What is the honours degree system?

What is an honours degree?

When searching undergraduate courses, you may see an abbreviation of (Hons) next to the name and qualification type. This shows it's a degree with honours. For example, a BSc (Hons) is a Bachelor of Science with Honours. Simple right?!

Seeing your course as an honours degree also indicates how the grading at university works, with the honours degree system used to mark your coursework. You'll also receive your final grade and qualification at graduation in this format.

An honours degree is usually awarded once you've completed your undergraduate of at least three years of study and will be given to you with a ‘class' of degree.

What is the honours degree system?

The honours degree system works a bit differently from what you'll be used to at A-Levels and a GCSEs. There are 5-degree classes that you can be awarded, depending on the assessment percentage you receive.

Class	% achieved
First-Class Honours (1st)	70% and above
Upper Second-Class Honours (2:1)	60-70%
Lower Second-Class Honours (2:2)	50-60%
Third-Class Honours (3rd)	40-50%
Ordinary degree	40% or less

If a student just misses out on a Third Class, the university may award the degree but without the honours.

You may also look at this and think "70?! That's pretty low, I'm used to getting 90-100% on my exams and coursework!" At university, it's a lot more challenging to achieve these higher marks and 50% is considered a strong score. It also isn't necessarily a case of achieving 50/100 and you'll receive a 2:2 - the boundaries will be weighted depending on how the class performs and the assessment type. This isn't likely something you'll be aware of until you receive your marks and the lecturer may choose to share with you how your performance compared to the rest of the class.

Are honours degrees the same worldwide?

As with most education levels, honours degrees can mean slightly different things depending on where you study and may be awarded at different levels.

Scotland: Honours degrees are only awarded after four years of study rather than 3 in England.

Ireland: Honours degrees here are awarded after 3+ years of study and students must earn more than 240 ECTS credits.

US: They require students to complete a thesis (dissertation) or project that is beyond the usual required level for a Bachelor's degree. You'll also have a minimum GPA level required for this which can vary depending on the university.

Canada: There are two types of Honours degrees in Canada. One can be awarded four years after undergraduate study and another requires you to undertake an undergraduate Honours project. Most postgraduate courses in Canada require you to have completed a four-year undergraduate degree.

What is a joint honours degree?

A joint honours degree is a degree that covers more than one subject under a single qualification. However, to confuse things, it isn't necessarily a degree with honours. Here, it's more to show you that it is a joint degree. The ‘honours' will only be given if the degree is an honours degree and isn't guaranteed.