what is the difference between and undergraduate and a graduate student when it comes to college???

Answer 1

Undergraduate students are working toward their bachelors degrees.

Graduate students already hold bachelors degrees, and are working toward their masters or doctoral degrees.

Answer 2

Well and undergraduate degree is the first degree you get at a college or university, like a Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Business Administration etc.

You cannot go onto graduate school without first having the applicable ' under' graduate degree.

A graduate degree may be a second or third degree, like a Masters in Education, or Science or whatever and then the third step is a post graduate degree like a doctorate. You can't jump from a B.A. to Ph.D, you need to all the degrees to get a doctorate .

Answer 3

From an academic perspective, when you are working towards your undergraduate (bachelor's) degree, you tend to take a broader range of courses in a wide range of areas. You may only "go deep" in the area of your major, and maybe not even so much then. You have more opportunities to explore different topics.

When you are an undergrad, you basically go to class, show up, do the homework, take the tests. If you are motivated, you get to know the professor (good if you want to go to graduate school and need recommendations), but if you are having an off day, and you skip class one day, or don't do the readings one day, no one is going to get mad at you, and it's not going to ruin your reputation.

As a graduate student, you tend to focus very narrowly on one area, because you are doing your own research. When you are a graduate student, you are in the transition from being "a consumer of knowledge" to being "a producer of knowledge." So if you're getting a Ph.D. in English, you pick one area to focus on in depth. Not just British literature, but 19th century British literature, and often only a few authors within that category. If you saw "Stranger Than Fiction," the part where Dustin Hoffman tells Will Ferrell, "I wrote a whole book on "little did he know..."! I taught a class on "little did he know..."!" It was intended to be a joke, but really, it's not that far off.

Professional schools (law school, MBA, med school) are more broad, but still more focused. You aren't going to be taking 17th Century Spanish Art as an MBA student, but could easily explore this as an undergrad, even if you were majoring in biology.

Graduate school classes are much smaller. You aren't going to have the 400 person lecture where you are invisible (not all undergrad programs have this, but 100+ students in a class isn't that unusual even at private universities). Professors in general will get to know you, and your reputation matters more, especially if you are in a Ph.D. program. If you show up to one class (as a Ph.D. student- this isn't true for MBA students, although I am not sure about law and med school) and haven't done your readings, and you are found out, that can ruin your reputation, which can ruin your academic career (if that is what you want). In a Ph.D. program, you need to be "on" all the time.

From a social perspective, graduate school also provides a more focused experience. Graduate school just isn't as social as when you are an undergrad. Some universities are better at this than others. Even if you do interact socially with other students, it is a much smaller pool than you would have interacted with as an undergrad. If you are a psychology Ph.D. student, you might get to know some of the sociology Ph.D. students, but never meet a single computer science Ph.D. student. In grad school, people are older, busier, and often now are married, and sometimes have kids, so may not be dedicating their whole lives outside school to making friends in school.

Answer 4

An undergraduate student does not have a college degree yet. A graduate student has a college degree and is working towards a masters, PhD, MD, DDS, JD etc, etc.

Answer 5

An undergraduate has not graduated at college while a graduate has.

Answer 6

A Graduate Student already has his college degree such as a B.A or a B.F.A or a B.S degree. He or She is now specializing in a major to get his or her master's degree or M.A or M.F.A.

An undergraduate student doesn't have a college degree yet and is working for that B.A, B.F.A or B.S degree.

Answer 7

Undergraduates are trying to get their bachelors degrees in thier chosen major.And Graduates already have bachelors degrees and are trying to get their doctoral or master degrees.

Answer 8

undergraduates have never attended college before and do not have a degree.

graduates have a degree, but are working towards another one or are working to their masters.

Answer 9

I agree with all the other posters.
In addition, I think there's a difference in attitude. Undergrads are usually just out of high school and grad students usually have more life experience. Undergrads typically live on or near campus and go full-time while grad students usually live out on their own and go part-time. Just my experience.

Answer 10

undergrads are working towards a degree, the people who are going to college for their first time. age18-22 Graduates have a degree and are working towards their masters and PhD. age22-26 Graduates pay more than undergrads.