BA and BS ? Clarification please :)?

Question

I want to study psychology and get my degree and certification to become a psychologist. One thing I've always wondered about was the bachelor degrees required to extend my education. They never really explained them to us in highschool so I was left kind of open minded about what it actually consisted of.

What exactly is a Bachelor of Science or Arts? What does it consist of, how long does it take to achieve it, and how would this relate to my psychology studies? What is the difference between a BS and a BA?

I live in Canada ( Nova Scotia). I know there are differences in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, as well as the USA in terms of Bs, and Ba's.

Any help or enlightenment would be super, thanks!

Answer 1

Generally, in the US:

a BA requires 75% of the 120 credits taken fpr the degree to be in the "liberal Arts".

a BS requires that 50% of the 120 credits taken for the degree be in the "liberal arts".

For a discussion on liberal arts, I recommend the NYSED publication:

www.highered.nysed.gov/ocue/04/liberal...

It may not apply to all states or canada, but it should give you a better idea.

Answer 2

BA is Bachelor of Arts and usually you have taken a foreign language while obtaining it. BS (Bullsh*t degree- Ihave one) you don't have the foreign language requirement

Answer 3

Both a BA and a BS are Bachelors degrees, and take 4 years to complete.  They reflect a difference in emphasis: whether you took a major in the humanities or arts versus a major in the sciences.  Some degrees (e.g., a degree in psychology) will vary across schools: some will offer a BS and others offer a BA.  This has little to do with the value of the degree, or the options you have later.

Answer 4

Well to take a crack at it...

A bachelor's degree simply implies a level of specialization in a given field. I don't know how similar Canadian and American schools are so it's really important that you check in with schools you're looking at attending for specific and accurate information.

However, in the States (and speaking from experience in Oregon universities)...

A bachelor's of arts means that your supplementary courses (a core of classes you take aside from your major) are focused on the arts - thinks like writing, foreign languages, and social sciences. A bachelor's of science means that your supplementary courses are focused on the sciences - things like sciences, computers, and math.

The requirements for the degree (and any additional general requirements and department requirements) vary by school and, of course, by country. My school was on quarters and affected the way our requirements worked relative to schools on semesters.

Here are the requirements for a degree in the college of liberal arts at my university:

* 180 credits, at least 60 upper-division (junior/senior level)

* degree requirements (typically 45-55 credits)

* college requirements (college means department in this sense and each group of majors has a core to complete in addition to the general core)

* bacc core (general requirements no matter your major)

Between all of the required courses and any minors or changed majors, not a lot of people have elective credits to fulfill the 180 credits, but some do. It just depends.

I think your degree in psychology will depend on the school and what emphasis it places on the different fields within psychology. I would definitely check in with some potential schools about the requirements and the FAQs section generally answers questions about career options. Just follow the "prospective" or "future" students tabs from the homepage.

Lastly, just so you have something to see I am including the link to the liberal arts (the college that psychology is in) FAQs:

http://oregonstate.edu/cla/student_servi...

and the psychology program:

http://oregonstate.edu/cla/psychology/

No pressure of course to look at Oregon State - but I thought it might give you a rough idea of how a psychology degree works and what you could use it for. Hope that helps.

Good luck! :)

Answer 5

In the U.S., the distinction is made by the degree-granting department.  There is no substantive difference between the degrees themselves (they are considered to be of the same level and value).  In fact, it can be somewheat arbitrary.  For example, at my university, the Biology Department changed its degree from BA to BS, and for a couple of years during the transition period, they offered both degrees and left it to the student to choose.  Some schools formally award two degrees if you double major.

In any case, the bachelor's degree (either BA or BS) generally takes 4 years at full-time.

I believe the system is very similar in Canada, and I'm certain that the degrees take the same amount of time to complete.  Howver, there may be some little idiosyncrasies you might want to look into.

Good luck!