An honorary degree ^[1] (Latin: honoris causa ad gradum, not to be confused with an honors degree) is an 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 last 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's valuable contribution to society. The university derives benefits by association with the person's status and so enhances its networking and publicity. Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in the region around Rome called Latium. ... Honoris causa (plural: Causae) is a Latin term meaning for the sake of honor, abbreviated as . ... A degree is any of a wide range of status levels conferred by institutions of higher education, such as universities, normally as the result of successfully completing a program of study. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... The matriculation ceremony at Oxford Matriculation refers to the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by acquiring the required prior qualifications. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... A masters degree is an academic degree usually awarded for completion of a postgraduate or graduate course of one to three years in duration. ...

Introduction

Honorary degrees are usually awarded at regular graduation ceremonies, at which the recipients are often invited to make a speech of acceptance before the assembled faculty and graduates – an event which often forms the highlight of the ceremony. Generally universities nominate several persons each year for honorary degrees; these nominees usually go through several committees before receiving approval. Those who are nominated are generally not told until a formal approval and invitation are made; often it is perceived that the system is shrouded in secrecy, and occasionally seen as political and controversial – in recent years a trend lamented by many has been to award degrees to popular icons, such as politicians and actors, rather than to scientists and scholars. Academic procession during the University of Canterbury graduation ceremony. ... A faculty is a division within a university. ... Western Illinois University A university is an institution of higher education and of research, which grants academic degrees at all levels (bachelor, master, and doctorate) in a variety of subjects. ... A committee is a (relatively) small group that can serve one of several functions: Governance: in organizations too large for all the members to participate in decisions affecting the organization as a whole, a committee (such as a Board of Directors) is given the power to make decisions. ...

An ad eundem degree may also be considered a sort of honorary degree, although it is only conferred on an individual who has already achieved a comparable qualification at another university. An ad eundem degree is a courtesy degree awarded by one university or college to an alumnus of another. ...

The first honorary degree was awarded to Lionel Woodville in the late 1470s by the University of Oxford. He later became Bishop of Salisbury. Lionel Woodville (c. ... Events and Trends battle of Avenches 1476 Prominent Persons Nicolaus Copernicus, Polish astronomer and mathematician A map of Europe in the 1470s. ... The University of Oxford, located in the city of Oxford, England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... Arms of the Bishop of Salisbury The Bishop of Salisbury is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Salisbury in the Province of Canterbury. ...

It is worth mentioning the point that although higher doctorates such as DSc, DLitt, etc, are often awarded honoris causa, in many countries (notably the UK and Australia) it is possible to formally earn such a degree. This typically involves the submission of a portfolio of peer-refereed research, usually undertaken over a number of years, which has made a substantial contribution to the academic field in question. The university will appoint a panel of examiners who will consider the case and prepare a report recommending whether or not the degree be awarded. Usually, the applicant must have some strong formal connection with the university in question, for example full-time academic staff, or graduates of several years' standing. A doctorate is an academic degree of the highest level. ...

Some universities, seeking to differentiate between substantive and honorary doctorates, have a degree (often DUniv, or 'Doctor of the University') which is used for these purposes, with the other higher doctorates reserved for formally-examined academic scholarship.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has the power to award degrees. These 'Lambeth degrees' are often, erroneously, thought to be honorary; however the Archbishop has for many centuries had the legal authority (originally as the representative of the Pope, later confirmed by a 1533 Act of Henry VIII), to award degrees, and regularly does so to individuals deemed to have satisfied the appropriate requirements in some way. Arms of the see of Canterbury The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior clergyman of the established Church of England and symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion. ... Lambeth degrees are awarded by the Archbishop of Canterbury, under the authority of the Ecclesiastical Licences Act 1533 (25 Hen VIII c 21) (Eng). ... The Pope (from Greek: pappas, father; from Latin: papa, Papa, father) is the head of the Roman Catholic Church. ... Henry VIII (28 June 1491 – 28 January 1547) was King of England and Lord of Ireland (later King of Ireland) from 22 April 1509 until his death. ...

Between the two extremes of honoring celebrities and formally assessing a portfolio of research, many universities use honorary degrees to recognize achievements of intellectual rigour that are comparable to an earned degree.

