What is Bachelor Degree?
A Bachelor Degree is an Undergraduate Academic Degree which is awarded to a student upon the completion of a chosen Bachelor Degree Course. It is the ‘First Academic Degree and Widely Accepted One’, which a student earns in his Career.
Bachelor Degree Definition
An academic degree conferred on someone who has successfully completed undergraduate studies (thefreedictionary).
An academic degree conferred by a college or university upon those who complete the undergraduate curriculum (yourdictionary).
A bachelor’s degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years. (wikipedia)
There are various types of bachelor degree and bachelor degree requirements needed.
Almost all the Bachelor Degree Programs in India, require 10+2 pass from a recognised Education Board. Similarly, almost all the Bachelor Degree Courses are of 3 years duration, barring a few like B.Sc. (Agriculture) 4 years duration, Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch.) 5 years duration, Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine & Surgery (B.A.M.S.) 5.5 years and few others. Most of the 3+ Bachelors Degree are from the engineering or science stream. A Three-year bachelor degree comes under the 10+2+3 Pattern of Indian Education System. A Graduate Degree is as such awarded only after the completion of the term. Bachelor Degree is also known as ‘Undergraduate Degree’ because candidates cannot be conferred the Degree before the completion of the course. Bachelor Degrees in India are mostly awarded by Universities and or Institutes recognised by UGC, while the affiliating institutes (colleges etc.) indulge in imparting the study of curriculum only. UGC of India is a statutory organisation set up by Union government. It sets the minimum standards required by an institute to earn degree-awarding powers. According to one estimate there are 342 Degree Granting Institutes’ in India. Bachelor of Arts (BA) and Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) Degrees are the most commonly awarded in India. But the most prestigious or popular bachelor degrees are Bachelor of Engineering – Bachelor of Technology (B.E./B.Tech.), Bachelor of Computer Applications (B.C.A.), Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (M.B.B.S.) and some others. For getting admission into the above and others bachelor’s degree course in engineering, medical and few agricultural, computer science degree programs on has to successfully compete in various entrance exams. https://careermarg.in/category/entrance-exam/
World Education Services (WES), a non-profit organization recognizes Indian 3-year Bachelor’s Degrees as equivalent to U.S. Bachelor’s degrees when the following conditions are met:
The degrees have been earned in Division I and II
The awarding institutions have been accredited by India’s National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) with a grade of “A” or better (see explanation following)
Please note: this equivalency applies only to institutions accredited by the NAAC. It takes into consideration the relative standing of a university as reflected by the NAAC grade, and the individual degree holder’s performance as indicated by the degree classification of the degree.
WES continues to regard all other 3 Year Degrees from India as equivalent to 30 years of undergraduate study of U.S.
Bachelor Degree Requirements
|Academic Requirement: Most of the Bachelor Degree Programs require 10+2, 12thClass Pass, H.S.C. or completion of Secondary School. Some Professional Bachelor Degrees require Graduation or equivalent Diploma.|
|Percentage Requirement: Percentage requirement for admission in various Bachelor Degree Courses vary as per an institute’s regulations. Percentage requirement for Graduate Degree in various disciplines also vary. Mostly, it is between 40-55%. Similarly, an admitted student, who fails to acquire a specific aggregate percentage or grade inclusive of all semesters is not eligible for acquiring a bachelors degree.|
|Entrance Test Requirement: Professional Courses require a student to pass certain entrance tests before being admitted into an institute. For example, AIEEE is conducted for admission to Engineering, Architecture, Planning and Pharmacy degree courses in various engineering colleges and institutes spread all over India. Some institute also conduct Group discussion and or interview.|
|Age Requirement: The minimum age to get admitted for an Undergraduate Degree program is 17-21 years depending on the bachelor degree programs. The maximum age limit of bachelor degree courses varies from course to course and institute to institute. For example – The minimum age limit for admission into a B.Tech. (dairy technology) course is 17 years at the time of joining the course and the upper age limit is 23 years as per National Dairy Research Institute. However, some institutes have no upper age limit for acquiring a degree.|
|Nationality Requirement: Foreign students, who aspire to get BBA degree, need to have passed the GCE “A” level or any other examination equivalent to +2 system of education (12 years of schooling). Similar varying requirements are also needed for other bachelor’s degrees.|
|Study Hour Requirement: For acquiring a bachelor degree, there is a specified duration of study hours, practical’s and credit requirements. Like, the duration of M.B.B.S. extends over a period of 4 ½ academic years which are divided into 9 semesters. Each semester is of 6 months duration. After the completion of academic study, a candidate has to complete 1 year of compulsory rotating internship. Each semester consists of approximately 120 teaching days. To earn a bachelor’s degree, one must complete a minimum number of required and elective courses in the major and minor fields.|
