What are "BS" and "BA" degrees?

Question

Simply put: what does "BS" and "BA" stand for in relation to degrees? I think they are both some sort of bachelor degree? And what is the difference between them? Where I'm from I've only heard about "Bachelor's degree" and haven't heard of different versions of it.

Take for instance these physics study programs in Norway:

• NTNU

• UiB

They only say "Bachelors degree" and not if it is a "BS" or "BA". I don't think we have these two concepts in Norway.

I first encountered this here: What do "minor" and "major" mean (in relation to degrees)?

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To my inderstanding, a "BS" degree is more "thorough" (just requires more credits in your area of study), while a "BA" is more "relaxed" and requires less credits in your area of study (so it's easier to get two BA's than two BS')?

Also (as a side note), another thing I don't quite understand: why was there a need to introduce two versions of a bachelor's degree in the first place? I can see why you would want to differentiate between them when you already have two versions of a degree (so employer can see which you took etc.), but why was there a need for stricter/ more relaxed requirements in the first place? Why not just have one common standard for a bachelors degree?

Answer 1

BS is a bachelors of Science, BA is a bachelors of arts. In most places which you get will depend on what you major in. I say most, as some old universities, like the University of Oxford in the UK will give a BA to almost all undergraduates, even those that study a science subject.

These are the two most common types of bachelors degrees, but other types do exist too in some places.

Answer 2

Like David Smith mentions in a comment, there is no central guidelines for what a "Bachelor of Arts" (BA) vs. "of Science" is (BS or BSc).

Some schools may only award one or the other in a given program, e.g., all degrees from the English department are BAs and all from the chemistry department are BSes. Engineering departments may award Bachelors of Engineering (BEng) degrees; and performing arts programs award Bachelors of Fine Arts (BFAs). (Not an exhaustive list of all Bachelor's of _.) Or, a school may award only BAs or only BSes.

In general, there is no way to compare a BA from School A to a BS in School B, School A may call them "BAs" for historical reason, or maybe they are very different after all.

In some cases, a "BS" might meet accreditation requirements that a "BA" does not in the STEM fields.

Sometimes, departments may award both. Degree requirements would vary in this case, but again, next to impossible to compare between schools. Some examples I am aware of:

• A BA in math for high school teachers; but a BS for anyone else.

• A BS in psychology for research psychologists, but a BA for counselors, graduate study in fields besides psychology (e.g., law, med school).

Broadly speaking the "BA" terminology is tied to the US' history of "liberal arts education," i.e., broader requirements than is common in Europe, such as requiring foreign languages for science students, etc. BSes in general require more science courses, but unless you know the university/program, you can't tell how rigorous someone's science BA was.

The same is somewhat true of master's degrees, an MA vs. an MS is not very informative.

Answer 3

From the question:

They only say "Bachelors degree" and not if it is "BS" or "BA". I don't think we have these two concepts in Norway.

Perhaps not. Still, I suspect Norwegian universities take these concepts into account when translating their degrees. (There might even be more types, like BEng for engineering.) This might be more likely to be spelled out in a central location than under specific programmes of study. Indeed, NTNU's website provides the following information:

Bachelor’s degrees

The bachelor's degree is the lower Norwegian university degree. The English name of a bachelor's degree in the arts, social sciences, music and fine arts is Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated BA). In the natural sciences the equivalent degree is Bachelor of Science (abbreviated BSc) in English. These bachelor's degrees comprise 180 credits and are normally completed in 3 years of full-time study. However, there is also a 4-year bachelor's degree in music performance studies which is worth 240 credits.

I did not find a similar statement on UiB's website, but did find this programme plan document for the physics programme, which spells out that the degree is "Bachelor i naturvitskap" in Norwegian, and "Bachelor of Science" in English. If it's important to you, you can probably get more information by contacting the university directly.

Answer 4

Here in Australia, a BSc is a Bachelor of Science, a three year degree in a STEM subject. A BA is a Bachelor of Arts, a three year degree in a humanities subject. Longer Bachelor’s degrees, including those that result in accreditation for particular professions such as Engineering or Law are called something else (BEng — Bachelor of Engineering and LLB — Bachelor of Laws in those two examples).

Answer 5

This is a concept in the school system in "British and British-inspired" systems which I do not know well.

In Europe we have the Bologna system of qualification. It usually creates a 3 years degree (various names, usually derived from the word license), then an extra 2 years degree (Master) and then a 3+ years degree (Doctorate). We also use points for each hour spent on a subject so that you can have equivalences across universities (to some point)

In France, for example, there are schools that try to promote a meaningless "Bachelor" degree (typically business schools).

Answer 6

In the USA, BS is short for Bachelor of Science degree and is granted for undergraduate (post-secondary) studies focused (majoring) in a technical subject, eg STEM, or social sciences. BA is short for Bachelor of Arts and study is similar in structure to that resulting in a BS, but with a different focal area (major) in arts (typically music, dance, plastic or audiovisual arts) and humanities.

Art schools, like most colleges, are typically of the "liberal art" sort, and most colleges in the USA are "liberal art" schools. The label implies that students are required to acquire a liberal education by taking courses in a broad range of different fields including science, social science, languages and humanities, with additional requirements specific to the choice of major.

The amount of study is typically full-time for four years, roughly the equivalent of 240 credits in a European university. US colleges operate on a semester schedule, with courses running an entire semester and ending with final examinations at the end of each semester (twice a year). Students typically enroll in 4-5 courses per semester. Accelerated or concentrated one-credit courses in the style of those typically offered in European institutions can also be taken in the summer. If one course amounts to 1 credit, a completed education typically requires at minimum 32 credits. A concentration or major, for instance in chemistry, might require 10 credits in that field, with specific courses, typically introductory ones, mandatory, and electives providing the opportunity to specialize in a branch, for instance Physical Chemistry.