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Postgraduate qualifications include doctorates, master’s degrees, and postgraduate diplomas. Doctorates require intensive research and are the highest academic achievement. Master’s degrees involve completing modules and a dissertation, while postgraduate diplomas are similar to master’s degrees without the dissertation.
A postgraduate qualification is the culmination of a higher education programme, usually undertaken at an accredited academic institution. In terms of the hierarchy of postgraduate qualifications, the highest form of this type of qualification is the doctorate – this is the highest qualification a person can obtain from an academic institution. The master’s degree is the second highest graduate qualification obtainable, and the postgraduate diploma is the lowest of the postgraduate qualifications. Typically, a student must complete an undergraduate degree before they can study for postgraduate qualifications.
There are several types of doctorates, for which the student must undertake an intensive level of study. These include Doctor of Philosophy, Doctor of Science and Doctor of Management. The most commonly recognizable is the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD or DPhil) qualification, awarded to students in a variety of academic disciplines from physics to psychology. PhDs are awarded to students who successfully complete an original research thesis, typically 80,000 to 100,000 words, in their chosen discipline. Obtaining a PhD is recognized globally as the highest form of academic achievement. After an individual completes the doctoral qualification, the honorific – sir, miss, etc. – is replaced by a doctor, regardless of the gender of the graduate.
A Master’s ranks second on the Graduate Leaderboard; Recognizable master’s degrees are the Master of Arts (MA), Master of Science (MS) and Master of Business Administration (MBA). It typically involves the completion of several modules, in which the student must complete a variety of assignments and exams in their chosen subject. Upon completion of the modules by the student, he or she must complete a thesis, also known as a dissertation. The dissertation is similar in nature to the doctoral thesis, although it is not as intensive in terms of research and thesis length required.
The postgraduate diploma is a higher level than the undergraduate degree and is the lowest of the postgraduate qualifications. In a typical scenario, a graduate degree can be considered a master’s degree without the final dissertation project. A student can study the exact same modules as a master’s student, but if they choose not to complete the required dissertation for a master’s degree, they will receive a postgraduate degree. A student who has received a graduate degree may be able to undertake a dissertation project at a later date.
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