|Time Frame Requirement: There is a certain Time Limit Frame within which a Degree course has to be completed. This duration varies from one bachelor degree to another. For, example – The minimum duration to complete B.Sc. is 3 years and the maximum duration to complete is 6 years.|
Types of Bachelor Degree
Regular or Pass Bachelor Degree – A Regular, Pass, General or Simple Bachelors Degree is on which one doesn’t need to specialise in any particular subject. It is also commonly referred as ‘Full Time Bachelor Degree’ as well because one has to attend specified instruction hours on daily basis and follows other academic rules, like attendance and so on. It is General in the sense that it is not Subject Specific and one can choose a number of combinations of subjects, apart from 1-2 Compulsory Subjects. These combinations vary from institute to institute. It is the most common type of degree because of its flexibility in choice of elective subjects. The award of Pass degrees in the arts, sciences or commerce is based on the study of English and one Indian language in addition to two or three other subject areas. Students who complete the three-year program are awarded a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science or Bachelor of Commerce (B.A., B.Sc., B.Com).
Honours Bachelor Degree – Honours Bachelor Degree is one, in which students focus on an area of specialization in the third year after completing core courses in the second year. As such, honours bachelor degree course has a higher academic standard course as it requires in-depth study of the chosen subject matter. For example – B.A. (Hons) Social Work means one acquires Bachelor of Arts with Honours (specialisation) in Social Work. It is ranked above the Simple, Pass, General or Ordinary Bachelors Course. Honours bachelor degree is mostly pursued by enthusiast students as they want to specialise in a particular subject and this requires extra study. That is why not everyone opts for this degree course. Also, not all institutes offer honours bachelor degree program and not all institute offer honours in all subjects.
Professional Bachelor Degree – Professional Bachelor Degree is one which requires extensive education related to the course opted. Because, they provide extensive education they require longer periods of study than the simple, pass or standard bachelor’s degree. However, the course material of professional bachelor degree is not only professional it is academic as well. Amongst these professional bachelor degrees are the one’s which require graduation as a prerequisite for admission and joining the bachelor degree program. Some of these are of lesser duration than 4-5 years as compared to most of the professional bachelor degree programs. Those which require graduation as eligibility are known as Second Degree Programs and those which require 10+2 as eligibility, are known as First Degree Programs. Thus, B.Ed., L.L.B., B.Lib.Sc. etc. are Second Degrees and others like B.Tech., M.B.B.S., B.D.S. etc are First Degrees.
Dual Bachelor Degree – Dual Bachelor Degree is the one which requires a Single Course of Study but the degree awarded is equivalent to 2 Degrees in a shorter span of time. For example – B. Tech.- M. Tech. Dual Degree Course requires only 5 years of education whereas, if these were to be pursued individually they would require 6 years of study (4 for B. Tech. + 2 for M. Tech.) This saves a candidate a year and plus two degrees. Because of their dual nature they are known as Double Degree Courses in India. Dual degrees were introduced by the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) with an aim to encourage research among under-graduate students. The main aim of this bachelor degree is to make students more research oriented and take up further research in the branch of their study. The concept of Dual Bachelor Degree has been influenced by Foreign Education systems where such degrees were a norm, since long. Indian students would study abroad to take benefit of these degrees and to counter this trend, these were introduced in the Indian education system as well. Dual Degrees in India are also Interdisciplinary. For example – B. Tech.-M.B.A. (Dual Degree) Programme integrates technology with management concepts and practices for effective decision making.
Distance Learning Bachelor Degree – Distance Bachelor Degree is the one which can be pursued through correspondence, i.e. through lectures, notes or literature delivered through post, T.V., video cassettes, CD’s, DVD’s, internet etc. For acquiring Distance Learning Bachelor Degree, one does no need to follow the conventional norms as compared to Full Time or General Degree. The courses of Distance Bachelor Degree are also referred as Part Time Degree Courses or Correspondence Degree Courses. In various set-ups there are study centres where students can attend a limited number of classes on weekly, monthly, yearly basis etc. Majority of the bachelor degree distance learning is offered by Open Universities. Distance Learning Bachelor Degree in India is very popular as it provides one a comfort of studying at one’s own pace and will. These are mostly pursued by working professionals who do not have the time to go for regular classes. However, these Courses have lesser value than the Regular Courses. Amongst the distance learning bachelor degrees are Online Bachelor Degrees or Online Undergraduate Degree. It is a type of bachelor degree whose majority of curriculum is imparted through Internet. Online Bachelor Degree Programs are yet to gain the repute which conventional bachelor academic degree has. Online Undergraduate Degree is also yet to gain the trust of the common people.
