Art and Architecture Liliana Leopardi explores how gemstones were once viewed as tools of healing, magic and political power.
ResearchHWS Day 2025
Senior research, scholarly dialogue and campus-wide creativity.