With 150 honorary degrees as of May 2004, University of Notre Dame President Emeritus Father Theodore Hesburgh retains the record of most honorary degrees awarded to a single person [2]. The University of Notre Dame is a leading Roman Catholic institution of higher learning located in Notre Dame, Indiana, immediately northeast of South Bend, Indiana, United States. ... The Rev. ...

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. Even so, one who holds a honorary doctorate may use the title "doctor"^{[citation needed]}. In many countries, including the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and the United States, it is not customary for an honorary doctor to use the formal title of "doctor", regardless of the background circumstances for the award (the clergy being a notable exception: Robert W. Schuller, Robert A. Schuller, Billy Graham, Norman Vincent Peale and Jerry Falwell, just as examples, are all referred to as "doctor" and refer to themselves that way, even though none of them possess an earned doctorate but all have several honorary degrees, whereas Martin Luther King, Jr. earned a Ph.D. from Boston University). One other notable exception is Benjamin Franklin, who, in 1757, received an honorary doctorate from Oxford University for his scientific accomplishments, and from then on went by "Doctor Franklin." Robert A. Schuller (b. ... The Rev. ... Norman Vincent Peale (May 31, 1898 – December 24, 1993) was a Christian preacher and author (most notably of The Power of Positive Thinking) and a progenitor of the theory of positive thinking. Peale was born in Bowersville, Ohio and died in Pawling, New York. ... Jerry Lamon Falwell (born August 11, 1933, Lynchburg, Virginia) is a Fundamentalist Baptist pastor and televangelist, from the United States. ... Martin Luther King redirects here. ... For the unrelated Jesuit university in Chestnut Hill, see Boston College. ... Benjamin Franklin by Jean-Baptiste Greuze 1777 Benjamin Franklin (January 17 [O.S. January 6] 1706 – April 17, 1790) was one of the most prominent of the Founders and early political figures and statesmen of the United States. ... The University of Oxford, located in the city of Oxford in England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ...

The recipient of an honorary degree may add the degree title postnominally, but it should always be made clear that the degree is honorary by adding "honorary" or "honoris causa" or "h.c." in parenthesis after the degree title. Post-nominal letters also called Post-nominal initials or Post-nominal titles are letters placed after the name of an individual to indicate that that individual holds a position, educational degree, accreditation, office, or honour. ... In rhetoric, a parenthesis (plural: parentheses; from the Greek word παρενθεσις) is (according to the Oxford English Dictionary) An explanatory or qualifying word, clause, or sentence inserted into a passage with which it has not necessarily any grammatical connexion, and from which it is usually marked off by round or square...

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 LL.D. or Hon.D., as purely honorary. For instance, an honorary doctor of the Auckland University of Technology takes the special title Hon.D. instead of the usual Ph.D. Some universities, including the Open University grant Doctorates of the University (D.Univ.) to selected nominees, while awarding Ph.D. or Ed.D. degrees to those who have fulfilled the academic requirements. The Auckland University of Technology (AUT) is New Zealand’s newest university, formed on 1 January 2000 when the Auckland Institute of Technology was granted university status. ... The Open University (OU) is the UKs open learning university, established in 1969. ...

Many American universities only ever award the LL.D. (Doctor of Laws), the Litt.D. (Doctor of Letters), the L.H.D. (Doctor of Humane Letters), the Sci.D. (Doctor of Science), the Ped.D. (Doctor of Pedagogy) and the D.D. (Doctor of Divinity) as honorary degrees -- an earned degree in Law would be the J.S.D. (Doctor of Juridical Science), earned degrees in the Liberal Arts or Humanities or Sciences are generally the Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy), the Ed.D. (Doctor of Education) is the Education degree, and the Ph.D., Th.D. (Doctor of Theology), S.T.D. (Doctor of Sacred Theology) or D.Min. (Doctor of Ministry) are awarded in Religion and Theology depending on the particular program. American universities do not have the Oxford/Cambridge system of "higher doctorates" that is also used at other universities around the world: the earned Ph.D. is the highest formal academic degree offered. Map of the Cambridgeshire area (1904) The city of Cambridge is an old English university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire. ...

