Graduating with Honors
To graduate with university honors for baccalaureate and Juris Doctor degrees you must have earned 56 credits at University of Idaho and a cumulative institutional GPA that meets the criteria below. Juris Doctor GPA is based exclusively on the student's College of Law transcript.
Graduate students are not eligible for honors.
Credits earned through correspondence study, CLEP, experiential learning or technical competence may not be counted among these required credits.
The Office of the Registrar will notify honors-eligible students approximately eight weeks before the end of the term and provide honor cord distribution instructions.
Summa Cum Laude, “With Highest Distinction”, represents students whose GPA places them in the top 3% of graduates from their respective college within the last five years.
Magna Cum Laude, “With Great Distinction”, represents students whose GPA places them in the top 6%, but below the top 3%, of graduates from their respective college within the last five years.
Cum Laude, “With Distinction”, represents students whose GPA places them in the top 10%, but below the top 6%, of graduates from their respective college within the last five years.
| College | Summa Cum Laude Gold Honor Cord |
Magna Cum Laude Silver Honor Cord |
Cum Laude Bronze Honor Cord |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agricultural and Life Sciences | 4.00 | 3.97 | 3.93 |
| Art and Architecture | 3.98 | 3.94 | 3.91 |
| Business and Economics | 4.00 | 3.93 | 3.85 |
| Education, Health and Human Sciences | 4.00 | 4.00 | 3.95 |
| Engineering | 4.00 | 3.96 | 3.92 |
| Law | 3.84 | 3.74 | 3.64 |
| Letters, Arts and Social Sciences | 4.00 | 4.00 | 3.94 |
| Natural Resources | 4.00 | 4.00 | 3.95 |
| Science | 4.00 | 3.97 | 3.95 |
Every summer, each college's 5-year average GPA is recalculated for the three award levels. When the average of the top 6% of graduates is 4.00, no silver honor cords are awarded.