{"id":13888,"date":"2022-10-31T10:49:05","date_gmt":"2022-10-31T14:49:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lmshero.com\/?p=13888"},"modified":"2022-12-11T23:34:31","modified_gmt":"2022-12-12T04:34:31","slug":"graduate-vs-postgraduate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lmshero.com\/graduate-vs-postgraduate\/","title":{"rendered":"Graduate vs Postgraduate: Are They Any Different?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

After students acquire their undergraduate degree, they usually have two options; to get a job or continue into advanced studies. But there is a lot of confusion about what a graduate and postgraduate degree are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the reasons for the confusion is that countries have different names for their undergraduate, master’s, and doctorate degree programs. The term “graduate” is also different from “postgraduate”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, you should note that both a graduate degree and a postgraduate degree mean the same thing in the United States. You can use them interchangeably to refer to any degree above the undergraduate degree.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That said, let’s examine the details of a postgraduate or graduate degree in this article.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Difference between a graduate and a postgraduate?<\/h2>\n\n\n
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A graduate is someone who has satisfied the requirements for the award of a degree after completing a course of study in a university or college. Graduates are those with a bachelor’s degree or an associate\u2019s degree<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other hand, postgraduates are students who are undergoing further studies after completing a bachelor’s degree. <\/strong>In other words, anyone running a master’s or doctorate degree program is a postgraduate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although associate’s degree holders are considered graduates, they are not postgraduates if they decide to pursue a bachelor’s degree. Anyone running a bachelor’s degree program is still an undergraduate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is a graduate degree?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A graduate degree is any degree program that’s higher than a bachelor\u2019s degree<\/strong>. The Graduate degree program aims to give students core and in-depth knowledge in an aspect of their field of study.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both master’s degrees and doctoral degrees fall into this category. A master’s degree program takes one to two years of study. Some programs may require that you write a research paper or thesis to graduate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In contrast, a doctorate is the highest level of education for students. It prepares you to become an expert or specialist in a field of study.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It takes four to six years of study to complete. Students are usually required to write a dissertation as a criterion to graduate from a doctoral degree program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To get accepted into a graduate degree program, students must have earned a bachelor’s degree from a college or university.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is a postgraduate degree?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A postgraduate degree actually means the same as a graduate degree. You could refer to a master’s degree or doctorate as a postgraduate degree.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like graduate degrees, post-graduate degrees allow students to continue in specialized studies and enhance their knowledge and expertise in a career path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through research publications, postgraduate studies also add to the knowledge in a field of study leading to the discovery of new knowledge and helping further research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let us look deeper into what a master’s and doctoral degree entails to understand postgraduate programs better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Master\u2019s degree <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A master\u2019s degree is the first graduate degree program you’d take after earning a bachelor’s degree. Most of them require you to write a thesis to graduate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most master’s degree programs also require 40 hours of credit and run for a year in the US and UK, apart from professional master\u2019s programs like architecture and engineering which run for two to three years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Master\u2019s degrees are categorized based on discipline, and they include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n