学位(degree, academic)

学院和大学为了表示学者完成一门学业或表示学者的学术成就的水准而授予的头衔。中世纪时，欧洲只有两种学位：硕士（master，艺术和文法学者）和博士（docter，哲学、神学、医学和法律学者）。学士学位（baccalaureate或 bachelor's degree）原是指迈向硕士学位前的一个阶段。现今在英美国家的文学士（Bachelor of Arts，简称BA或AB），是授予在学院学习四年的学生；文学硕士（Master of Arts，简称MA）是授予那些再读两年的学生；哲学博士（Doctor of Philosophy，简称Ph.D.）则是授予在那些大学毕业後学习和研究多年的人。20世纪中叶，社区学院开始授予副文学士学位（Associate of Arts ，简称AA）。一般专科领域的学位有法学博士（JD）和医学博士（MD）。荣誉学位是授予有突出贡献的人，而不考虑其学术成就。在法国，业士学位（baccalaureat）是指完成中等教育的学生，学生在大学学习三年或四年後可获得「准许证」（licence）。硕士学位（ma?trise）必须通过进阶考试才能获得。博士学位（doctorat）则要完成多年的进一步学术研究才能获得。在德国，只授予博士学位，对那些不想拿博士学位的人则提供毕业文凭考试。

English version：

degree, academic

Title conferred by a college or university to indicate completion of a course of study or extent of academic achievement. In medieval Europe, there were only two degrees: master (a scholar of arts and grammar) and doctor (a scholar of philosophy, theology, medicine, or law). The baccalaureate, or bachelor's degree, was originally simply a stage toward mastership. Today in Anglo-American countries the Bachelor of Arts degree (BA or AB) is awarded after four years of college study, the Master of Arts (MA) after two additional years, and the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) after several years of post-baccalaureate study and research. In the mid-20th century the Associate of Arts degree (AA) began to be awarded by U.S. community colleges. Common professional degrees are the Doctor of Jurisprudence (JD) and the Doctor of Medicine (M.D.). Honorary degrees are granted without regard to academic achievement. In France the baccalauréat is conferred on the completion of secondary education, the licence on completion of three or four years of university study, the ma?trise on the passing of advanced examinations, and the doctorat on completion of several years of advanced academic studies. In Germany the doctorate is the only degree granted, though diploma examinations are offered to students who forgo the doctoral requirements.

参考文章

• 学位、学衔的由来文学