Honorary degree

An Honorary Degree (Latin: honoris causa ad gradum) is an extra-ordinary academic degree awarded to an individual as a decoration, rather than as the result of matriculating and studying for several years. An honorary degree may be conferred by an institution that the recipient never attended. The degree itself may be a bachelor's, master's or doctorate degree — the latter being by far the most common. Usually the degree is conferred with great pomp and ceremony as a way of honoring a famous or distinguished visitor.

Practical use

Recipients of an honorary doctorate who do not also hold a bona fide doctorate often choose not to use the title of "doctor", though it may be appropriate to use the title provided it was conferred based on some tangible and relevant achievement. However, in many countries, including the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and the United States, it is not customary for an honorary doctorate to receive the formal title of "doctor", regardless of the background circumstances for the award.

Related Topics:
United Kingdom - Australia - New Zealand - United States

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The recipient of an honorary degree may add the degree title postnominally, but they should always make clear that the degree is honorary by adding "honorary" or "honoris causa" or "h.c." in parenthesis after the degree title. For instance, if Joe Bloggs receives an honorary doctorate, his appropriate title might be (for instance) Joe Bloggs, PhD (honorary).

Related Topics:
Postnominal - Parenthesis

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In recent years, some universities have adopted entirely separate postnominal titles for honorary degrees. This is in part due to the confusion that honorary degrees have caused. It is now common to use certain degrees, such as LLD or HonD, as purely honorary. For instance, an honorary doctor of the Auckland University of Technology takes the special title HonD instead of the usual PhD.

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Customary degrees

Some universities also have the custom of awarding an honorary master's degree to every scholar it appoints as a full professor who had never earned a degree there, as a way of co-opting him as an alumnus. This is particularly true at the University of Cambridge, where all senior staff (whether academic faculty or not) are eligible for a special master's degree after five years of service.

Related Topics:
Master's degree - Alumnus - University of Cambridge

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