Classical Moderations

Honour Moderations (or Mods) are a set of examinations at Oxford University in England at the end of the first part of some degree courses (e.g. Greats or Literae Humaniores).

Honour Moderations candidates have a class awarded (hence the "honours") but this does not count towards the final degree. In other courses, Prelims (preliminary examinations) are the first set of examinations, but have no class awarded for them. These first examinations are termed "First Public Examinations". Having passed the "First Public Examinations", students take a course leading to the "Second Public Examinations", more commonly known as Finals. Finals are held at the end of all first degree courses at Oxford for arts subjects and may be split into examinations after the second, third and, if applicable, fourth year for some science subjects.

Honour Moderations in Classics has been called one of the hardest examinations in the world. In recent years, the subject matter has been changed so that proficiency in both Latin and Greek languages is no longer required; and the number of papers in the exam has been reduced, along with an extension in the time allowed to finish.

The Mods course in Classics (Literae Humaniores) runs for the first five terms of the course. The traditional aim was for students to develop their ability to read fluently in Latin (especially the Aeneid of Virgil) and Greek (concentrating on the Iliad and the Odyssey); this remains the case today, but the course has changed to reflect the continuing decline in the numbers of applicants who have had the opportunity to study Greek and Latin at school.

Since the early 1970s, students can begin learning Greek during the preparation for Mods (an option originally called Mods-B, the brainchild of John G Griffiths of Jesus). More recently, due to the omission of Latin and Greek from the National Curriculum since 1988, options have been added for those without Latin either.

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