Customary degrees

Some universities and colleges 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. At the University of Cambridge all senior staff (whether academic faculty or not) are eligible for a special master's degree after five years of service, for instance, and at Amherst College all tenured professors are awarded a Master of Arts degree at academic convocation in the autumn even though the school only offers an earned Bachelor of Arts degree (Amherst awards honorary doctorates at commencement in the spring to notable scholars and other special invitees). A masters degree is an academic degree usually awarded for completion of a postgraduate or graduate course of one to three years in duration. ... The University of Cambridge (often called Cambridge University), located in Cambridge, England, is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... Amherst College is an independent liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts, USA. It is the third oldest college in Massachusetts. ...

Controversy

Some universities and colleges have been accused of granting honorary degrees in exchange for large donations. Honorary degree recipients, particularly those who have no academic qualifications, have sometimes been criticized if they insist on being called "Doctor" as a result of their award, as the honorific may mislead the general public about their qualifications. An honorific is a term used to convey esteem or respect. ...

The practice of awarding honorary degrees to celebrities has also been criticised. Detractors argue that such honorary degrees debase the value of a degree and are an attempt by the university to obtain media attention. Various honorary degree recipients have been criticised for not being meritorious. On various campuses, the awarding of an honorary degree to a controversial political figure has prompted protests from faculty or students. In 2001, the conferment of an honorary degree upon George W. Bush by Yale University (where he had done his bachelor's degree) prompted a boycott of the university's commencement ceremony by numerous students and faculty. A celebrity is a person who is widely recognized (famous) in a society and commands a degree of public and media attention. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is the 43rd and current President of the United States and a former governor of Texas. ... Yale redirects here. ... See also Academic dress Categories: Education | Academia ...

A similar incident occurred in 2005 at the University of Western Ontario when Dr. Henry Morgentaler, the abortion doctor who had essentially decriminalized abortion in Canada in the case of R. v. Morgentaler, was made an honorary Doctor of Laws. Over 12,000 signatures were acquired on http://www.uwoprotest.com/ asking the UWO to reverse its decision to honor Dr. Morgentaler and several protest rallies were held, including one on the day the honorary degree was bestowed. This was Morgentaller's first honorary degree, although it has been rumoured that degrees from other universities were vetoed due to the controversy the convocation was expected to produce. The University of Western Ontario is a public, non-denominational university located in London, Ontario, Canada. ... Henry Morgentaler, M.D., LL.D. honourary (born March 19, 1923, in Lodz, Poland) is a Canadian medical doctor and long time abortion activist from Montreal. ... Holding Section 251 of the Criminal Code violates a womans right to security of person under section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and cannot be saved under section 1 of the Charter. ...

Alternatively, few people objected to McGill University's decision to grant Joni Mitchell an honorary Doctor of Music in 2004, just in time to co-incide with a symposium about Mitchell's career. [3] McGill University is a publicly funded, research-intensive, non-denominational, co-educational university located in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. ... Joni Mitchell, CC (born Roberta Joan Anderson on November 7, 1943, in Fort Macleod, Alberta, Canada), is a musician and painter. ... The Doctor of Music degree (D.Mus. ...

In 1996 Southampton College at Long Island University awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Amphibious Letters to muppet Kermit the Frog. Although some students objected to awarding a degree to a puppet, Kermit delivered an enjoyable commencement address and the small college received considerable press coverage. [4] The Southampton College of Long Island University is a small liberal arts college located in Southampton, New York, founded in 1963. ... Long Island University (LIU) is a private university located on Long Island in the U.S. state of New York. ... Kermit has a TV star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame located at 6801 Hollywood Blvd. ...

Some universities, like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology [5], Cornell University [6], and the University of Virginia [7], do not award honorary degrees. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, or MIT, is a private research university located in the city of Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. MIT is one of the worlds leading research institutions in science and technology. ... This is about the university. ... Mascot Cavalier Website www. ...

Footnotes

1. ↑  The spelling honorary is everywhere predominant, although such an award is an "honor" in the U.S. and usually an "honour" elsewhere; see spelling differences.

The differences in the spellings of British English and American English are as follows: Spelling differences between U.S. usage on one side and British and Commonwealth usage on the other are generally more conspicuous than spelling differences within the Commonwealth. ...

See also

• Freedom of the City
• Homage

Freedom of the City is an award made by English towns and cities, to esteemed members of its community; such people may then be termed Freemen or Freewomen of the City. ... For a description of the medieval homage ceremony see commendation ceremony Homage is generally used in modern English to mean any public show of respect to someone to whom you feel indebted. ...

External link

• Sunday Times article about inappropriate honorary degrees