Awarding of Honorary Degrees

Authority: President
Date Enacted or Revised: October 6, 2015

In accordance with University of Louisiana System board rules (Part Two, Chapter I, Section VI), the University may grant honorary degrees to persons who have made substantial achievements in literary, artistic, scientific, or technical fields of endeavor and must follow these guidelines:

  • No honorary degree shall be awarded that could be confused with an earned degree granted by an accredited institution.
  • Two categories of individuals are excluded from receiving honorary degrees:  1) faculty or staff members currently employed by the University and 2) Louisiana elected officials in office at the time of selection and conferral of the honorary degree.
  • No more than two honorary degrees may be awarded per academic year.

Recommendations for honorary degrees must come from the president of the University of Louisiana System, the president of the University, and the faculty of the appropriate college of the University.

The Honorary Degree Committee is responsible for receiving, considering, and transmitting nominations for honorary degrees to the administration. The president appoints members to the Honorary Degree Committee on an ad hoc basis.

Communication

This policy is distributed via the Academic Advisory Council, the Administrative Advisory Council, and the University Policies webpage.