Academic degree

A degree is any of a wide range of status levels conferred by institutions of higher education, such as universities, normally as the result of successfully completing a program of study.

History

The first universities were founded in ancient India in Taxila (Takshashila University) and Nalanda (Nalanda University) in the 7th century BC and 5th century BC respectively, followed by Byzantium in the 5th century (in Constantinopolis and Athens). The first university in the Islamic world was founded in Cairo (Al-Azhar University) in the 10th century, while in western Europe, universities were founded in the 12th and 13th centuries. As with other professions, teaching in universities was only carried out by people who were properly qualified. In the same way that a carpenter would attain the status of master carpenter when fully qualified by his guild, a teacher would become a master when he had been licensed by his profession, the teaching guild.

Candidates who had completed three or four years of study in the prescribed texts of the trivium (grammar, rhetoric, and logic), and who had successfully passed examinations held by their masters, would be admitted to a bachelor's degree. Thus a degree was only a step on the way to becoming a fully-qualified master – hence the English word "graduate", which is based on the Latin gradus ("step").

Today the terms "master", "doctor", and "professor" signify different levels of academic achievement, but initially they were equivalent terms. The University of Bologna in Italy, regarded as the oldest university in Europe, was the first institution to confer the degree of Doctor in Civil Law in the late 12th century; it also conferred similar degrees in other subjects including medicine. Note that medicine is now the only field in which the term "doctor" is applied, albeit informally, to students who have only obtained their first academic qualification.

The University of Paris used the term master for its graduates, a practice adopted by the English universities of Oxford and Cambridge, as well as the ancient Scottish universities of St Andrew's, Glasgow, Aberdeen, and Edinburgh.

The naming of degrees eventually became linked with the subjects studied. Scholars in the faculties of arts or grammar became known as "masters", but those in philosophy, medicine, and law were known as "doctor". As study in the arts or in grammar was a necessary prerequisite to study in subjects such as philosophy, medicine and law, the degree of doctor assumed a higher status than the master's degree. This led to the modern hierarchy in which the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) is a more advanced degree than the Master of Arts (M.A.). The practice of using the term doctor for all advanced degrees developed within German universities and spread across the academic world.

The French terminology is tied closely to the original meanings of the terms. The baccalauréat (cf. "bachelor") is conferred upon French students who have successfully completed their secondary education and admits the student to university. When students graduate from university, they are awarded licence, much as the medieval teaching guilds would have done, and they are qualified to teach in secondary schools or proceed to higher-level studies.

In Europe, degrees are being harmonised through the Bologna process, which is based on the three-level hierarchy of degrees (Bachelor (Licence in France), Master, Doctor). This system is currently in use in the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. This system is gradually replacing the two-stage system now in use in some countries.

Some degrees are awarded jure dignitatis. That is, a person who has demonstrated the appropriate qualities to be given a particular office may be awarded the degree by virtue of the office held. It is another kind of earned degree.

In the past, degrees have also been directly issued by authority of the monarch or by a bishop, rather than any educational institution. This practice has mostly died out.

Types of academic degree

Some examples of specific degrees follow each general term. For more information, see the article about the general term.

• Associate's degrees (U.S.): AA, ABS, AS, AAS

• Foundation degrees (U.K.): FdA, FdEd, FdEng, FdMus, FdSc, FdTech

• Bachelor's degrees: BA or AB , BBus, BCom or BComm, BE or BEng, BS or BSc or SB, BFA, BCL, LLB, BM or MB, BBA, MB BChir or MB ChB or MBBS, BSSc

• Master's degrees: MA, MS or MSc, MSt, J.D., MALD, MApol, MPhil, MRes, MFA, MTh, MTS, M.Div., MIA, MBA, MPA, MSW, MPAff, MLIS, MLitt, MPH, MPM, MPP, MPT, MRE, LLM, MEng, MSci, MBiochem, MChem, MPhys, MMath, MMus, MESci, MGeol, MTCM, MSSc, BCL (Oxon), BPhil (Oxon).

• Specialist degrees: EdS, B.Acc., C.A.S.,

• Doctorate degrees: Ph.D., EdD, DProf, EngD, DNursSci, DBA, DD, DSc, DLitt, DA, DMA, DPS, DMus, DCL, ThD, PharmD, DrPH, DPT, DPhil, DOM, OMD, PsyD, DSW, LL.D, J.S.D. and S.J.D.

Abbreviations for degrees can place the level either before or after the faculty or discipline, depending on the institution. For example, DSc and ScD both stand for the (higher) doctorate in science. Various other abbreviations also vary between institutions, for instance BS and BSc both stand for 'Bachelor of Science'.

There are various conventions for indicating degrees and diplomas after one's name. In some cultures it is usual to give only the highest degree. In others, it is usual to give the full sequence, in some cases giving abbreviations also for the discipline, the institution, and (where it applies) the level of honours. In another variation, a 'rule of subsumption' often shortens the list and may obscure the chronology evident from a full listing. Thus 'MSc BA' means that the degrees conferred were - in chronological order - BSc, BA, MSc. The subsumption rule reflects the principle that a person of a given high status does not separately belong to the lower status. For member institutions of the Association of Commonwealth Universities, there is a standard list of abbreviations, but in practise many variations are used. Most notable is the use of the Latin abbreviations 'Oxon.' and 'Cantab.' for the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, in spite of these having been superseded by English 'Oxf.' and 'Camb.' (Other Latin abbreviations include Cantuar. for the University of Kent at Canterbury, and Ebor. for the University of York.) Confusion results from the widespread use of 'SA' for the University of South Australia (instead of S.Aust.) because 'SA' was officially assigned to the University of South Africa; and the use of 'York' instead of 'YorkU' by graduates of York University in Canada.

