Education Levels

[pussyfoot]

Hi, what are the levels of higher education, ie: GCSE, Alevel, graduate, BS, BA, Hon, PhD, Masters etc.

What are the 'ranks' so to speak!
Thank you.

[Tuvok]

http://www.scqf.org.uk/features/Framework.htm

[Mamyalynne]

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/537147/Postcard_-_Grading_New_GCSEs.pdf

[Buenchico]

Most 16-year-olds take GCSE exams. (They replaced CSE and GCE O-Level exams, with the top CSE grade being equivalent to a basic pass at O-level).

AS-level examinations are available to 17-year-olds (i.e. after one year of '6th form' education). They used to count part way towards A-level results but they've now been 'decoupled' and function as 'standalone' qualifications.

A-level examinations are usually taken at the end of a two-year '6th form' course.

Those who go onto university normally study for three years for a Bachelor's degree, with those achieving the best results being awarded 'honours'. (i.e. candidates take a single set of examinations and can end up with or without honours, depending upon their results). At some universities though there are courses where candidates sit the examinations for a degree without honours one year and then go on to take the honours examinations a year later.

Bachelor's degrees are normally graded as follows (but there are some exceptions):
1st Class Honours
2.1 Honours
2.2 Honours
3rd Class Honours
Pass Degree

All Bachelor's degrees are 'equal in rank'. i.e. a BSc 'ranks' the same as a BA or BEd.

The highest achievers at that level can then go onto study for a further period (usually one year) for a Master's degree. (MA, MSc, etc).

Bachelor's degrees are always 'taught' degrees, where students learn from lecturers. Master's degrees are often 'taught' degrees but can sometimes be 'research' degrees (or a mixture of the two), where students carry out original research.

[Note: For historical reasons, those holding initial degrees (BA, BSc) from Oxford and Cambridge can 'upgrade' their Bachelor's degrees to Master's ones simply by paying a fee. So while MA(Oxon) or MSc(Cantab) might look like impressive qualifications, they're actually only 'initial' degrees that are equivalent to BA or BSc from any other universities]

The highest achievers can then remain at university to study for their doctorate. (PhD, DPhil, etc). With the exception of medicine, doctorates are always 'research' degrees.

Officially university degrees aren't 'qualifications'. They're actually 'classes of membership' of a university. (The Members of a University are neither its staff nor its current students. It's a university's alumni which comprise its membership). That's why universities are allowed to give honorary degrees to people who've never studied for them.

[Peter Pedant]

yeah I would agree with BC

Is BSc offered at Oxbridge - I thought it was all BA

virtually no one gets a third or pass degree now

Medical degrees are a species of its own - not covered here
standard hand out in UK is MB BS ( thousands of variation s BS, BCh, BChir ChB the list goes arn and arn) Royal Colleges could give basic medical degrees but now do not. They can give post grad qualifications

oh tell you one thing since it is remembrance day

Old Masters of surgery at Cambridge was MC - standard handout MB BC and then they invented the military cross MC and so the university agreed to change it to M Chir, Bchir
and the MC went to the military authorities to do as they want
( I think the privy council regulates post-nominals in this country - as you know the British have a rule for everything )
but what about those already given ?
well they polled at the cambridge MCs in whenever ( 1915)
free conversion of MC to MChir and .....
they rejected it

Last MC as master of surgery wore his degree with pride and died in the sixties or seventies .....

there you are
nice story aboutthe first world war .....

[Tuvok]

Its 3 years for a BSc, BEng or BA then 4th year is Honours year in Scotland.

You can exit after 1st year with HNC or CertHE (depending on the course)

After 2nd year its HND or DipHE

[pussyfoot]

Wow thank you all so much! x

[bednobs]

oi, i have a pass degree - not because i was rubbish, but because i couldn't do the dissertation module

[Buenchico]

^^^ . . . and I've got a third, not because I was rubbish but because there were only two of us on the final year of the course, with the other guy dropping out fairly quickly, meaning that I'd got nobody to discuss the work with (unless you count the tutor who kept trying to put his arm around me every time I sat down next to him!)

[Peter Pedant]

but charlings ( cherie-darlings)
this was all so many years ago - my third was 1973 ( Law ) but a 2:1 in med sciences

The old part III in Maff is now called MMaff so long as you dont do it as a third year of an undergrad degree

2:1 inflation is a" problem" - everyone gets a 2:1 - so selection is on other criteria which I think is a fairer thing

[Mamyalynne]

I did quite well in woodwork.

[Peter Pedant]

Oh I got a third because I was pretty crap at law
Compared to Roddy Cordara QC or Justice Bean or Lord of Appea Sirl Peregrine Simon.

still my tutor managed to drum some international law into me
I was one of many to ring up the FO on the day of Yvonne Fletchers death outside the Libyan Embassy and tell them they could go in under the doctrine of 'hot pursuit'. I ( we ) were right and the duty officer at the FO was wrong - and if you recollect Mrs Thatcher was outraged that she couldnt get him fired for incompetence. Oh those were the days !

[Buenchico]

^^^ Wherever did you get that strange, idea, Mintlysocial?

A 'doctorate' is a class of membership of a university and there's absolutely no distinction whatsoever as to whether that doctorate is in philosophy, law, science, literature or whatever.

[Jackdaw33]

Before WW II automatic advancement from Bachelor to Master was practised at other universities as well.

[hallmarkschool]

here are four major categories of degrees available for post secondary students: associate, bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. Earning one of these degrees can take 2-8 years, depending on the level of the degree and field of study.