A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin baccalaureus; or baccalaureate, from Modern Latin baccalaureatus) is an undergraduate degree awarded by higher education institutions upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years (depending on the institution and academic discipline). The two most common bachelor's degrees are the Bachelor of Arts (BA) and the Bachelor of Science (BS or BSc). In some institutions and educational systems, certain bachelor's degrees can only be taken as graduate or postgraduate educations after a first degree has been completed, although more commonly the successful completion of a bachelor's degree is a prerequisite for further courses such as a master's or a doctorate. In countries with qualifications frameworks, bachelor's degrees are normally one of the major levels in the framework (sometimes two levels where non-honours and honours bachelor's degrees are considered separately). However, some qualifications titled bachelor's degree may be at other levels (e.g., MBBS) and some qualifications with non-bachelor's titles may be classified as bachelor's degrees (e.g. the Scottish Ancients MA and Canadian MD). The term bachelor in the 12th century referred to a knight bachelor, who was too young or poor to gather vassals under his own banner. By the end of the 13th century, it was also used by junior members of guilds or universities. By folk etymology or wordplay, the word baccalaureus came to be associated with bacca lauri ("laurel berry"); this is in reference to laurels being awarded for academic success or honours. Under the British system, and those influenced by it, undergraduate academic degrees are differentiated between honours degrees (sometimes denoted by the addition of "(Hons)" after the degree abbreviation) and non-honours degrees (known variously as pass degrees, ordinary degrees or general degrees). An honours degree generally requires a higher academic standard than a pass degree, and in some systems an additional year of study beyond the non-honours bachelor's. Some countries, such as Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada, have a postgraduate "bachelor with honours" degree. This may be taken as a consecutive academic degree, continuing on from the completion of a bachelor's degree program in the same field, or as part of an integrated honours program. Programs like these typically require completion of a full year-long research thesis project.
Scheme of completion periods in each country
The map shows how long it takes for students in different countries to get a bachelor's degree. It generally takes between 3 and 6 years.
Variations
Africa In most African countries, the university systems follow the model of their former colonizing power. For example, the Nigerian university system is similar to the British system, while the Ivorian system is akin to the French.
Algeria Bachelor's degrees in Algerian universities are called "الليسانس" in Arabic or la licence in French; the degree normally takes three years to complete and is a part of the LMD ("licence", "master", "doctorat") reform, students can enroll in a bachelor's degree program in different fields of study after having obtained their baccalauréat (the national secondary education test). The degree is typically identical to the program of France's universities, as specified in the LMD reform. Bachelor's degree programs cover most of the fields in Algerian universities, except some fields, such as Medicine and Pharmaceutical Science.
Botswana Bachelor's degrees at the University of Botswana normally take four years. The system draws on both British and American models. Degrees are classified as First Class, Second Class Division One (2:1), Second Class Division Two (2:2) and Third as in English degrees, but without being described as honours. The main degrees are named by British tradition (Arts, Science, Law, etc.); in recent years, however, there have been a number of degrees named after specific subjects, such as Bachelor of Library and Information.
Kenya In Kenya, university education is supported by the government. A bachelor's degree is awarded to students who successfully complete a three to seven-year course depending on the area of study. For most degree programs, a research project and an internship period after which a report is written by the student is a must before the student is allowed to graduate. In 2012, a number of select colleges were upgraded to university status in a bid to increase the intake of students into degree programs.
Morocco In Morocco, a bachelor's degree is referred to as al-ʾijāzah (Arabic, French: licence). The course of study takes three years, which are further divided into two cycles. The first cycle comprises the first, or propaedeutic, year. After successfully completing their first two years, students can pursue either theoretical specialization (études fondamentales) or professional specialization (études professionnelles). The second cycle is one year after whose completion students receive the licence d'études fondamentales or the licence professionnelle. This academic degree system was introduced in September 2003.
