What is it?

The purpose of an Honours degree is to enable students of high calibre to deepen their involvement in a chosen field of study for an additional year of full-time study or part-time equivalent.

The degree with Honours declares its specialisation and provides an extra year (the Honours year) of more advanced work researching and writing history.

What does it involve?

Students are expected to complete, over an academic year, a thesis (about 16,000 words) and two special subjects (or seminars dedicated to particular topics and requiring a similar total amount of assessed work).

What will I gain?

The Honours degree provides students with the opportunity to hone their analytical and research skills while significantly expanding their employment and study options. A Bachelor Degree with Honours is both a prestigious qualification in its own right and also the most effective means of qualifying for higher degree work at Master and PhD levels.

What will be available to me?

Honours year students can take full advantage of several collections in Canberra which are of national significance (including the National Archives, Australian War Memorial, the National Museum of Australia, the Film and Sound Archive), as well as two repositories which provide ever broader access to historical materials (the libraries and archives at ANU and the National Library of Australia).

These unique resources enhance our capacity to offer intensive research training as well as the opportunity to explore applied history, that is, ways of practising history in a variety of contexts including the local community, museums, and the public sector.

Who can apply?

We welcome Honours applicants from ANU as well as students from other universities in Australia or overseas. 

More information

For details on how to apply see College of Arts and Social Science Honours

For information on scholarship opportunities see Honours Scholarship information