By bestowing honorary doctorates, universities seek to link themselves with outstanding people, yet this practice frequently sparks controversy and causes problems for university officials.
Honorary doctorates bring to light difficult but crucial issues regarding the mission of higher education and its contribution to sustaining socioeconomic inequity.
The history of honorary doctorates and their function
Universities bestow honorary degrees (often, but not necessarily, doctorates) in recognition of exceptional work in a particular subject or community service.
The majority of Australian institutions have maintained the old system in which a variety of degrees may be conferred honoris causa, despite the fact that certain universities have created specific honorary degrees, such as the “Doctor of the University” at Griffith University.
This indicates that while no degree is actually pursued, the nominee nevertheless obtains the honor in name.
Nominations are received, and those that will be approved are decided by a committee that typically consists of members of the institution’s senior administration, representatives of the university council, and professors.
A lot of advantages come to universities when honorary doctorates are awarded.
According to one past Vice-Chancellor quoted in the Monash University archives, receiving an honorary degree from a particularly illustrious individual frequently sparks media attention and gives “reflected glory” to the university.
Honorary doctorates have long been utilized to develop beneficial relationships with people, nations, or organizations.
In an obvious attempt to “gain the favor of a man with enormous influence,” the University of Oxford conferred the first honorary degree on a brother-in-law of Edward IV sometime around 1478.
Unsurprisingly, famous people have typically been given honorary degrees.
It has been significantly less common to honor lesser-known people and members of disadvantaged social groupings.
Protests and controversy
Honorary doctorates have sparked discussion in Australia, particularly since the advent of federal support for institutions during World War II.
King Bhumibol of Thailand was not given an honorary degree by the Australian National University in August 1962, apparently due to his lack of academic credentials.
In light of an upcoming royal visit, this caused the Australian government diplomatic humiliation.
In September 1962, the University of Melbourne stepped in to confer an Honorary Doctor of Laws on Bhumibol, which was seen negatively in academic circles.
There is no subject to which a university should bring greater delicacy and sureness of touch than the selection of its honorary graduates, remarked Monash University Vice-Chancellor Louis Matheson in an internal memo with a hint of smugness.
When a controversy emerged in 1967 over Matheson’s university’s honoring of Victorian Premier Henry Bolte, soon after Bolte had approved the contentious execution of Ronald Ryan, Matheson was compelled to swallow his pride.
Both the staff and student organisations at Monash opposed the change, therefore the event was held off-campus to reduce the possibility of student protest.
A piglet received a degree at an on-campus mock awards ceremony that was conducted by students. On the college grass was written, “No pedigree for pigs.”
Students awarded a pig an honorary doctorate in protest at the state leader who had approved the death penalty receiving one.
Screenshot of a scene from the 1972 film “Yesterday I said Tomorrow,” supplied by the author
After the Bolte controversy, Monash made the decision never to honor an elected official again.
Since then, other universities have learned that doing so isn’t always successful.
In 2017, student demonstrations against proposed tuition increases and funding cuts for universities overshadowed the University of Adelaide’s conferring of an honorary degree on Foreign Minister Julie Bishop.
Standards being undermined?
It is frequently claimed that awarding “unearned” doctorates lowers the prestige of the university’s top academic honor.
Academics often raise an eyebrow when honorary doctorates are given to famous people, especially athletes, and make sour jokes about when they may anticipate their honorary Olympic medal.
The late Shane Warne received an honorary PhD, and batsman Sir Don Bradman is renowned for having declined multiple honorary doctorates.
In 2014, Macquarie University recognized swimmer Ian Thorpe for his contributions to sport and philanthropy.
Privileged locations
The variety of beneficiaries has been a recent topic of controversy in the public about honorary degrees.
After conferring honorary doctorates on six white men, the University of Melbourne was expelled from a lucrative research funding program earlier this year.
Equal opportunity policies in the late 1980s and early 1990s brought attention to the underrepresentation of women among holders of honorary degrees.
Since 1964, Monash had conferred honorary doctorates on 122 men and 13 women, the university acknowledged in 1995.
It attempted to address this issue, working with other colleges to achieve equal gender representation among grantees, a goal that has yet to be fully attained.
Many people believed that despite their mastery of public relations, modern colleges still had echoes of the tone-deaf ivory tower after the recent University of Melbourne controversy.
Melbourne undoubtedly made itself the target of criticism due to its bad handling and awful optics (the university claimed a larger group of intended recipients, including three women and an Indigenous man, were unable to attend the ceremony).
However, a concern that affects the entire sector is how little such honors reflect the variety of the population.
Honorary doctorates have not been able to shed their status as a form of academic peerage or function.
They serve as unsettling reminders that the socially favored few continue to dominate and lead our campuses.
Kate Murphy, a senior lecturer at Monash University who specializes in modern history.