Honors & Awards
Deans' Honors Lists
According to Davis Division Regulation 551¹, the quarterly Dean's Honors List includes names of students who have completed, for a letter grade, a minimum of 12 units in a specific quarter with a grade point average equal to or higher than the minimum grade point average attained by the upper 16 percent of those registered in the same class level and college during that quarter. Honors lists will be posted quarterly on deans' office websites or made available by other means and a notation of these honors will be placed on each student's permanent record by the Office of the University Registrar.
Graduation Honors
Honors at graduation are awarded to students who have a grade point average in the top percent of their college as shown in the table below. The College of Letters & Science requires that additional criteria be met for high and highest honors.
| Total Quarter Units at UC | Highest Honors | High Honors | Honors | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45-89 | 2% | next 2% | next 4% | 8% |
| 90-134 | 3% | next 3% | next 6% | 12% |
| 135+ | 4% | next 4% | next 8% | 16% |
College Honors & Awards Information
Grade Point Average by College
Grade point averages from the winter quarter prior to graduation are used to determine the averages that will earn an honors designation. Following are the averages for winter quarter 2024 (202401). These averages will be used through winter quarter 2025 (202501).
| Percent Determining Cut-Off Point | Agricultural & Environmental Sciences | Biological Sciences | Engineering | Letters & Science |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2% | 3.981 | 3.992 | 3.989 | 3.993 |
| 3% | 3.965 | 3.981 | 3.977 | 3.983 |
| 4% | 3.947 | 3.969 | 3.961 | 3.976 |
| 6% | 3.917 | 3.943 | 3.923 | 3.953 |
| 8% | 3.889 | 3.912 | 3.895 | 3.933 |
| 12% | 3.821 | 3.851 | 3.833 | 3.891 |
| 16% | 3.754 | 3.790 | 3.775 | 3.849 |
An honors notation is made on a student's diplomas and on their permanent records in the Office of the University Registrar.
Awards
The University Medal is the highest campus honor awarded to a graduating senior in recognition of superior scholarship and achievement. A College or School Medal is also given to the outstanding graduating student in each of the colleges and professional schools. Departmental citations and special awards are also granted to students for superior achievement and scholarship.
Awards for College of:
Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research & Mentoring Undergraduate Research
These prestigious awards recognize up to two graduating seniors who have distinguished themselves through their excellence in undergraduate research; and faculty, postdocs, or graduate students who have excelled in mentoring undergraduate researchers. For complete information, see Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research.
¹ Davis Division Regulation 551; Honors
Davis Division minimum standards for Undergraduate Honors and Honors at Graduation are as follows:
(A) Undergraduate Honors. Students named on the quarterly honors list by each college shall be those who have completed, for a letter grade, a minimum of 12 units in that quarter with a grade-point average equal to or higher than the minimum grade-point average attained by the upper 16 percent of students registered in the same class and college during that quarter. (Effective 6/6/79)
(B) Honors at Graduation. Honors at Graduation shall be awarded to students who have completed at least 45 units of work in the University with a grade-point average that places them in the appropriate top percentage of the graduating class in their college or school, as indicated in the following table. For the June graduating class, the percentages in the table shall be applied to the most recent grade report available (normally the winter quarter) to determine the cut-off grade-point averages for the different honors categories. Each of the three units-completed groups in the table is considered separately. All students who tie for last position in an honors category shall be awarded honors in that category.
| Total Quarter Units at UC | Highest Honors | High Honors | Honors | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45-89 | 2% | next 2% | next 4% | 8% |
| 90-134 | 3% | next 3% | next 6% | 12% |
| 135+ | 4% | next 4% | next 8% | 16% |
The grade-point averages representing the cut-off points for the honors categories for the June graduating class shall be used as minimum criteria for awarding honors to students who graduate in a summer session or the fall or winter quarter, immediately following. (En. May, 1978; Effective Dec., 1982. A variance for the College of Letters and Science approved 10/31/88. See L&S Bylaw 89(A))
(C) Honors Challenge. The Davis Honors Challenge (DHC) shall be a four-year program that includes Honors seminars and culminates in an honors thesis. The DHC program shall be managed by a Director and an Honors Council, all of whom are appointed by the Vice Provost of Undergraduate Studies. Admission to the program is based on an essay and letters of recommendation that are evaluated by the Honors Council. The Undergraduate Council shall review the program at intervals no longer than five years.
(D) Honors credit may be earned by satisfactorily completing either: 1) specifically designated Honors courses; or 2) ordinary courses augmented by either an Honors section or an Honors Contract. Honors courses, Honors course sections, and Honors contracts must be approved by the Honors Council, and by the normal college or school as well as Divisional reviewing agencies. Honors courses, sections and contracts shall be distinguished by the level of intellectual challenge involved, the exploration of connections, and the requirement to express verbally and in writing the critical thought that is the essence of intellectual and scholarly enterprise. Students enrolled in the Honors Challenge Program shall have the direction of a faculty mentor. (Renum. from Guideline 1, 11/19/84)