Undergraduate Program
The Tocqueville Project provides high-achieving undergraduate students at UNO and throughout the New Orleans area with the opportunity to pursue, both inside and outside of the classroom, academic interests related to ethics, politics, economics, history, and law. Students can become part of a unique community that offers intellectual, cultural, and social opportunities, including but not limited to the activities below.
For all invitation-only programming, we welcome applications from all students committed to a spirit of open inquiry and serious intellectual engagement. To apply, please submit a brief personal statement (~500 words) explaining your academic background and interests, extracurricular activities, work experience, and why you are interested in participating. Applications can be emailed to tocqueville@uno.edu.
Public Lectures and Academic Seminars
Each semester, the Tocqueville Project brings to campus top scholars from around the country in philosophy, politics, and economics to speak on their current work or timely issues in relevant to public policy. Public lectures are open to the public. Seminars are open to all faculty members, local graduate students, and undergraduate students affiliated with the Tocqueville Project. Seminar papers are distributed in advance.
All upcoming events can be viewed on the Tocqueville Project calendar page. A list of all past events can be found here.
Undergraduate Conferences
Our undergraduate conferences are invitation-only weekend gatherings that feature in-depth, Socratic-style discussions led by faculty about the foundational questions and challenges within the classical liberal tradition. While each semester's conference topics and readings raise many different questions, they all touch in some way on the idea of a free society and the principles central to the project's mission. The goal of these programs is to foster a seminal discussion among a small group of highly talented and motivated undergraduates. Students interested in participating in one of our upcoming conferences should contact us at tocqueville@uno.edu.
August 5-6, 2016 - Markets and Morality
November 18-19, 2016 - Policing and Freedom
Spring, 2017 - Topic and Date TBD
Summer Program in Political Economy
The Tocqueville Project will sponsors a summer program for college students in the New Orleans area. The program aims to provide students with a foundation in the great books of Western political and economic thought. Applications are accepted from any New Orleans area college student and need not be attending the University of New Orleans or other local colleges. The program is capped at 15 participants.
Reading Groups
Each semester we offer a reading group on a topic of faculty and student interest. The group meets over dinner, either on campus or at a local restaurant. The books will be provided and the cost of dinner will be covered. The group meets weekly or bi-weekly during the semester, for approximately an hour and a half each meeting. Please keep in mind that, if you do join a reading group, attendance and participation at each meeting is expected.
Success of our Students
Students interested in pursuing graduate work in philosophy have been accepted, most receiving full tuition remission and generous stipends, into Ph.D. programs at UC Santa Barbara, Texas A&M, and Tulane, and M.A. programs at the University of Cambridge (UK), Tufts, Georgia State University, Florida State University, and Ohio University.
Students interested in a legal career have been accepted, most receiving full or significant scholarships, into J.D. programs at Harvard, Yale, Stanford, NYU, Michigan, Fordham, Tulane, LSU, Villanova, American University, Brooklyn, Cardozo-Yeshiva, Case Western Reserve, Catholic University of America, Florida International, Gonzaga, Penn State (State College), Penn State (Dickenson), Rutgers, Seton Hall, St. Louis University, Syracuse, Denver, Kansas, Miami, Missouri, Pittsburgh, and South Carolina.
For more information about the success of our students, please see our student achievements page.Since 2011, our Undergraduate Fellows have been extraordinarily successful upon graduation.
All fellows choosing not to pursue graduate work have found satisfying employment in the private sector. Our students have also received prestigious national awards including a Fulbright Scholarship and a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship, prestigious college awards including the UNO College of Liberal Arts Dean's Award (top graduating senior in the college) and the UNO Honors Program Jace Michael Plaisance Award (top student in the program), numerous departmental awards, and top paper or presentation awards at undergraduate conferences.