Understanding the lingo

It’s important to understand some basic terminology and the general structure of a university education. Below, you’ll see a table which outlines the structure of academic programmes at university. The degrees in the boxes are several examples of the types of degrees.

University programmes are divided into two distinct types. One type involves programmes which are designed to specific professional training. Students seeking qualifications to practice in a specific vocation often take these. For example, students wishing to become engineers need to study in an engineering programme to become qualified. The second type (which I will call philosophical) allows students explore and study subjects from a theoretical perspective. A student who studies Chemistry is not specifically trained to become a chemist but is exploring the discipline from a theoretical perspective.

The first degree a student pursues in university is called an undergraduate degree. Typically an undergraduate degree takes four years but there are degrees which can take from three up to five years to complete. Students who pursue further degrees following their undergraduate studies are studying at the graduate level.