Question:
Why is a bachelor's in Australia only 3 years? Is the US bachelor's equivalent to an Australian Masters?
anonymous
2011-03-31 06:06:01 UTC
In the US it takes at least 4 years to obtain your bachelors if you go full-time. If you take 12 units per semester (full-time), you will be done after 10 semesters. That's 5 years!

I know it's actually only 3 years throughout most of the world. I'm assuming that people will say how good their High School system is, but even countries like Mexico and third world countries offer a 3 year bachelor's. So I doubt it's only based on that.

Is the bachelor's from the States seen as a Masters then in Australia? I know that US schools require a Masters from Australian universities, but only a bachelor's from US schools.
Eight answers:
C.M. C
2011-04-03 19:06:36 UTC
The Graduate., where we finish high school, then go to college, then University, The Australian System is more stream lined as compared to us. Also the Australian University System as reputed world wide, as being one of the better learning systems, thus why a higher amount of international students over there.
desquare
2016-12-16 09:13:53 UTC
Australian Bachelor Degree
Clever Cloggs
2011-04-02 09:28:48 UTC
Some Australian bachelors degrees are more than 3 years. Three is generally the minimum (unless expedited by summer courses and overloading), but a Bachelor of Liberal Studies is four years, as are some that qualify people for professional practice in an area. Some are 5 or even 6 years. Further, in order to get Honours, it's generally necessary to get a high average mark in the first three years and then do an extra year of study. So, for example, a Bachelor of Arts degree is usually 3 years, and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) is four years.



No, a US Bachelors is not equivalent to an Australian Masters. Generally, the Australian Bachelors degree is the first degree in a subject, or a generalist degree (like BA or BSc) that might precede something like Medicine or Law. An Australian Masters degree is a higher degree in a subject, after the basics have been learned in the Bachelors degree. However, something like an MBA might not require a first degree in business, but just a relevant first degree, so it depends a little on your subject area. I believe this is similar in the US.



US exchange students from bachelors programs at top schools like Harvard and Berkeley who attend good Australian universities tend to be no more advanced, and sometimes less advanced, than good students doing the equivalent bachelors courses at good Australian universities. The bachelors courses of top schools in both places seem to be of a similar quality. [probably, on average, the Australian Year 12 high school graduate has a broader, deeper education than the average US high school graduate, but of course there are good and bad schools in both places. Sadly, I fear the Australian standard is slipping as the schools become obsessed with standardised tests in place of thinking and learning]



Someone else said Australian Masters degrees are not that useful in Australia and are just for foreign students. In my experience, that's simply not true. A masters degree from one of the good Australian universities can make someone hugely more employable. In some areas (such as law and biological sciences), your career is likely to be hindered by not having further qualifications beyond a bachelors degree. Australian Masters degrees can be extremely rigorous, and most of my Masters students are local Australian students who are wanting to improve their qualifications and be more highly regarded. They must write 8,000 word papers (or equivalent) for each subject, and the exams are at least as difficult as those for equivalent courses in the US.



HOWEVER, there has been press coverage of degrees, especially at some of the less prestigious universities, that were basically created so that education could be sold to foreign students. These were particularly tied to the old immigration system that allowed people to apply for Permanent Residency if they'd studied certain subjects in Australia. This discredited system has been revamped in the last 12 months. I understand that this has led to a drop in foreign enrolments in such courses, which is leading to some of those courses being phased out. Thank goodness for this. In my opinion, those dud-degrees did a lot to damage the reputation of Australian tertiary education, which is very unfair when the rigour of Australian degrees from good universities generally compare favourably to those of good degrees just about anywhere else.
toomba
2011-03-31 11:14:49 UTC
For many years it was actually the other way around - an Australian Bachelors was seen as the same as an American Masters - due to the difficulty, amount of contact hours and the specialisation that we do from year 1 that is not seen in a US degree. However, Australian degrees are being dumbed down now so that is no longer the case



Your high school education was not really worse but it is not to the standard as Australian high schools. That is because your schools curricula is set by some part by the school districts and there is no way to determine whether an A average at school A is the same as an A average in an exclusive private school B. That is why you have the SATs to even things out and require students to complete compulsory requirements (English, Science etc) in their first year at university.



The first year in a US degree is mostly evening out your high school education. This is not required in Australia as our high schools are evened out through the HSC, Matric etc that our schools undertake in year 11/12. For instance if you are taking year 12 biology - every one who takes this subject will sit down for a 3 hour biology exam at the same time, time test and that test will be marked by state examiners and everyone will be be graded accordingly. As such the curriculum in the state school and exclusive private school covers the same progress (almost week by week). There is no need for the AP classes that you have in the US to give students a push up - our standard courses (English, Maths, Sciences) are all equal to the AP level - standard students do not do the HSC they sit technical subjects.



The other difference is that Australian degrees are specialised from the state - you dont do a Bachelor of Science - you do a Bachelor of Biotechnology (Food Technology or Animal Science or Plant technology). We specialise at the Bachelors level whereas in the US that is what you do a Masters for (Australian rarely do Masters - its seen as not an advantage at all - only international students fill our Masters classes).



During my time as a uni admin, US Bachelor exchange students who had completed their first year only, were place in our first year classes - the first year at the US unis were not counted towards completing an Australian Bachelors.
?
2016-11-16 14:13:03 UTC
In Australia to be admitted rapidly into the PhD software you want a 4 300 and sixty 5 days honors degree or a three 300 and sixty 5 days degree + an extra honors 300 and sixty 5 days (4 years) for direct get admission to into Phd software. An Australian Masters degree is bigger than a united statesBachelors degree. to income get admission to right into a Masters degree you want a minimum of a three 300 and sixty 5 days degree besides as suitable artwork journey for some classes. some Masters classes inclusive of an MBA in Australia enable direct get admission to without an undergraduate degree in case you have suitable artwork journey often 10+ years. common maximum Universities are particularly versatile as they like your money so tell them what you prefer to do and many of the time they assist you to do the direction.
fruitsalad
2011-03-31 08:21:09 UTC
Australian degrees are a lot more rigorous than American ones, and many Aussie degrees are four years.



You may be doing very well and very well educated, but American high school graduates are less educated on average than high school graduates of many other developed countries such including Australia. Australia is ranked number 1 in the world on the Education Index, the US is 20th.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Education_Index
?
2011-03-31 06:27:14 UTC
the us system is a year behind the australian system

1st year college is equivalent to year 12 high school here



alternatively you have an american view instead of asking why are we different from the usa perhaps why not ask , why is the usa different from australia



they are different systems, your systems compels people to get a BA as a base degree, why?
anonymous
2011-04-02 08:42:43 UTC
fruitsalad: That is a weird list. Cuba is #1 on there also. My country ranks much lower than Cuba, but I know it's better.


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