In order to celebrate its most distinguished and widely-recognized alumni, the SUNY collegiate system annually chooses up to five of its former students to be the recipients of an honorary doctorate degree, labeled by SUNY Oswego as “the highest form of recognition offered by the State University to persons of exceptional distinction.” Those selected to receive this title will be given their degrees at a commencement ceremony hosted by the bestowing institution and will be asked to be the ceremony’s commencement speaker as well. 

SUNY Oswego’s nomination deadline falls on Sept. 29 and the criteria are rigid. While holding significantly less academic weight than a traditional doctoral degree, schools such as SUNY Oswego gift these honorary titles “to recognize excellence in the fields of public affairs, the sciences, humanities and the arts, scholarship and education, business and philanthropy, and social services which exemplify the mission and purposes of the State University of New York.”

Past Oswego recipients of the honorary doctorate according to SUNY Oswego include “global editor-in-chief and a cofounder of award-winning lifestlye media company Refinery 29” Christine Berberich,  “global chairman of PwC” (formerly known as PricewaterhouseCoopers International Limited) Robert E. Moritz and “first mayor of Framingham, Massachusetts” Yvonne Spicer. All excelling in their respective fields, these SUNY Oswego alumni earned their honorary degrees from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, School of Business and a combination of the School of Communication, Media, and the Arts and School of Education, respectively.

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