Nigeria University admission is extremely competitive, with attendant advantages and disadvantages. Nonetheless, it takes four to five years to complete a bachelor's degree. In cases of poor performance, the time limit is double the standard amount of time. For example, one may not study for more than 10 years for a five-year course. Students are normally asked to leave if they must take longer. Nigerian universities offer BSc, BTech (usually from Universities of Technology), BArch (six years), and other specialized undergraduate degrees, such as BEng. Science undergraduate degrees may require six months or a semester dedicated to SIWES (Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme) but it is usually mandatory for all engineering degrees. A semester for project work/thesis is required, not excluding course work, during the bachelor thesis in the final year. The classifications of degrees: first-class, second-class (upper and lower), third-class (with honours; i.e., BSc (Hons)) and a pass (no honours). First- and second-class graduates are immediately eligible for advanced postgraduate degrees (i.e., MSc and PhD), but other classes may be required for an additional postgraduate diploma before such eligibility. Furthermore, all graduating students are obliged to do the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) requirement, which usually takes one year, after which they are eligible to pursue higher degrees. The NYSC is a paramilitary service that involves students' being posted to different parts of the country to serve in various capacities. Principal objectives of the NYSC are to forge national cohesion, encourage students to apply their obtained knowledge to solving problems of rural Nigeria, and others. The NYSC was established by law after the Nigerian Civil War. Polytechnical schools (polytechnics) in Nigeria are not considered universities. They are mandated to educate technicians of high calibre; they offer the OND (ordinary national diploma) and the HND (higher national diploma). The polytechnics focus very strongly on practical technical training. The BSc and HND are compared in engineering circles, but there are significant differences in training philosophies. Honours degrees in Nigeria are differentiated only on the basis of performance. Honours degrees include the first-class degree, second-class degrees (upper and lower) and the third-class degree, but not the pass. All university students must do an independent research project which applies the knowledge obtained during the previous years of study. The project work must be submitted in the semester before graduation and usually takes a significant number of points. Further course work is not precluded during the project work, but the courses are fewer and are at an advanced level. Project work is orally defended before the faculty and before peers. In the sciences and engineering a demonstration of the project is usually required. The exceptions are theoretical work.
South Africa In South Africa, an honours degree is an additional postgraduate qualification in the same area as the undergraduate major, and requires at least one further year of study as well as a research report.
Tunisia In Tunisia, a bachelor's degree is referred to as al-ʾijāzah in Arabic, or la license in French; the degree takes three years to complete and is a part of the LMD (license, master, doctorat) reform, students can enroll in a bachelor's degree program in different fields of study after having obtained their baccalauréat (the national secondary education test). The degree is typically identical to the program of France's universities, as specified in the LMD reform. Most universities in Tunisia offer the 3-year bachelor's degree, except some fields, which are Medicine, Pharmacy, Engineering, Architecture and Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, solely offered by Tunis Business School and lasts 4 years.
The Americas The region typically confers associates, bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and postdoctoral degrees to graduating students.
Argentina
University education in Argentina is currently regulated by the Ministry of Human Capital, with the requirements of a Licenciatura or bachelor's degree, also referred to as a university degree program lasting 4, 5, or more years. These programs can be equivalent to professional degrees, such as law, medicine, engineering, psychology, education, arts, architecture, industrial design, or bachelor's degrees more oriented towards research and teaching in a specific field of science. The undergraduate degrees recognized by the Higher Education Law (LES) are programs that must have more than 2,600 hours of instruction, under the guidance of the National Commission for University Evaluation and Accreditation (CONEAU). The current regulations govern the Institutional Distance Education System, Ministerial Resolution No. 2641-E/2017 and Ministerial Resolution No. 4389/2017. There is no distinction between universities and non-university institutions, such as teacher training colleges.
