By definition, an academic degree is an award bestowed by a college or university indicating that the recipient has adequately completed an established course of study. These academic degrees are usually honorary degrees granted as marks of distinction. Here is a look at each type of academic degree that you can undertake according to your preference.
Certificate Courses/Licensing: Certificate courses take about six months to two years to complete. Some may have licensing requirements to be eligible for working in a particular profession. You can choose to pursue certificate degree as a part of continuing education to enhance your professional capabilities or to diversify your current job profiles.
Undergraduate degrees: Undergraduate degrees are academic degrees sometimes referred to as post-secondary, fourth degree, or simply degree and are given by universities to those who complete three or four years of education in a certain field. There are two types of undergraduate degrees, associate's degrees and BA degrees. Associate degrees are two-year degrees that are undertaken at the start of a four-year degree. Depending on the course and university, they may or may not be recognized as transferable to a four-year degree. The three types of academic degrees are Associate of Arts or AA (programs in languages, science, math, social science and humanities), Associate of Sciences or AS (programs with greater emphasis in math and science) and Associate of Applied Science or AAS (programs in interior decoration, fine arts etc.). Bachelor's degrees are academic degrees that are usually earned in three, four or five years, depending on the subject, and are the base for any further education. The subjects that are
available are almost limitless, and may include: Philosophy, Economics, English, History, political science, etc. for the Bachelor of Arts degree. A Bachelor of Commerce degree deals with subjects such as math and accounting. The Bachelor of Science degree is earned in subjects such as math, physics, biology, chemistry etc. These academic degrees are followed with marks of excellence such as cum laude, with praise; magna cum laude, with great praise; or summa cum laude, with highest praise.
Graduate Degrees: These are divided into two types of academic degrees, master's degrees and doctorates. Master's degrees take about one to two additional years to complete and upon completion you can expect to earn better employment and income. Like bachelor's degrees, these are also offered in various subjects and can be categorized as Master of Arts, Master of Science, and Master of Commerce etc. Some of these courses require the completion of a thesis or dissertation. Doctorates usually take more than three years to complete. The various academic degrees offered are Doctor of Medicine (MD), Doctor of Law (JD), etc. Research doctorates or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
can be pursued in many fields such as philosophy, math, economics, etc. They take about two to five years to complete, including a dissertation, and oral and written examinations. Honorary doctorates are awarded in appreciation of an important contribution to a certain field.
You should pursue an academic degree in your field of interest only after a careful consideration of the career path you wish to follow.
