Bachelor of Philosophy Degree
The culmination of an honors education is the opportunity to earn a distinctive undergraduate degree. The availability of a special degree is what separates a true “honors college” from an “honors program.”
What is the BPhil?
Since its inception in 1987, the University Honors College (UHC) has been granted the authority to award the Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil) degree. The BPhil is a unique undergraduate degree jointly awarded by UHC and any undergraduate school/college at Pitt, which is the “home school” of the recipient. The BPhil is the degree title and not related to the academic discipline of philosophy.
Requirements
In order to receive the BPhil, you must fulfill the degree requirements (major, general education, and/or other curricular requirements) of your “home school” (School of Arts and Sciences, School of Engineering, College of Business Administration, etc.). The honors college, then, adds two additional requirements: a demanding program of study proposed by you but approved by UHC, and independent research culminating in the production of an original undergraduate thesis.
Your program of study should have breadth, depth, and focus. Often, this is achieved through a dual degree between schools or through double or triple majors in a single school.
But even if you have only one major, you can meet the spirit of this requirement if your course work and related academic accomplishments are particularly noteworthy through their rigor. In sum, the program of study component proves that you are willing to work harder than you have to academically. To complete the thesis component, you identify and work closely with a faculty member to design and implement a research project and a written thesis.
You then defend your thesis before a faculty examination committee that includes a visiting external examiner from another college or university. Many times, the thesis rises to the caliber of that produced by a graduate student.
