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A question about Scottish degrees.

Why are they 4 years long as opposed to 3 years? I realise they're technically Masters, but they're equivalent to Bachelor's in England.
Reply 1
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tooti
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Because the qualifications the majority of Scottish students study (highers) are not equivalent to A-levels, so the first year at Scottish universities sort of helps us 'catch up' to English students. So both are Bachelor's but one takes longer due to the different school systems.

But some Scottish students study advanced highers which I think are technically more difficult than A-levels, and these can help them to skip the first year of uni. (it might depend on which uni they go to i'm not sure.)
Reply 2
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atticus_
Original post by tooti
Because the qualifications the majority of Scottish students study (highers) are not equivalent to A-levels, so the first year at Scottish universities sort of helps us 'catch up' to English students. So both are Bachelor's but one takes longer due to the different school systems.

But some Scottish students study advanced highers which I think are technically more difficult than A-levels, and these can help them to skip the first year of uni. (it might depend on which uni they go to i'm not sure.)


I didn't know that. So why do they call them Masters? And why do international students start at year 1, too?
Reply 3
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tooti
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Original post by atticus_
I didn't know that. So why do they call them Masters? And why do international students start at year 1, too?


They are called bachelors degrees and they take 4 years, unless there are exceptions that I don't know about? I'm studying immunology & microbiology Bsc (hons) that takes 4 years and it definitely is not a Masters.

I'm not sure why international students start at year 1, contact the uni to find out.
Most 4 year degrees are bachelor's degrees in Scotland, however a few are combined Masters and Bachelor's like MPharm which is also 4 years.
Sometimes you start at year 1 even with the capability to start at year 2 because it gives you the chance to study more subjects in first and second year - you can usually take 3 subjects and then eventually narrow it down to just your degree subject. Obviously this doesn't apply with medicine and the like.
Original post by atticus_
I didn't know that. So why do they call them Masters? And why do international students start at year 1, too?

Only undergraduate degrees in humanities and arts subjects from the ancient Scottish universities are called Masters.
Reply 7
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atticus_
Original post by tooti
They are called bachelors degrees and they take 4 years, unless there are exceptions that I don't know about? I'm studying immunology & microbiology Bsc (hons) that takes 4 years and it definitely is not a Masters.

I'm not sure why international students start at year 1, contact the uni to find out.


Original post by BoxesAndBangles
Most 4 year degrees are bachelor's degrees in Scotland, however a few are combined Masters and Bachelor's like MPharm which is also 4 years.



Original post by derangedyoshi
Sometimes you start at year 1 even with the capability to start at year 2 because it gives you the chance to study more subjects in first and second year - you can usually take 3 subjects and then eventually narrow it down to just your degree subject. Obviously this doesn't apply with medicine and the like.



I know they are considered bachelors, I was just asking why they call them Master of Arts (MA). Anyway I did check with Wikipedia and you are all right: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Master_of_Arts_%28Scotland%29

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