Brazil
In Brazil, a bachelor's degree takes from three years to six years to complete depending on the course load and the program. A bachelor's degree is the title sought by Brazilians in order to be a professional in a certain area of human knowledge. Master's and doctoral degrees are additional degrees for those seeking an academic career or a specific understanding of a field. Even without a formal adhesion to the Bologna system, a Brazilian "bachelor's" would correspond to a European "first cycle". A Brazilian "bachelor's" takes three to six years for completion, as well as usually a written monograph or concluding project, in the same way that a European bachelor's can be finished in three to four years, after which time Europeans may embark on a one- to two-year 2nd cycle program usually called a "master's", according to the Bologna Process. Depending on programs and personal choices, Europeans can achieve a master's degree in as little as four years (a three-year bachelor's and a one-year master's) and as long as six years (a four-year bachelor's, a two-year master's) of higher education. In Brazil it would be possible to have a specialization "lato-sensu" degree—which differs from a Brazilian "stricto-sensu" master's degree—in as little as three years (two years for a "tecnólogo" degree and an additional year for a specialization) or as long as eight years (six years for professional degrees, plus two years for a master's "stricto-sensu" degree—typical in medicine or engineering).
Canada Education in Canada is governed independently by each province and territory; however, a common framework for degrees was agreed to by the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada, in 2007. This adopted descriptors for bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees that were deliberately similar to those defined by the Bologna Process. Under the framework, four general forms of bachelor's degree are defined: general programs that provide a broad education and prepare graduates for graduate-entry professional programs or employment generally; in-depth academic programs in a specific subject that prepare graduates for postgraduate study in the field or employment generally; applied programs that concentrate on a mastery of practice rather than knowledge; and professional programs, often (but not exclusively) graduate-entry, that prepare graduates to practice as professionals in a specific field. This last category includes graduate-entry degrees titled as if they were doctorates, such as MD, JD and DDS degrees—despite their names, these are considered bachelor's degrees. Bachelor's degrees may take either three or four years to complete and are awarded by colleges and universities. In many universities and colleges, bachelor's degrees are differentiated either as (ordinary) bachelor's or as honours bachelor's degrees. The term "honours" is an academic distinction, which indicates that students must achieve their bachelor's degree with a sufficiently high overall grade point average; in addition, some programs may require more education than non-honours programs. The honours degrees are sometimes designated with the abbreviation in brackets of "(Hon(s))". Going back in history, the Bachelor with Honours (Latin baccalaureatus cum honore, French: baccalauréat spécialisé) was traditionally taken as the highest undergraduate degree. The program requires at least 4 years of studies, with strong emphasis on the research-based Honours Seminar Thesis which is considered approximately equivalent to a formal master's thesis. Universities show the academic degree as well as the possible honours distinction (Latin honours) on the diploma (e.g., "BACCALAUREATUS ARTIUM CUM HONORE ... CUM LAUDE"). In Quebec, students have to take a minimum of two years of college before entering, for example, a three-year Bachelor of Science (BSc) or a four-year Bachelor of Engineering (BEng) program. As a consequence, there is no de jure "honours degree" (although some universities market some of their programs as being de facto honours degrees in their English-language materials) but there are some specializations called "concentrations" in French, which are mostly taken as optional courses. In the province of Ontario, the most bachelor's degrees offered by Ontario universities are academic in nature. In contrast, Ontario legislation requires bachelor's degrees offered by Ontario colleges to be applied and vocationally focused.
Costa Rica, El Salvador and Venezuela
In these countries, there are two titles that should not be confused:
High school students who pass their bachillerato or high school exams obtain a certificate of Bachiller de Educación Secundaria (not the same as a 'Bachelor' for higher education degrees), which is needed in order to enter a university and is usually requested by companies in their profiles. University students obtain an American equivalent bachelor's degree in their respective fields after completing four years of education, and a licenciatura licentiate degree completing one more year of studies (and meeting other requisites unique to each institution, it is common to write a dissertation on the professional field), this enables them to work as professionals in their chosen areas; for example, a Profesor en Enseñanza Secundaria ("Licentiate degree in secondary education") enables a person to work as a high school teacher. Currently, the trend is for universities not to offer a bachelor's degree and to offer instead a licentiate's or "ingeniero" degree after five years of education.
