Honours College and Classes
Information for employers
Are you an employer and do you want to know more about the Honours College? On this page you will find information on the educational principles, the number of participants and the certificate.
What is the Honours College?
The Honours College (HC) is an extra programme for talented and motivated bachelor's students. The programme comprises 30 EC over the course of two or two and a half years, depending on the time of entry. Admission is arranged through a selection procedure of our faculties.
Certificate
Honours courses are credited on the diploma supplement of the regular bachelor's degree. Moreover, when a student successfully completes the full 30 EC, they receive a special Honours College certificate. This is physical proof that the student has completed 30 EC of additional honours courses.
Numbers
The proportion of Honours College participants compared to the total number of bachelor's students fluctuates around 10%. Every year, about 325 students at Leiden University obtain a certificate for successfully completing their Honours College programme.
Read more about our graduation numbers in annual report of the Honours Academy (in Dutch)
Educational principles
Students in honours education are given the opportunity to go off the beaten track of their own studies. The Honours College enables students to further develop their innovative capacity by focusing on developing the following aspects:
- Through honours education, students are given the opportunity to go the extra mile. Students can deepen their knowledge in their current field of study or broaden their knowledge through contact with other disciplines.
- All Honours College students must take at least one interdisciplinary Bachelor Honours Class (5 EC) to broaden their horizons.
- The Honours College is designed to challenge students and make them look beyond the boundaries of their studies. Through contact with students from different faculties, participants gain valuable insights and learn to work together interdisciplinarily.
- Because of the testing ground function of the Honours Academy, there is room in the Honours College for developing skills that are less addressed in regular education.
- Honours students complete their studies with a broad perspective on scientific and social issues and with skills that contribute to solving them.
- Honours students are responsible for their own personal development and learning process, and they are open to interdisciplinary cooperation with students from other faculties.
- With an open attitude, participants can identify different perspectives, critically evaluate and seek the connection between science and society.
Contact
Would you like to know more about the Honours College? If the information on this website is not sufficient, please contact honourscollege@ha.leidenuniv.nl.