Honorary degree holders can’t use ‘Dr’, FG declares
The federal government has barred recipients of honorary degrees from using the “Dr” title in any official, academic, or professional setting, warning that violations will be treated as academic fraud with possible legal and reputational consequences.
Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, announced the directive on Wednesday at the Presidential Villa in Abuja while briefing State House correspondents on approvals by the Federal Executive Council.
He said, “Recipients shall not prefix doctor to their names in official, academic or professional usage. Misrepresentation of honorary degrees as earned academic credentials shall be considered academic fraud and subject to legal and reputational consequences.”
According to the minister, the council approved a uniform national policy to regulate the award and usage of honorary degrees, aimed at curbing abuse and restoring confidence in academic titles.
Alausa, who spoke alongside Minister of State for Education, Suwaiba Ahmad, said honorary degree holders must instead use the full designation after their names to clearly indicate the honorary nature of the award.
He added, “For instance, you can use Chief Louis Clark, D.Lit. (Doctor of Literature, Honoris Causa) or Mrs Miriam Adamu, LL.D. Hons.”
The government also restricted universities to awarding only four categories of honorary degrees—Doctor of Laws (LL.D), Doctor of Letters (D.Lit), Doctor of Science (D.Sc), and Doctor of Humanities (D.Arts)—and barred institutions without active PhD programmes from conferring such honours.
Alausa criticised what he described as the growing misuse of honorary degrees, stating, “The recent trend we’ve seen with the award of honorary degrees has revealed a growing abuse and politicisation of this academic privilege.”
