The open nomination period for honorary degrees occurs each fall, when the Office of the President invites members of the Dartmouth community to nominate individuals they believe merit the College’s highest distinction. Announced via email and shared broadly with students, faculty, staff, and alumni, this call for nominations reflects Dartmouth’s commitment to engaging the full community in recognizing exceptional achievement. The President also meets with members of the graduating class—at an event sponsored by the Senior Class Council—to hear directly from seniors about the defining qualities of their class and who, in their view, best represents those values as a recipient of this honor.

All nominations are recorded in a database maintained by the Office of the President and, at the close of the nomination period, are reviewed by the Council on Honorary Degrees. Entrusted with the careful evaluation of each submission, the Council adopts a holistic approach, striving to identify individuals who exemplify excellence across a broad spectrum of disciplines and endeavors, while ensuring meaningful representation of historically underrepresented and marginalized groups, including women, people of color, individuals with non-cisgender identities, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community. After thoughtful deliberation, the Council advances a slate of candidates for review and approval by the Board of Trustees. The entire nomination process is conducted in strict confidence.

All nominations must be submitted through the Honorary Degree Nomination Form. Members of the Dartmouth community are encouraged to submit as many individuals as they believe to be outstanding candidates for inclusion in this year’s class of honorary degree recipients. Please review the following guidelines when preparing your nominations:

• Nominees must serve as role models for the graduating class and the greater Dartmouth community
• Nominees must have made and/or be expected to make significant contributions to their field and/or society writ large
• Active political candidates (i.e., running for office or currently in office) are not eligible for an honorary degree
• Employees of the College are not eligible to receive an honorary degree until three years after their retirement
• Current students at the College are not eligible to receive an honorary degree
• Nominees must be celebrated leaders or unheralded champions whose work has profoundly strengthened their communities.