Bachelor of Science
A
Bachelor of Science (
B.S.,
B.Sc. or less commonly,
S.B. or
Sc.B. from the
Latin Scientiae Baccalaureus) is an
undergraduate academic degree awarded for courses taken that generally last three years in the
Republic of Ireland,
Australia,
England,
Germany,
Hong Kong,
India,
Israel,
The Netherlands,
New Zealand,
Northern Ireland,
Quebec,
Malaysia,
Singapore,
Switzerland,
Wales and
South Africa; or four years in
North America,
Iceland,
Japan,
Pakistan, the
Philippines and
Scotland.
In
North America, a Bachelor of Science degree may be used as a more specialized version of
B.A., with more focus on the subject and less on a broad
liberal arts background; for example, a B.S. in economics may require several more advanced economics courses than a B.A. in economics, and possibly more support courses (such as statistics). The B.S. is also frequently used for professional areas of study such as engineering, journalism, and advertising.
In the UK, which subjects are considered science subjects varies, e.g. economics degrees may be
B.A. in one university but B.Sc. in another. In addition, some universities, like the
London School of Economics, offer the B.Sc. in practically all subject areas even when they are normally associated with arts degrees, while others award arts qualifications almost exclusively, namely the
Oxbridge universities. In both instances, this is generally for historical and traditional reasons. A Bachelor of Science receives the designation B.Sc. or B.S. for a major/pass degree and B.Sc. (Hons) or B.S. (Hon) for an
honours degree.
In Germany there is no ordinary Bachelor. The B.Sc. from Germany is equivalent to a B.Sc. (Hon).
Formerly in the
University of Oxford, the degree of B.Sc. was a postgraduate degree. This former degree, still actively granted, has since been renamed M.Sc.
*
Bachelor of Arts*
Bachelor's degree*
Bologna process*
British undergraduate degree classification*
British degree abbreviations
