A judge, a Nobel Prize-winning scientist and an award-winning author are to receive honorary degrees from Oxford University next week.

Seven men and women, who have made contributions to the worlds of academia, art, human rights, literature and science, will receive awards at the annual Encaenia ceremony on Wednesday.

The award of Doctor of Civil Law will be presented to Dame Rosalyn Higgins, who was the first woman judge at the International Court of Justice.

Lord Rothschild, former chairman of the National Heritage Memorial Fund and former chairman of the Board of the Trustees of the National Gallery, also receives a doctorate of Civil Law for his role in supporting the arts. The award of Doctor of Letters will be presented to South African Prof John Coetzee, the Booker Prize-winning author and academic. Oscar-winning actor Paul Scofield will also receive a doctorate of Letters, along with Prof Romila Thapar, Emeritus Professor of History at Jawaharlal Nehru University, in India, and an Honorary Fellow of Lady Margaret Hall.

The award of Doctor of Science will go to Dr Arno Penzias, who won a Nobel Prize for his part in the discovery of cosmic microwave background radiation, and biologist Prof Shirley Tilghman, the first woman president of Princeton University.