BYU Honor Code

Honor Code

All participants are required to adhere to the BYU Honor Code. BYU is sponsored by the Church of Jesus-Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the honor code includes a few specific behavioral standards established by the church. Although certain behavioral standards are required, we emphasize that we welcome people of all faiths as well as those who are nonreligious. There is no requirement to participate in religious activities or to adhere to any particular set of beliefs.

The full honor code for is found here: https://policy.byu.edu/view/church-educational-system-honor-code, but here are some important parts of it.

• Be honest
• Live a chaste and virtuous life, including abstaining from any sexual relations outside a marriage between a man and a woman
• Abstain from alcoholic beverages, tobacco, tea, coffee, vaping, marijuana, and other substance abuse
• Follow other campus policies established by the church educational system (CES) such as the dress and grooming standards and the student housing policy
  • see the Dress and Grooming Principles and Expectations, e.g. no beards allowed for men unless an exemption is granted for religious or medical reasons
  • see the Student Housing Policy, e.g. opposite sex visitors in single student apartments are only permitted in common areas and not in bedrooms
• For members of the Church of Jesus-Christ of Latter-day Saints only: church service attendance is expected

"Ecclesiastical Endorsement"

After being accepted into the program, in order to be accepted as visiting students, REU and FRI participants go through a two-step interview process in which they affirm that they will follow the expectations of the BYU Honor Code. The interview process is called an "ecclesiastical endorsement" at BYU because it involves an ecclesiastical leader, but it does not pertain to matters of faith or opinion, only to matters of behavior, namely the adherence to the honor code (including dress and grooming standards) for the duration of the program. The two-step process is:

• meet with a local ecclesiastical leader of your choice; typically someone like a university chaplain or your own church pastor (if you have one), or if needed, an LDS church leader near your location
• meet with BYU’s non-denominational chaplain, typically via a phone interview