The doubling of letters in LL.B., LL.M., LL.D. is because these degrees are in laws, not law. The doubled letter indicates the Latin plural legum as opposed to the singular legis. Abbreviations for the degrees in surgery Ch.B. and Ch.M. are from Latin chiruguriae and often indicate a university system patterned after Scottish models. The combination of M.B. with Ch.B. arose from a need to graduate the students at the time of year allocated to graduation rituals, but the legal inability to confer the M.B. before they had been properly approved by professional regulatory bodies. Thus the Ch.B. was conferred first, and the M.B. was conferred later, after registration, and without ceremony. In recent times the two have come to be conferred together and are widely (mis)understood to constitute a single degree.

Australia

In some countries, such as Australia, a diploma is a specific academic award that is sometimes not considered to be an academic degree. It is usually signified by a sash rather than an academic hood, the latter being used only for those of graduate status.

Australia has several different kinds of diplomas: Diplomas, Advanced Diplomas, Graduate Diplomas and Postgraduate Diplomas. The system is not without anomalies, due largely to the different traditions of individual insitutions and partly to anomalies in the Australian Qualfications Framework. A Diploma is usually equivalent to the first year of a Bachelor's degree, although a few have been similar to Bachelor of Arts degrees and permit direct admission to graduate programs.

An Australian Advanced Diploma is usually considered lower than a Bachelor degree, but may qualify its holder for higher advanced placement in a Bachelor program, direct admission to a Graduate Diploma course or direct admission to a Masters program.

Graduate Diplomas are always higher than a Bachelor degree, and usually require one year of full-time study. They are often an additional course taken after a standard Bachelor degree to introduce a specialisation in a particular field or a new discipline. For example, Australian school teachers often study for a bachelor's degree in Arts or Science, then in an additional year complete requirements for a Graduate Diploma of Education, which qualifies them as school teachers. Some Graduate Diplomas are simply the first two semesters of a three- or four-semester Master's program. (In the past, the Graduate Diploma of Education was called the Diploma of Education.)

Some universities have issued Post-graduate Diplomas, which are always in the same discipline as the undergraduate degree, and generally no different from a Bachelor with Honours degree, which requires one year after a regular Bacelor degree.

Ireland

In Ireland a National Diploma is below the standard of the honours bachelor degree, whilst the Higher Diploma is taken after the bachelor degree. The new National Framework of Qualifications, adopted in 2003, replaced the National Dipoma with the Ordinary Bachelors degree. The framework also clarifies that although the Higher Diploma is taken after the bachelor degree the learning outcomes are at the same level as for the Honours Bachelors Degree.

More technically, a diploma is a document attesting that its bearer has satisfied certain study requirements, as opposed to a degree being a status level in the academic community. For this reason, diplomas are 'awarded to' the recipient while degrees are 'conferred upon' the graduand who then becomes a graduate, or the graduand is "admitted to" a degree. Similarly a person 'has' a diploma, but a graduate 'is in' a status. It is also for this reason that study for diplomas can be at undergraduate or advanced level.

Commonwealth countries

In the British Commonwealth universities, bachelors' and masters' degrees conferred in 'Philosophy' usually indicate a shift of discipline. For example, a Bachelor of Arts in English may pursue studies for the Master of Arts degree in English but may be prevented from enrolling to study for the M.A. degree in French through not satisfying the formal prequisites. However, the M.Phil. degree course can be customised to allow the same intellectual endpoint as the MA in French. The B.Phil. degree can indicate studies equivalent to satisfying an extra major for the BA, or can indicate higher studies comparable to the masters' level.

Bachelors' and masters' degrees can be conferred "with honours" in various classes and divisions, or "with distinction". This is indicated by the abbreviation "(Hons)" and is often a prerequisite for progression to a higher level of study.

Germany and Austria

In Germany there are several academic degrees. The lowest degree is the Bachelor (three to four years of study) equivalent to an English Bachelor (hons.)) or the American Bachelor, the (equivalent) Diplom (FH) or Diplom I. After that follows the Diplom II, Diplom (University), the Magister (in humanities) (all four to six years) or the Master (one to two years, after a Bachelor degree). After a Diplom II, Diplom (University), a Magister or a Master student can proceed to a doctorate. The highest academic degree in Germany is the Habilitation, which leads to Privatdozent or Dr. habil.

The situation in Austria is similar to the situation in Germany: students get a Diploma, but they graduate either with a Magister degree or with a Diploma. This depends on the faculty: arts, sciences, and fine arts earn a Magister degree, while technical sciences get a Diploma in engineering. So the degree that, for example, an Information Technology student earns is "Diplom-Ingenieur".

See also

• ad eundem degree
• Degrees of Oxford University
• Lambeth degree
• List of education articles by country
• Higher education
• Honorary degree
• European Higher Education Area
• Lisbon recognition convention
• External degree