Honoris Causa Be Causin' Some Debate.

pO157.

Posted to Etcetera on Thu Jul 26, 2007 at 08:53:07 PM EST (promoted by 1fastdog). RSS.

The practice of institutions of higher learning passing out honorary doctorates at commencement started in the late 1470s. Since then, it has sparked debate on whether the unearned degrees cheapen the hard work of university students.

The sheepskins, which are usually awarded as Masters or Doctoral degrees, allow the honoree to receive the certificate without actually completing any of the requirements, which can be extremely rigorous for the graduate degrees. Since these degrees are awarded at commencement, the beneficiaries usually get to give a speech, even if the person and subject matter are controversial, potentially taking attention away from the students. Others raise issues of degrees for privileges or money, the fairness of selection committees meeting in secret, and other sketchy practices.

Many of those recognized include famous surgeons, educators, scientists, and the like who meet strict criteria. It is not uncommon to hear of elite members of society who are given multiple degrees from different universities. Of course, some of the recipients are not from backgrounds quite so lofty as those mentioned above, and their contribution to society may be academically somewhat negligible, or downright scary.

Then again, if you can't get the respect of a college or university to grant you that unearned PhD, perhaps you could always buy one, err, pay a "support honorarium."