Mexico
Bachelor's degrees may take an average of five years (from four to five years) to complete depending on the course load and the program, they are awarded by colleges and universities. Medicine is from 6 to 7 years. Each college has its own curriculum and requirements with an emphasis of their choice, governed independently by each state of the republic. After finishing all the subjects the student require a final work, which means the completion of particular honours seminars, research and development or a written thesis in a particular field. Mexico's regulations established as an obligation in order to receive their license and title the fulfillment of a "social service" to the nation (usually for those who finished their studies in a public institution) as a remuneration to society in the form of social actions, for the benefits, as students, were received during training. This requirement takes about six months to one year depending on the type of degree. Bachelor's degree should not be falsely related with its Spanish cognate "bachiller", which designate a prerequisite for matriculate in a career or bachelor studies. The official name for a bachelor's degree in Mexico is "licenciado" and such studies are referred as "licenciatura". Bachelor's degrees should not be confused with Engineering Degrees, where an Ingeniería is prefixed to the name and requires additional courses for certification as an Engineer.
United States
Bachelor's degrees in the United States are typically designed to be completed in four years of full-time study, which typically represents an average of 15 hours of weekly instruction per four-month semester, two semesters per year, for a total of eight semesters and 120 instructional credit hours, although some programs, such as engineering or architecture, may take five years, and some universities and colleges allow students, usually with the help of summer school, who are taking many classes each semester or who have existing credit from high school Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate course exams, to complete them more rapidly. Some US colleges and universities have a separate academic track known as an "honours" or "scholars" program, generally offered to the top percentile of students, based on GPA, that offers more challenging courses or more individually directed seminars or research projects instead or in addition to the standard core curriculum. Those students are awarded the same bachelor's degree as students completing the standard curriculum but with the notation in cursu honorum on the transcript and the diploma. Usually, the above Latin honours are separate from the notation for this honours course, but a student in the honours course generally must maintain grades worthy of at least the cum laude notation anyway. Hence, a graduate might receive a diploma Artium Baccalaureatum rite or Artium Baccalaureatum summa cum laude in the regular course or Artium Baccalaureatum summa cum laude in cursu honorum in the honours course. If the student has completed the requirements for an honours degree only in a particular discipline (e.g., English language and literature), the degree is designated accordingly (e.g., "BA with Honours in English"). In this case, the degree candidate will complete the normal curriculum for all subjects except the selected discipline ("English", in the preceding example). The requirements in either case usually require completion of particular honours seminars, independent research at a level higher than usually required (often with greater personal supervision by faculty than usual), and a written honours thesis in the major subject. Many universities and colleges in the United States award bachelor's degrees with Latin honours, usually (in ascending order) cum laude ("with honour/praise"), magna cum laude ("with great honour/praise"), summa cum laude ("with highest honour/praise"), and the occasionally seen maxima cum laude ("with maximal honour/praise"). Requirements for such notations of honours generally include minimum grade point averages (GPA), with the highest average required for the summa distinction (or maxima, when that distinction is present). In the case of some schools, such as Bates College, Carleton College, Colby College, Middlebury College, Guilford College, Franklin College Switzerland, and larger universities like the University of Virginia, Princeton University, North Carolina State University, University of Massachusetts Amherst, a senior thesis for degrees in the humanities or laboratory research for natural science (and sometimes social science) degrees is also required. Six notable exceptions are Reed College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, The Evergreen State College, Sarah Lawrence College, Bard College, and Bennington College, which do not have deans' lists, Latin honours recognitions, or undergraduate honours programs or subjects. Starting in 2023, some colleges and universities began offering three-year bachelor's programs. As of late 2025, 70 institutions had the programs or planned to. A three-year degree could be obtained with additional credits during the regular school year and summer courses. Most reduced the number of required credits, identifying the program as "accelerated pathways" on the transcript. Reasons for choosing a three-year program include the increasing cost of education, and the desire of students not to take courses they did not need.
