Honorary titles

The granting of honorary titles is intended to facilitate collaboration with distinguished individuals from other universities or external organisations, and with retiring members of staff. An honorary title carries no privileges other than access to the University's IT services and Library; any local arrangements are the responsibility of the department concerned. With the exception of Emeritus Professors and Emeritus Readers, honorary titles are bestowed for a fixed term only.

Honorary titles policy note

1. Introduction

1.1 This Policy Note provides further information on the granting of Honorary Titles of the University, which are subject to formal approval by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost, following a mechanism of formal review and recommendation as set out in this Policy Note.

1.2 The granting of honorary titles is intended to facilitate collaboration with distinguished and high-reputation individuals from other universities, partner organisations including or external organisations, and with retiring members of staff.

1.3 Honorary titles:

carry no privileges other than access to the University's IT services and Library; any local arrangements are the responsibility of the department concerned is not transferable to, or held jointly or severally by anyone other than the named individual under any circumstances may be suspended or revoked by the University under exceptional circumstances are determined by the University of York department. Titles are bestowed for a fixed term only of up to five years (which may be subject to renewal²), with the exception of Emeritus Professors and Emeritus Readers and honorary titles granted to University of York Europe Campus academic staff.
do not confer University of York employee status on holders.

2. Submitting a recommendation for approval

2.1 Recommendations from a Head of Department for the conferment or renewal of an honorary title should be submitted to the Vice-Chancellor's Office Manager (julie.sugden@york.ac.uk) for consideration by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost, and should comprise:

a) a letter of recommendation (as a PDF), including

details of the department’s intended relationship with the honorary appointee.
the effective date and length of the appointment (up to 5 years). See footnote 1.
the appointee’s postal and preferred email address for subsequent
correspondence.

b) a brief curriculum vitae (two sides - as a PDF).

c) two external references (not required for renewal of an existing appointment or for a retiring member of staff).²

3. Honorary titles awarded by the University of York

Title	Designated to
Emeritus Professor/ Emeritus Reader	Retired Professors and Readers. Nominees should be fully retired; any part-time contract undertaken subsequent to retirement from a full-time position must be completed before an emeritus title becomes effective.
Honorary Professor	Distinguished individuals with an international research or equivalent reputation who have or retain a link with a department: Former Professors of this University, other than those who have retired Former Professors of other institutions. Current or Former Professors of partner institutions/campuses (ie, University of York Europe Campus, Thessaloniki)³. Distinguished individuals of professorial-equivalent status outside Higher Education.
Honorary Senior Lecturer⁴	Academic staff from University of York Europe Campus who have Associate Professor title at the College, and a significant reputation in the field of research/expertise/teaching and are active in disseminating findings through high-quality publications. Such individuals will hold Associate Professor Title at University of York Europe Campus.
Honorary Lecturer	Academic staff from University of York Europe Campus who are developing a strong reputation in research at any beyond postdoctoral level/teaching, scholarship and professional practice/academic citizenship and who are raising their profile through disseminating findings through high-quality publications. Such individuals will be Assistant Professors or Lecturers at University of York Europe Campus.
Honorary Fellow	Retired staff, other than Professors, who continue an association with their department. Individuals outside the University who have an active and continuing association with a department.
Honorary Visiting Professor	Distinguished individuals of professorial or equivalent status who: are visiting the University for a term or more, or collaborate with the University on a regular basis, the title to lapse when the collaboration comes to an end.
Honorary Visiting Fellow	Academic visitors and individuals outside Higher Education, not of professorial status, who: are visiting the University for a term or more, or collaborate with the University on a regular basis, the title to lapse when the collaboration comes to an end.

Recommendations

Recommendations/renewals will need to be received by Julie Sugden, Vice Chancellor's Office (julie.sugden@york.ac.uk) by the following dates if they are to be submitted to the Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost for consideration:

Deadlines:

Friday 17 October 2025
Friday 30 January 2026
Friday 10 April 2026
Friday 24 July 2026

Following approval by the Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost, the Vice-Chancellor's office will:

send written confirmation to the titleholder, with a copy to the Head of Department
add the titleholder to the People Database for network access
update a database of honorary titleholders.

In the case of honorary titles granted in respect of University of York Europe Campus staff, the honorary title remains in force for the period in which the individual holds the relevant academic title and position at University of York Europe Campus. On this basis, the five-year time limit does not apply to Europe Campus designations.
For University of York Europe Campus, 1 external reference and 1 University of York Europe Campus management reference is sufficient, in lieu of two external references.
Such individuals will hold/have held prior to department a Professorial Title at University of York Europe Campus.
Honorary Lecturer and Honorary Senior Lecturer designations are currently only awarded to eligible academic staff University of York Europe Campus and are not for wider application. This may be subject to future review.