Academic degree
[1] The right to grant a licentia docendi was originally reserved by the church which required the applicant to pass a test, take an oath of allegiance, and pay a fee.
[2] While the licentia continued to hold a higher prestige than the bachelor's degree (Baccalaureus), it was ultimately reduced to an intermediate step to the Magister and doctorate, both of which now became the exclusive qualification for teaching.
Studies outside theology, law, and medicine were then called "philosophy", due to the Renaissance conviction that real knowledge could be derived from empirical observation.
[8][9][10][11] Devin J. Stewart finds that the ijazat al-ifta, license to teach Islamic law and issue legal opinions, is most similar to the medieval European university degree in that it permits entry into certain professions.
[15] Among educational institutions, St David's College, Lampeter, was granted limited degree awarding powers by royal charter in the nineteenth century, despite not being a university.
Since the implementation of the Bologna Process in France, the degree-granting system is being simplified: schools continue to grant their own diplomas, but the state's recognition in degree awarding is more important than before.
It is not an academic degree but a government licensing examination that future doctors, dentists, teachers, lawyers (solicitors), judges, public prosecutors, patent attorneys and pharmacists have to pass in order to be eligible to work in their profession.
However, sometimes incorrectly regarded as a degree, the Habilitation is a higher academic qualification—in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Czech Republic—that grants a further teaching and research endorsement after a doctorate.
[76] The first level, tied to the first cycle of the Bologna Process, covers the laurea (bachelor's degree) in universities and the Diploma accademico di primo livello in AFAM institutions.
The Diploma di perfezionamento is a university certificate, aimed at professional training or in specific fields of study, which usually takes one year; it is not allocated a level in the framework.
Higher schools for language mediators offer the Diploma di mediatore linguistico, a first-cycle degree that takes three years (180 ECTS credits), and which gives access to the laurea specialistica.
Specialisation institutes/schools in psychoterapy offer the Diploma di specializzazione in psicoterapia, a third-cycle qualification that takes at least four years and requires a laurea magistrale/specialistica in either psychology or medicine and surgery, along with professional registration.
Every year a combination of the highest pre-university graduation grades and some additional conditions determine who can start such a numerus clausus course of study and who can not.
Unlike some other European countries, such as Germany, Dutch academic titles are used rarely outside academia, hold no value in everyday life, and typically are not listed on official documentation (e.g. passport, drivers license, (governmental) communication).
However, neither professional associations, government agencies, judiciary authorities, nor universities – other than the study programme provider – are obliged to recognize non-official qualifications in any way.
Prospective students should check the RUCT Code awarded to the study programme of their interest at every stage of their enquiries concerning degrees in Spain.
These agencies work within the ANECA framework and generally show more detailed information about the study programmes available in each territory (e.g., Catalonia, Madrid, etc.)
[107] Depending on the official language of the university, it was called Lizentiat (German), Licence (French) or licenza (Italian) and, according to the Bologna reform, is today considered equivalent to a master's degree.
[112] The foundation degree[113] is a qualification, lower than bachelor's level, awarded following a two-year programme of study that is usually vocational in nature.
The universities of Oxford and Cambridge award honorary Master of Arts (MA) degrees to graduates of their bachelor's programmes, following a specified period of time.
This is comparable to the practice of the ancient universities in Scotland awarding an MA for a first degree and arguably reflects the rigorous standards expected of their graduates.
This also reflects the broader scope of the final years of Scottish secondary education, where traditionally five Highers are studied, compared to (typically) three English or Welsh A-Levels.
Alone among Canadian provinces and territories, British Columbia offers two-year associate degrees, allowing credit to be transferred into a four-year bachelor's program.
[121] In Canada, first professional degrees such as DDS, MD, PharmD and LLB or JD are considered bachelor's level qualifications, despite their often being named as if they were doctorates.
These courses last 4–12 months and are a means to further study without continuing to the next degree level, and are usually to demonstrate that students are staying up-to-date in their fields.
In the United States, since the late 19th century, the threefold degree system of bachelor's, master's, and doctorate has been in place but has evolved into a slightly different pattern from the European equivalent.
Admission as an undergraduate student to most top public or private universities in Brazil requires that the applicant pass a competitive entrance examination known as the Vestibular.
Some universities require that candidates take entrance exams; others make admission decisions based solely on undergraduate transcripts, letters of recommendation and possibly oral interviews.
Finally, a small number of Brazilian universities, most notably the public universities in the state of São Paulo, still award the title of Livre-Docente [pt] (free docent), which is of higher standing than a doctorate and is obtained, similar to the German Habilitation, by the submission of a second (original or cumulative) thesis and approval in a Livre-Docência examination that includes giving a public lecture before a panel of full professors.
A pontifical university specifically addresses Christian revelation and disciplines correlative to the evangelical mission of the Church as set out in Sapientia christiana.
