what determines a degree?

Question

How many credit hours are needed for bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees? What degree is awarded upon graduation from a standard four year college?

Answer 1

Every school assigns credits differently, so there's no set amount. Generally, to get a 4-year degree, you'd have taken and passed about 4 classes a semester for 4 years. That's a bachelors degree. With the masters, it's usually an additional two years of coursework, 2 or 3 classes a semester. A PhD is awarded more based on your research than on how many credits you've taken.

Answer 2

In the US (the EU and UK systems are different);

An associates degree takes about 2 years and is about 60 semester hours.

A bachelor's degree takes about 4 years and is about 120 semester hours. Some (such as engineering, education, and architecture) can run near 150 hours and take 5 years.

A master's degree comes after the bachelor's and takes 1-2 years of full time study. They require at least 30 semester hours but some (MBA) often require 45 and some require even more hours up to about 60.

A doctorate can come either after the master's or bachelor's. They often take 3-5 years beyond the master's and require 70-90 semester hours after the bachelor's with completion and defense of a dissertation. Requirements for the doctorate vary widely from school-to-school.

The degree awarded on completion of a "standard four year college" is the bachelor's degree. It can be a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Fine Arts, Bachelor of Applied Science, Bachelor of Engineering, Bachelor of Education, Bachelor of Music, etc.... They are all bachelor's degrees requiring 120-150 semester hours of classes and 4-5 years of full-time study to complete.