Honorary fellowships of Royal Holloway, University of London

Honorary Fellowships of Royal Holloway, University of London are awarded to people who have shown loyalty and commitment to the University.

Honorary Fellows

Honorary Fellows are not staff or students of the University, but are an active part of our community. They are people who have given considerable service to Royal Holloway, our local community, or to education more broadly and all of them have achieved in their careers, at the University, locally, nationally or on the world stage. We value our Honorary Fellows' specialist knowledge or expertise, their willingness to share this with the University community in some way in order to contribute to our future success, or the support they have already given and the part they have played in making us the successful and vibrant university we are today.

Honorary Fellowships are awarded to people who have an existing connection to Royal Holloway, University of London – this may be as alumni of the University, or the colleges from which we trace our history, Bedford College and Royal Holloway College. Honorary Fellows may also be individuals with a strong local connection, or supporters and enablers of the University’s strategic priorities.

The Honorary Fellows Ceremony

Unlike Honorary Degrees, which are awarded at graduation ceremonies, Honorary Fellowships are awarded at a special ceremony in the summer term. Every year we invite all of our Honorary Fellows, honorary graduates and members of the university community to join us to welcome new Honorary Fellows. A citation for each of the new Honorary Fellows, outlining their special contribution to Royal Holloway, is read by an academic member of staff and one of the Honorary Fellows is invited to speak on behalf of the new Honorary Fellows. Following the ceremony, Honorary Fellows are joined by other guests and staff for a celebration.

Many of our Honorary Fellows return each year, processing into the ceremony in their striking purple and green Honorary Fellows gowns. Taken from the colours of Bedford College, the purple and green are a reminder to everyone present of the pioneering history of both Bedford and Royal Holloway Colleges, two of the first colleges in the world providing higher education to women.