Honours

Honours title

A Bachelor degree with Honours is the most effective means of qualifying for higher degrees (PhD or MPhil) in the future. Working closely with your supervisor, you will complete an additional year of your degree, focusing on one of your majors. You will study further advanced coursework and write a thesis on a research topic of your choice.

Honours programs are comprised of 48 units and are normally taken over two semesters. With approval, you can take Honours part time over four semesters.

 

Current Honours students

 

Useful information about Honours is available in the 2025 Honours and Masters guide.

2025 CASS Honours Thesis Due Dates

Semester 1, 2025 thesis is due 5:00PM, Monday 19 May 2025
Semester 2, 2025 thesis is due 5:00PM, Monday 20 October 2025

 

How to apply for Honours

Step 1: Check the dates and requirements

Standard application dates: 

  • 31st October for first semester entry (of the next year) 
  • 31st May for second semester entry (Psychology specialisation only = 30 April)

Which Honours program you apply for will depend on the Undergraduate degree you are currently enrolled in or have completed. For example: If you want to do Political Science and International Relations Honours, and you have, or are about to complete, a Bachelor of Arts, you would refer to the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) page – Political Science and international Relations Honours Specialisation. However, if you have a Bachelor of International Relations, then you would refer to the Bachelor of International Relations (Honours) page. This applies for both students who have an ANU degree, and those from external institutions.

If you are from outside of the Australian National University, and your degree, or equivalent, is not listed below, then please contact the College of Arts and Social Sciences student office.

Please note that according to the Coursework Awards Rule 2024 of the ANU, Section 17 point (3) says:

"If a person is admitted to a 1-year honours program for a degree of Bachelor Honours, the person must enrol in the program within 2 years after the day the person completes the requirements for the award of the pass degree relevant to the program or, if the Delegated Authority, in writing, determines a longer period, that longer period." 

That is, students must apply within 2 years of completing their Undergraduate degree. If you completed your Undergraduate program more than 2 years ago, you may like to consider a Master degree. 

Honours is combined with the Undergraduate CASS degree (or equivalent) that you graduated with. Information regarding the different Honours programs, including entry requirements, can be found at the links below.

Honours programs

 

 

Step 2: Find a supervisor

One of the admission requirements for Honours is that you have an approved supervisor for your project. Please note that you can still follow Step 3 and apply via Study link even if you are still waiting for the approval of supervision. After we receive your application, our team will follow up on any remaining supervision approvals. 

There are two ways to seek supervision approval, depending on which Honours program you are interested in. 

Thesis Supervisor and Expression of Interest Form

For most CASS Honours programs, you can use the Thesis Supervisor and Expression of Interest Form to apply for supervision in your relevant area. This is an online form which will be automatically sent to the area of your intended study for consideration. After your form has been considered, you will receive an outcome via email. 

If you are applying for Honours in Anthropology, Visual Arts, Design, Mathematics, Economic Studies, or Asia Pacific Studies, please do not use the form above. Instead, please use the PDF form: Thesis Supervisor Confirmation Form. Information on how to complete the form is below. 

If you are applying for Honours in Psychology, please view the information for Psychology below.  And if you are interested in applying for Anthropology, please use the Anthropology form. 

Thesis Supervisor Confirmation Form

If you are applying for Honours in Visual Arts, Mathematics, Economic Studies, or Asia Pacific Studies in Linguistics, please do not use the form above. Instead, please use the PDF form: Thesis Supervisor Confirmation Form. Before completing the form you will need to have:

  1. met the requirements for entry into the program
  2. found a supervisor who is willing and able to supervise you for the entire period of your Honours program

If you do not have a supervisor, it would be best for you to contact the Honours Convener of your discipline. They may direct you to a suitable academic who has similar research interests as you. A list of conveners can be found here. You should discuss your thesis with your supervisor; it is a good idea to have a research proposal for them in advance.

Once you have done these things, you should download the Thesis Supervisor Confirmation Form. Fill out as much of this form as you can and save it as a soft copy. Then send it to your potential supervisor. Once your supervisor has signed the form, please email the signed Thesis Supervisor Confirmation Form to research.students.cass@anu.edu.au. We will organise the remaining signatures on the form. 

Tips on how to fill out the Thesis Supervisor Confirmation Form.

Your student ID is your current ID. If you are from an institution outside of the ANU, fill in your current one from your current institution. If you choose part time, then you will need to attach a plan that details your enrolment pattern for you tenure at the ANU. Your proposed thesis topic is maximum of 50 words that give an outline of the topics. The thesis proposal is negotiated between you and your supervisor.

If you are in your third year of your PhB, you only need to fill out the Thesis Supervisor Confirmation Form and return it to the CASS student and Education Office via email -  do not apply through the Apply Now button in programs and courses as described in point 3.

If you want to apply for Bachelor of Visual Arts (Honours), or Bachelor of Design (Honours) and have not studied at the ANU before, you will need to contact the Visual Arts/Design convener to arrange for any portfolio requirements. Contact details can be found here. You will still need to complete and upload the Thesis Supervisor Confirmation Form once you have contacted the convener.

Psychology Honours

If you have completed a Bachelor of Arts and want to apply for Psychology Honours, you do NOT need to fill out the Thesis Supervisor Confirmation Form. Information about what to include in your application through programs and courses can be found here. You would apply for Bachelor of Arts (Honours) (as per below), uploading any documents stipulated by the Psychology Department at that site.

Please note that the strict deadline for Psychology Honours is the 30th April for second semester entry and 31st October of the previous year for first semester. 

Step 3: Apply through the Study link process  

On each of the program pages on Programs and Courses, there is an “Apply Now’ black button in the top right hand corner. Click on this and start your application. If you are an external student, you will need to upload an official transcript from the institution where you completed your Bachelor degree, showing you have completed your program. If this is not available, then you can upload a statement of results. However, you will need to provide this official transcript of your completed program for entry.If you are a current ANU student, you do not need to upload this transcript.

Please note that you should apply for ONE Honours program only, based on what your current or just completed degree.

Also, please note that if you are a current ANU student, you do not need to attach a copy of your ANU transcript. Leave that section blank, and progress through your application.

Contacts

Contact your honours convener or the CASS Student Office for guidance on Honours.
E research.students.cass@anu.edu.au
T 6125 2898