Asia
Bangladesh In Bangladesh, universities and colleges award three- and four-year degrees (three-year degrees courses are called pass courses and four-year degree courses are called honours courses) in science and business BSc, BBS, BBA, four-year and three months, etc. and three- and four-year degrees in arts (BA, BSS, etc.). Engineering universities provide four-year degree programs for bachelor's degree courses of study (BSc in Eng and BSc). Medical colleges have five-year degree programmes (MBBS, BDS). In law education there is a two-year LLB degree after completing three years in a BA program for a total of five years of study. There is also a four-year LLB honours degree. The Bachelor of Architecture (BArch) and Bachelor of Pharmacy (BPharm) are professional degrees awarded to students who complete a five-year course of study in the field at some universities. All of these programs begin after achieving the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC – in total 12 years of school education).
China There are 13 kinds of statutory bachelor's degrees in China: Bachelor of Philosophy, Economics, Laws, Education, Arts, History, Science, Engineering, Agriculture, Medicine, Management, Military Science, and Fine Arts. Since the undergraduate education system in China is modeled after its American counterpart, all of the degrees are adapted from those of the United States except for the issuing of the degree certificate. Once a student has fulfilled their course requirements, a "graduate certificate" will be given. In order to get the degree, a student must finish and pass the dissertation stage; only then will they be awarded a degree certified by the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China. Most bachelor's degree in China needs four years to complete, with the exception that the Bachelor of Medicine degree requires five years. Although some colleges (Chinese: 专科学校), vocational colleges (Chinese: 职业学院) and colleges in some universities offer two or three year programs for students, they can not graduate with any degree, except for those who pass the upgrade exam during college and then study an extra two-year undergraduate course at another university and pass a dissertation. Any Chinese citizen can also get a bachelor's degree via the undergraduate majors of the Self-Taught Higher Education Examinations (Chinese: 高等教育自学考试).
Indonesia In Indonesia, most of the current bachelor's degrees are domain-specific degrees. Therefore, there are more than 20 bachelor's degrees. For instance, S.Psi. for Sarjana Psikologi (literally translated as "Bachelor of Psychology/BPsy, BA"), S.T. for Sarjana Teknik (literally translated as "Bachelor of Engineering"), S.Si. for Sarjana Sains (literally translated as "Bachelor of Science"), S.Farm. for Sarjana Farmasi (literally translated as "Bachelor of Pharmacy"), S.E. for Sarjana Ekonomi (literally translated as "Bachelor of Economy"), S.Kom. for Sarjana Ilmu Komputer (literally translated as "Bachelor of Computer Science"), S.S. for Sarjana Sastra (literally translated as "Bachelor of Literature") or S.Sos. for Sarjana Ilmu Sosial (literally translated as "Bachelor of Social Sciences"). In the past, the Indonesian academic system adopted the old European/western degrees, such as the Ir (insinyur from Dutch ingenieur) for an engineering degree and the common academic degree (doktorandus from Dutch and ultimately Latin doctorandus) for a degree in either social or natural sciences.
Europe
Austria The historical situation in Austria was very similar to that in Germany, with the traditional first degrees being the magister and the diplom, which are master's-level qualifications. From 2004, bachelor's degrees have been reintroduced as part of the Bologna Process reforms. These can be studied at universities, leading to a bachelor's degree (BA or BSc) after three or four years, and at Fachhochschulen (universities of applied science), leading to a bachelor (FH) after three years.
