<p>Actually many US colleges do award degrees with honors. As already mentioned, some are awarded based on GPA, but some are also awarded based on an “honors program.” Some departments at the college my D will be attending offer a degree “with distinction” for those who complete a Senior Thesis, presents it orally, and maintains a given high GPA. As noted above, they also offer general honors:</p>
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<p>In the case of MIT, perhaps because it is such a rigorous program, one could consider all of their degrees to be honors degrees. As with Oxbridge, any degree from MIT is also highly recognized.</p>