Student experience and achievement

University of Kansas School of Law student Shelby Norman has been selected as a recipient of the 2026-2027 Foundation Scholarship from the Foundation for Natural Resources and Energy Law.

The names of more than 6,800 graduates at the University of Kansas for summer and fall 2025 and spring 2026 have been announced by the University Registrar. Many graduates and candidates for degree celebrated by participating in KU Commencement, which took place May 17.

The University of Kansas Alpha chapter of Phi Beta Kappa academic honor society has initiated 87 new members. Election to Phi Beta Kappa recognizes a student’s high academic achievement while pursuing a broad and substantive liberal-arts curriculum.

The University of Kansas Jazz and Commercial Music program has earned national recognition with a record-setting eight honors in the 49th Annual DownBeat Student Music Awards. The 2026 awards mark the most DownBeat Student Music Awards that KU has received in a single year, underscoring the program's continued excellence and reinforcing its reputation as one of the nation's premier university jazz and commercial music programs.

The KU Center for Undergraduate Research & Fellowships gave out $1,000 awards to 20 Jayhawks pursuing mentored research and creative projects across all disciplines.

More than 9,000 Jayhawks were named to the dean's lists for their respective schools for academic excellence in the spring 2026 semester.

Arthur Benson, a Lawrence native and School of Engineering student, has been named a 2026-2027 Astronaut Scholar. The program awards approximately 60 scholarships annually to sophomores and juniors in STEM who demonstrate exceptional academic performance, significant research experience and a commitment to pursuing a career in research.

University of Kansas students recently competed at math events at the local, state and national level. KU undergraduate students took fourth and eighth place in the team competition at the 2026 Kansas Collegiate Math Competition.

The University of Kansas School of Music has announced that the KU Chamber Choir has won top honors at an international choir competition in Slovakia.

Logan Brtek and Alex Nelson, both KU School of Law graduates, have been honored by the National Association of Legal Advocacy Educators, becoming the first KU Law students to receive the national honors. The awards recognize excellence in competition performance, academic achievement, leadership and service.