Belgium Education in Belgium is run by the language communities, with separate higher education systems being administered by the Flemish Community and the French Community. Both systems have been reformed to align with the Bologna Process, the Flemish Community from 2003 and the French Community from 2004. In the Flemish Community, bachelor's degrees may be either academic or professional. These degrees last three years, and may be followed in both cases by an advanced bachelor diploma (French: Bachelier de spécialisation, lit. 'Specialized Bachelor'; Dutch: Bachelor-na-bachelor, lit. 'Bachelor-after-bachelor'), lasting one year (cf. the Australian bachelor honours degree). All of these qualifications are at level 6 on the EQF, to which the Flemish Qualification Framework was referenced in June 2011. In the French Community, universities award grade de bachelier (3 years) as the equivalent of bachelor's degrees. Outside of universities, professional programs may be type long (long type) or type court (short type), both of which are offered at hautes ecoles and ecoles supérieures des arts. The long type takes in a grade de bachelier (type long) (3 years), which is followed by a master degree (1 or 2 years), while the short type has a grade de bachelier professionnalisant (type court) (3 years), which may be followed by a bachelier de spécialisation (1 year). All bachelier degrees (including the bachelier de spécialisation) are equivalent to level 6 of the EQF, but have not been formally referenced.
Croatia Most public universities and community colleges in Croatia today offer a three-year bachelor program, which can be followed up typically with a two-year master's (graduate) program. All bachelor's degrees in Croatia are professional. For distinction, in universities the title is "univ. bacc." (university bachelor) and in community colleges is just "bacc.". Zagreb School of Economics and Management has a four-year bachelor's program. Academies that specialize in the arts, e.g. the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb, have four-year bachelor's programs followed by a one-year master's.
Cyprus Higher education in Cyprus is aligned with the Bologna Process and governed by the Cyprus Agency of Quality Assurance and Accreditation in Higher Education (CYQAA). Bachelor's degrees at Cypriot universities are four years in duration, corresponding to 240 ECTS credits. Public universities in Cyprus comprise the University of Cyprus, the Cyprus University of Technology and the Open University of Cyprus, all of which admit students through the annual Pancyprian Examinations. Private universities, including the European University Cyprus and the University of Nicosia, admit students on the basis of academic records and offer programs in Greek and English.
Czechia Historically, the baccalaureus was the undergraduate degree awarded to students who graduated from the course of trivium (grammar, dialectic and rhetoric) at a faculty of liberal arts (either at the Charles University or at the University of Olomouc). It was a necessary prerequisite to continue either with the faculty of liberal arts (quadrivium leading to a master's degree and further to a doctoral degree) or to study at one of the other three historical faculties—law, medicine or theology. A bachelor's degree, abbreviated BcA, in the field of fine arts, and Bc (Bakalář in Czech) in other fields is awarded for accredited undergraduate programs at universities and colleges. The vast majority of undergraduate programmes offered in the Czech Republic have a standard duration of three years. In the Czech tertiary education system, most universities and colleges today offer a three-year bachelor program, which can be followed up typically with a two-year master's (graduate) program. Some specializations, such as doctors of medicine and veterinary doctors, hold exceptions from the general system in that the only option is a six-year master's program with no bachelor stage (graduate with title doctor). This is due mainly to the difficulty of meaningfully splitting up the education for these specialisations.
Denmark The bachelor's degree was re-introduced at universities in Denmark in 1993, after the original degree (baccalaureus) was abandoned in 1775. The bachelor's degree is awarded after three or four years of study at a university and follows a scheme quite similar to the British one. Two bachelor's degrees are given at the university level today:
Bachelor of Science (BSc), awarded to students with main focus on scientific, medical, or technical areas; Bachelor of Arts (BA), awarded to students whose main focus is on humanistic, theological, or jurisprudence areas. However, both in the business and the academic world in Denmark, the bachelor's degree is still considered to be "the first half" of a master's (candidatus). It is often not considered a degree in its own right, despite the politicians' best attempts to make it more accepted. The bachelor's degree has also been used since the late 1990s in a number of areas like nursing and teaching. Usually referred to as a "professional bachelor" (Danish: professionsbachelor), these degrees usually require 3 to 4+1⁄2 years of combined theoretical and practical study at a "professional university college" (Danish: professionshøjskole) or "business academy" (Danish: "erhvervsakademier"). These professional bachelor's degrees do grant access to some university master's program. These professional bachelor's degrees are considered to be a full education.
