Master's degree

A master's degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded after the completion of an academic program of one to six years in duration.

In the recently standardized European system of higher education diplomas, it corresponds to a one to two year (60 to 120 ECTS credits) postgraduate program undertaken after at least three years of undergraduate studies. It provides higher qualification for employment or prepares for doctoral studies. In the USA and Canada, a master's degree entails a one- or two–year course in which students would normally enroll after completing a bachelor's degree.

However, in some European countries, a magister is a first degree and may be considered equivalent to a modern (standardized) master's degree (e.g., the German university Diplom/Magister, or the similar 5-year diploma awarded in several subjects in Greek, Spanish, Italian, and other universities and polytechnics). In the Francophone countries, a DEA is the postgraduate degree and considered equivalent to the master's degree (e.g, In France, the French-Speaking Switzerland and Belgium a DEA is 1-2 years degree taken after the Licence), after the application of  Bologna process the DEA had been given a new name: MAS (Master of Advanced Studies).

The master of arts (magister artium), master of science (magister scientiæ) and Master of Science in Law degrees are the basic degree types in most subjects, and they may be course-based, research-based, or (more typically) a mixture of the two. A dissertation may or may not be required, depending on the program. There are also degrees of the same level, such as engineer's degrees, which have different names for historical reasons.

Admission to a master's program normally requires holding a bachelor's degree (in the United Kingdom an 'honours' bachelor degree), although relevant work experience may qualify a candidate. Progressing to a doctoral program sometimes requires that the candidate first earn a master's degree. In some fields or postgraduate programs, work on a doctorate begins immediately after the bachelor's degree, but the master's may be earned along the way, as a result of the successful completion of coursework and certain examinations. In some cases the student's bachelor's degree must be in the same subject as the intended master's degree, or in a closely allied discipline; in others, the subject of the bachelor's degree is unimportant.

There has recently been an increase in programs leading to these degrees in the United States; more than twice as many such degrees are now awarded as compared to the 1970s. Some university programmes provide for a joint bachelor's and master's degree after four or five years.

Variant titles and abbreviations
In some languages, a master's degree is called a magister, which is Latin for master (teacher), and magister or a cognate can also be used for a person who has the degree. Some universities use the Latin degree names, and because of the flexibility of word order in Latin, artium magister (A.M.) or scientiæ magister (S.M.) may be used; Harvard University and the University of Chicago for instance, use A.M. and S.M. for their master's degrees and MIT uses S.M. for its master of science degrees. Master of Science often is abbreviated MS in the USA and MSc or M.Sc. in Commonwealth nations and Europe.

List of degrees

 * Master of accountancy
 * Master of architecture
 * Master of arts in teaching
 * Master of Astronomy
 * Master of business administration
 * Master of business and engineering
 * Master of business and technology
 * Master of business informatics
 * Master of chemistry
 * Master of commerce
 * Master of communication technology and policy
 * Master of Customs Administration
 * Master of divinity
 * Master of economics


 * Master of education
 * Master of engineering
 * Master of engineering management
 * Master of enterprise
 * Master of entertainment technology
 * Master of european studies
 * Master of finance
 * Master of fine arts
 * Master of health administration
 * Master of Health Science
 * Master of Human Relations
 * Master of Human Resources Management
 * Master of arts in history
 * Master of information and operations management
 * Master of innovation and entrepreneurship
 * Master of international business
 * Master of Journalism


 * Master of Laws
 * Master of Studies in Law
 * Master of liberal arts
 * Master of library and information science
 * Master of Management Information Systems
 * Master of Management
 * Master of Management Sciences
 * Master of mathematics
 * Master of music
 * Master of Nursing
 * Master of pharmacy
 * Master of philosophy
 * Master of physics


 * Master of public administration
 * Master of public health
 * Master of public policy
 * Master of Research
 * Master of Science
 * Master of social science
 * Master of Social Work
 * Master of Taxation
 * Master of Theology
 * Master of urban planning
 * Master of Veterinary Science