An academic degree is a qualification awarded to students upon successful completion of a course of study in higher education, usually at a college or university. These institutions commonly offer degrees at various levels, usually including undergraduate degrees, master's, and doctorates, often alongside other academic certificates and professional degrees. The most common undergraduate degree is the bachelor's degree, although in some countries there are lower-level higher education qualifications that are also titled degrees.
A master's degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. A master's degree normally requires previous study at the bachelor's level, either as a separate degree or as part of an integrated course. Within the area studied, master's graduates are expected to possess advanced knowledge of a specialized body of theoretical and applied topics; high order skills in analysis, critical evaluation, or professional application; and the ability to solve complex problems and think rigorously and independently.
A Master of Science is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to the Master of Arts degree, the Master of Science degree is typically granted for studies in sciences, engineering and medicine and is usually for programs that are more focused on scientific and mathematical subjects; however, different universities have different conventions and may also offer the degree for fields typically considered within the humanities and social sciences. While it ultimately depends upon the specific program, earning a Master of Science degree typically includes writing a thesis.
The Bologna Process is a series of ministerial meetings and agreements between European countries to ensure comparability in the standards and quality of higher-education qualifications. The process has created the European Higher Education Area under the Lisbon Recognition Convention. It is named after the University of Bologna, where the Bologna declaration was signed by education ministers from 29 European countries in 1999. The process was opened to other countries in the European Cultural Convention of the Council of Europe, and government meetings have been held in Prague (2001), Berlin (2003), Bergen (2005), London (2007), Leuven (2009), Budapest-Vienna (2010), Bucharest (2012), Yerevan (2015), Paris (2018), and Rome (2020).
A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Such degrees are generally preparation for legal careers. But while their curricula may be reviewed by legal authority, they do not confer a license themselves. A legal license is granted by examination, and exercised locally. The law degree can have local, international, and world-wide aspects, such as in England and Wales, where the Legal Practice Course or passing Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) is required to become a solicitor or the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC) to become a barrister.
The Faculty of Law at the University of Copenhagen has two departments including a number of research centres and prepares students for the Bachelor of Law degree (BA) and the profession degree in Law, cand. jur.. The Faculty runs a special library, known as the Law Laboratory, for students.
A licentiate is an academic degree present in many countries, representing different educational levels. It may be similar to a master's degree when issued by pontifical universities and other universities in Europe, Latin America, and Syria.
An engineer's degree is an advanced academic degree in engineering which is conferred in Europe, some countries of Latin America, North Africa and a few institutions in the United States. The degree may require a thesis but always requires a non-abstract project.
Candidate of Philosophy can refer to the US degree or status of Candidate in Philosophy granted to Ph.D. students who have been accepted as candidates for that degree, or to degrees or former degrees at bachelor's or master's level from some Scandinavian countries.
Legum Doctor (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law and civil law, with the double “L” itself indicating the plural, although Cambridge now gives the degree the name Doctor of Law in English. This contrasts with the practice of the University of Oxford, where the degree that survived from the Middle Ages is the DCL or Doctor of Civil Law (only).
A Diplom is an academic degree in the German-speaking countries Germany, Austria, and Switzerland and a similarly named degree in some other European countries including Albania, Bulgaria, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Estonia, Finland, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine and only for engineers in France, Greece, Hungary, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, and Brazil.
A Master of Arts is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have typically studied subjects within the scope of the humanities and social sciences, such as history, literature, languages, linguistics, public administration, political science, communication studies, law or diplomacy; however, different universities have different conventions and may also offer the degree for fields typically considered within the natural sciences and mathematics. The degree can be conferred in respect of completing courses and passing examinations, research, or a combination of the two.
A magister degree is an academic degree used in various systems of higher education.
The Bologna process for standardisation of European higher education specified an undergraduate degree of at least three years called the "licence" or bachelor's degree, followed by a two-year diploma called the master's degree, then a doctorate, meant to be obtained in at least three years. Because of these indicated schedules, the reform is sometimes (erroneously) referred to as "3-5-8". The system applies to the European Higher Education Area.
Candidatus oeconomices (male) or Candidata oeconomices (female), often abbreviated cand.oecon. is an academic degree in economics at Danish, Icelandic and Norwegian universities. It is roughly equivalent to a Master of Economics.
MJur is an academic degree in law awarded by some universities.
A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science, Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL.D.).
The Faculty of Law of the University of Oslo is Norway's oldest law faculty, established in 1811 as one of the four original faculties of The Royal Frederick University. Alongside the law faculties in Copenhagen, Lund and Uppsala, it is one of Scandinavia's leading institutions of legal education and research. The faculty is the highest-ranked institution of legal education in Norway and is responsible for the professional law degree, one of the most competitive programmes at any Norwegian university.
Candidatus scientiarum (male), or candidata scientiarum (female), abbreviated as cand.scient., is an academic degree currently awarded in Denmark and formerly awarded in Norway.
Legal education in Norway refers to a graduate professional degree that qualifies the holder for the legal profession, that includes advocates (barristers/attorneys-at-law), judges and other professions that lawyers have a legal monopoly on. Norway has a united and regulated legal profession where all lawyers hold the same professional degree obtained after an integrated and comprehensive 5-year university programme with highly competitive admission requirements, that gives the right to use the legally protected title lawyer and in itself qualifies for entry-level legal practice, i.e. the entry-level positions in the legal profession such as associate advocate, deputy judge or junior prosecutor. Norwegian lawyers are organized in the trade union Norges Juristforbund.