Associate Bachelor Degree – Associate Bachelor Degree is a degree which is awarded by community college run by charitable trusts, missionaries etc. These are called associate degrees because it contains 40 pc of the content of a regular degree. The community college framework is not institutionalized in India. IGNOU may offer the associate degree through these colleges after they get recognition, depending on infrastructure availability, faculty and programmes as per Vice-Chancellor of IGNOU. IGNOU also plans to establish its own community colleges and will approve some existing ones to offer the associate degree. The associate degree will empower a candidate to be eligible for the regular degree programme of a university. The university will consider academic programmes such as associate arts, science, computer science, commerce and business administration. Graduates with a two-year diploma that is approved by AICTE may also be allowed to complete the left-out courses after evaluating equivalence of the courses completed in the diploma programme. Madras Centre for Research and Development of Community Education is known for setting up 111 colleges in India. Dr. Xavier Alphonse, the brain behind the idea in India defines Associate Degree as a Degree whose system of education is alternative in nature and is meant to empower the socially, economically and educationally disadvantaged. It is meant to develop skills based on each individual’s capacity. Anyone can join – school dropouts, degree holders who want to learn a particular skill and even students from the rural areas. Anyone from the age group of 16 to 47 years can enrol.
Best Bachelor Degree
B.Tech. – Computer Science and Engineering – Bachelor of Engineering Degree or Bachelor of Technology Degree is among the best bachelor degree. B.E. or B.Tech. degree is awarded in various engineering disciplines. And amongst these disciplines is the B.Tech. in Computer Science and Engineering.
Bachelors in Business Administration – Also known as Bachelor in Business Administration or Bachelor Degree in Business Administration or more popularly as B.B.A. is also best bachelor degree which Indian universities offer.
Bachelor Degree in Computer Science – More appropriately Bachelor of Computer Application or B.C.A. is also another Best Bachelor Degree.
Bachelor of Engineering in Electronics Communication Engineering – B.E – Electronics Communication Engineering
Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering – B.E – Mechanical Engineering
Bachelor of Technology – B. Tech. – Information Technology
Bachelor of Pharmacy – B. Pharm.
Bachelor of Commerce – Popularly known as B.Com.
Bachelor of Business Management – B.B.M. – Business Management
Bachelor of Education – B.Ed.
Bachelors of Science – B.Sc.
Bachelor Degree in Psychology – B.A. (Psychology)
Bachelor of Arts – B.A.
List of Bachelor Degrees
- Bachelor of Agriculture (B.Sc. (Agriculture))
- Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch.)
- Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)
- Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine & Surgery (B.A.M.S.)
- Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A.)
- Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com.)
- Bachelor of Computer Applications (B.C.A.)
- Bachelor of Computer Science (B.Sc. (Computer Science))
- Bachelor of Dental Surgery (B.D.S.)
- Bachelor of Design (B.Des. – B.D.)
- Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.)
- Bachelor of Engineering – Bachelor of Technology (B.E./B.Tech.)
- Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA – BVA)
- Bachelor of Fisheries Science (B.F.Sc. – B.Sc. (Fisheries))
- Bachelor of Home Science (B.A. – B.Sc. (Home Science))
- Bachelor of Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery (B.H.M.S.)
- Bachelor of Laws (L.L.B.)
- Bachelor of Library Science (B.Lib. – B.Lib.Sc.)
- Bachelor of Mass Communications (B.M.C. – B.M.M.)
- Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (M.B.B.S.)
- Bachelor of Nursing (B.Sc. (Nursing))
- Bachelor of Pharmacy (B.Pharm)
- Bachelor of Physical Education (B.P.Ed.)
- Bachelor of Physiotherapy (B.P.T.)
- Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.)
- Bachelor of Social Work (BSW or B.A. (SW))
- Bachelor of Veterinary Science & Animal Husbandry (B.V.Sc.)