France
The traditional bachelor's degree is the equivalent of the French Licence three-year degree. Since the new European system of 2004 LMD Bologna process was founded, it has become standard to recognize a bachelor's degree over three years with a licence degree, a master's degree over five years, and a doctorate over eight years. Some private institutions are however literally naming their degrees bachelor. Some of these bachelor are "Diplômes visés" (often delivered by specialized private schools, such as business, design, film or journalism schools), others are "Diplômes certifiés" by the French State. The others are not accredited by the French State.
Germany Historically, the bachelor's degree, called "Bakkalaureus", existed in Germany since the late Middle Ages. But it was abolished by the educational reforms undertaken in 1820. The Abitur degree – the final degree received in school after a specialized 'college phase' of two years – replaced it, and universities only awarded graduate degrees. The magister degree, a graduate degree, was awarded after five years of study. In 1899, a second graduate degree, the diplom, was introduced when the Technische Hochschulen (TH) received university status. With the introduction of the universities of applied sciences, a shortened version of the latter, referred to as Diplom (FH) and designed to take three to four years, was phased in between 1969 and 1972. However, in 1998, in order to comply with the European Bologna process, a new educational law reintroduced the bachelor's degree (first degree after three years of study) in Germany. Today, these degrees can be called either "Bakkalaureus" or "bachelor" (in accordance with federal law), but the English term is more common. According to the Bologna model, the bachelor is followed by the post-graduate master's degree of another two years. The traditional degrees of diplom and magister were mostly abolished in 2010, although the diplom still persists in a few subjects and universities and has been reintroduced as alternative degree in some places. The traditional degrees have been re-mapped to the new European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) point system to make them comparable to the new bachelor's degree. Traditional and Bologna process degrees are ranked as follows in Germany:
Bachelor: 180, 210, or 240 ECTS points required; Diplom FH: 240 ECTS; Diplom Uni or TH: 300 ECTS; Master: 300 ECTS (including bachelor).
Greece The Greek bachelor's degree is called πτυχίο (transliterated to "ptychio"; Greek: πτυχίο; ptychio in dhimotiki from 1976–present; or defunct πτυχίον; ptychion in polytonic, katharevousa up until 1976). It is earned after four to six years of undergraduate studies, depending on the field, and is a first cycle qualification in the Bologna Process with 240 or more ECTS credits. It is placed at level 6 of the national qualifications framework of Greece which is officially named Hellenic Qualification Framework (HQF), which is referenced to level 6 of the European Qualifications Framework. It is classified as a level 6 qualification in the ISCED. The bachelor's degree is provided by all Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), including universities, specialist HEIs, formerly technological educational institutes (TEIs) (1983–2019). In 1995, it changed TEI six-semester-mode of undergraduate degree programme of studies legally equivalent to an ordinary bachelor's degree (Ord) (3+1⁄2-year; 210 ECTS, 1983–1995) into nine-semester-mode (4-year; 240 ECTS, 1995–2019). Technical universities and some universities offer a five-year (300 ECTS) undergraduate programme leading to a Δίπλωμα (Greek) Diploma (integrated-master-level-granting, Master's degree equivalent) at Level 7 of the HQF.
