Why do people say they graduate with 'honours'?

I see and hear a lot of people saying they graduate with 'honours', and it's one of those things which bugs me a little. I feel as if a lot of people think that graduating with honours means that you personally strove to achieve the honours within your degree, when it's not is it. It's simply means that your degree contained 360 credits doesn't it?. Most degrees are honours degrees.

I just find it a little superfluous and affectatious when people say they've graduated with honours.

Just had to vent a little :colondollar:

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ikr

Original post by Twinpeaks

I feel as if a lot of people think that graduating with honours means that you personally strove to achieve the honours within your degree, when it's not is it.

How else would anyone get any kind of degree? It's all effort.

In England, graduating without honours is one step above failure, so the honours aspect does mean something. Generally it's nothing to boast about though and I haven't seen or heard of anyone making a big deal of it. You must know some odd folks :smile:

I just find it a little superfluous and affectatious when people say they've graduated with honours.

I think you need to relax. There are worse things to stress about. And it's "affected". "Affectatious" isn't a word.
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Just had to vent a little :colondollar:

Hope it's made you feel better x

Reply 3

username2393237

I know someone who didn't do well in his degree, so he graduated without honours. I can't remember what it was called.

Reply 4

john2054

Just one of those things. Get over it. Yes, when you get there, you will say it too. John Robinson BA (hons)

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 5

GoingToBurst

Original post by Twinpeaks

Because if you omit the "(hons)" or "with honours" then it becomes a *****y degree that no one wants. If you have worked for 3 (or 4, in my case, because I do a 4 year degree) years for an honours degree, then you are obviously going to use the full post-nominals so that it's clear exactly what you have. Saying "John Smith LLB" would just be incorrect if John Smith graduated with honours, he would be "John Smith LLB (Hons)" - they are two very different things.

Reply 6

UWS

It sounds cool having honours.

Reply 7

Twinpeaks

Original post by Klix88

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I think you need to relax. There are worse things to stress about. And it's "affected". "Affectatious" isn't a word.
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Hope it's made you feel better x

Perhaps you should actually look into a word before you tell another that it doesn't exist, slightly arrogant of you to assume you know every word in the dictionary? Try googling cherub.

And why on earth would you think I meant affected anyway? That makes absolutely no sense :rolleyes:

"1.
affectatious ‎(comparative more affectatious, superlative most affectatious)Pretentious, artificial, fake, sham, feigned; doing something just for show".

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 8

Twinpeaks

Original post by john2054

Just one of those things. Get over it. Yes, when you get there, you will say it too. John Robinson BA (hons)

I am there sweetheart. Twinpeaks Bsc (hons)

And I'm not referring to its use in the formal context, on CVs etc, but when people say it in conversation. "I graduated with honours"...

... Well duh.

Reply 9

the bear

i think it is great when someone graduates *** Laude... it sounds rude :teehee:

Reply 10

Puddles the Monkey

I always write BA hons because that's what I got. Never heard anyone brag about the honours in conversation though, that seems odd :beard:

Reply 11

magratgarlick

Because the qualification is a BA (Hons) so that's what you call it.

Reply 12

Clearing and Applications Advisor

I never mention the hons part - even in CVs/job applications - if your degree had a classification then it's an honours degree (ordinary degrees are unclassified pass/fail qualifications). Why add more superfluous information.

As for people writing their degree after their name :indiff:

just DON'T (unless you're in a very specific situation where your degree has a direct relevance to the information you're providing...usually professional qualifications will supercede any undergrad degrees though)

I used to work somewhere where the car parking manager would list MA after their email signature :indiff:

Reply 13

Lord Samosa

I never boast about it, but it's a nice thing to have I guess. I never really thought too much about it tbh.

- Lord Samosa BA (Hons) :wink:

Reply 14

Puddles the Monkey

Original post by PQ

Because what if the person hiring doesn't understand this and then penalises you because you don't have hons after your degree and everyone else does :afraid:

I used to work somewhere where the car parking manager would list MA after their email signature :indiff:

Didn't know you could do an MA in car park management :beard:

Reply 15

Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by Puddles the Monkey

Because what if the person hiring doesn't understand this and then penalises you because you don't have hons after your degree and everyone else does :afraid:

Didn't know you could do an MA in car park management :beard:

If the job requires an honours degree over an ordinary degree then you'd expect the person hiring to understand the difference. It's one of those situations where if it matters they'll check specifically (so no need to list it) - and if it doesn't they wont (so no need to list it). I've had my degree certificates photocopied so often :moon:

(it was an MA in education IIRR.....it didn't make them a better car park manager or gain any respect....just made them a source of ridicule :frown:

)

Reply 16

Hamo2509

I was told that a degree with honours includes a 3rd year dissertation, whereas a degree without doesn't. Understandable why you'd put that on your CV, etc.

Reply 17

999tigger

lol@ it being worthy of a vent.
I dont think many people say it or bother to mention it.
Certain courses, then you do have to do extra work to get honours such as OU. Worth mentioning it then.
More mystufying why someone should moan about it, inless ofc by saying honours you are trying to pretend its superior from other peoples degrees, which are more than likely to include honours anyway.

Reply 18

Fox Corner

Original post by Hamo2509

I was told that a degree with honours includes a 3rd year dissertation, whereas a degree without doesn't. Understandable why you'd put that on your CV, etc.

I thought it was that too but Puddles just told me it was because of the amount of credits you do.

Spoiler

Reply 19

Puddles the Monkey

Original post by Fox Corner

I thought it was that too but Puddles just told me it was because of the amount of credits you do.

Spoiler

Here's the answer from Wikipedia:

"The Bachelor's degree with Honours meets the descriptor for a higher education qualification at level 6 of the Framework for Higher Education Qualifications in full,^[15] and is a first cycle, end-of-cycle award on the Qualifications Framework of the European Higher Education Area established by the Bologna process. "

All words I understand independently, but have no idea what they mean when strung together in that sentence.

Next line is more helpful:

"
Students can be awarded an "Ordinary" degree if they achieve the required learning outcomes over a smaller volume of studies than is required for an honours degree, e.g. only passing 300 credits rather than the 360 usually required for an honours degree.^[16]^[17] In addition to bachelor's degrees, four year integrated master's degrees, which combine study at bachelor's and master's level, are also awarded with honours.^["
. "

(edited 7 years ago)