Hungary In the classic, pre-Bologna educational system, Hungarian academic programs were not divided into bachelor's and master's degrees. However, while an average university (Hungarian: egyetem) degree lasted 5 years, there were undergraduate college (Hungarian: főiskola) degrees obtainable, in either 3 or 4 years of length. These diplomas are today considered to be equivalents of a BA/BSc (undergraduate college) or an MA/MSc (university) degree. The Bologna System was introduced in 2005, and with the last classes graduating in 2009, it is the sole form of higher education in the country. Bachelor's degrees (Hungarian: alapképzés, "basic degree") usually last 3 years, but there are degrees in certain areas of education – most notably engineering, economics, and some natural sciences – where an additional semester is required, lengthening the program to 3,5 years. While regular master's degrees (Hungarian: mesterképzés, "master degree") are only obtainable with a pre-existing bachelor's degree, the Hungarian system makes notable exceptions with law degrees, teacher's degrees, medical degrees, and some unique fields of study (i.e. forestry engineering at the University of Sopron): these degrees are called non-divisional degrees (Hungarian: osztatlan képzés), and while technically being MA/MSc degrees, they have the same entering criteria as BA/BSc degrees, and have a span of 5 or 6 years.
Italy Italian students graduate from high school at age 19, and the current higher education system includes:
"laurea triennale" (three-year degree) or simply "laurea", corresponds to bachelor's degree. The course takes three years to complete and grants access to graduate degrees. "laurea magistrale", corresponds to master's degree and takes two years to complete. "laurea magistrale a ciclo unico", (one cycle degree) is a title provided by particular faculties like law school and medical school. It takes 5 to 6 year to complete and grants the access to a profession. A bachelor's degree holder has the title of "dottore" (doctor) A master's degree holder has the title of "dottore magistrale" (master doctor) In order to graduate, students must earn credits (ECTS) and write a thesis for which students have to elaborate on an argument under the supervision of a professor (generally from three to eight ECTS). Graduation marks go from 66 to 110. According to each faculty internal ruling, a lode may be awarded to candidates with a 110/110 mark for recognition of the excellence of the final project.
Netherlands In the Netherlands, the bachelor's degree was introduced in 2002 with the change of the Dutch degree system due to the European Bologna process. Until that time, the Dutch universities did not have a Bachelor level degree (although the Candidate's diploma existed until 1982, which was more-or-less of the same level). Prior to the Dutch degree system change a single program at the university comprised the same course load as the bachelor's and master's programs together which led to the doctorandus degree (or for legal studies to the "Meester in de rechten" and engineering to "Ingenieur"). In 2002, with the introduction of the Bachelor's master's doctorate system, the single (4- or 5-year) program at Dutch universities has been changed and split into a 3-year program leading to the bachelor's degree and a subsequent a 1- or 2-year program leading to the master's degree. Those who had already started the doctorandus program could, upon completing it, opt for the doctorandus degree (before their name, abbreviated to 'drs.'), or simply use the master's degree (behind their name) in accordance with the new standard. Since these graduates do not have a separate bachelor's degree (which is in fact – in retrospect – incorporated into the program), the master's degree is their first academic degree. In 2003/2004, the Dutch degree system was changed because of the Bologna process. Former degrees included:
baccalaureus (bc. for bachelor, corresponding to a BASc or BAA degree, it may be formally rendered as "B", followed by the specialization field, instead of "bc.") doctorandus (prefix abbreviated to drs.; it corresponds to MA or MSc, but it may be formally rendered as M instead of drs.), ingenieur (ing.) for graduates of the four-year courses offered by Dutch higher vocational colleges (HBO, that is; hoger beroepsonderwijs) see: university of applied science. It is similar to a BASc, BEng, BBE, BAS or BICT (BIT., and it may be formally rendered as B followed by the specialization field, instead of ing. ir. for those having graduated from technical university after a minimum of five years, corresponding to a MSc, but it may be formally rendered as M, instead of ir.), meester in de rechten (mr.; it corresponds to LLM, but it may be formally rendered as M instead of mr.) and doctor (dr.; it corresponds to PhD, but it may formally be rendered as D instead of dr.) are still granted along with their international equivalents. While the titles ing., bc., ir., mr., drs. and dr. are used before one's own name, the degrees B, M or D are mentioned after one's name. It is still allowed to use the traditional titles. Whether a bachelor's degree is granted by a hogeschool or university is highly relevant since these parallel systems of higher education have traditionally serve