Academic training does not end after obtaining the degree or the bachelor’s degree. After that, there are other opportunities to continue building your academic resume. However, the alternatives are diverse, and sometimes they can be confusing.

In this article we’ll review the main differences between postgraduate and master’s degrees and look at the individual concepts of each of these alternatives.

What are graduate studies?

Postgraduate studies are all those studies that can be taken after the completion of an undergraduate degree. That is, to be able to access these studies the most common thing is to have completed a university degree . Some good examples of postgraduate studies are: diplomas, specializations, master’s degrees and doctorates.

The differences between postgraduate and master’s degrees can be given depending on the area of study of the degree course we have taken; then we can access a variety of postgraduate studies, which are specifically selected to complement the learning we have already obtained from our base course.

There are also alternatives of a more flexible nature, which allow professionals from various careers to study them; they are not within any specific area of knowledge, but are accessible to almost any professional who wishes to be trained in that branch.

Apart from these alternatives, there are also professional updating courses that are given from time to time to keep those who belong to the academic guilds in any area up to date.

What is the master’s degree?

The Master’s degree is part of the postgraduate studies. However, the main difference between this alternative and some others (such as the diploma courses) is the level of complexity that each one has.

While the graduates represent a specific and punctual knowledge on some subject, the masters represent a deeper level in terms of preparation in a branch of knowledge .

A Master’s degree, therefore, involves moving up a step within your academic rank, taking into account the number of hours of study to be completed (more than 150), the level of complexity, and the requirements that must be met in order to be able to enter the course.

Differences between master’s and postgraduate courses

Let’s see now a list of the main differences between the prostrates and the masters.

1. The requirements

While to enter some postgraduate studies such as diploma and other professional updating courses it is not necessary to have completed the entire university course (it would be enough to be in the last semesters), to access master’s studies, it is necessary to have a university degree.

2. Duration

The duration of the master’s degree is considerably longer compared to other alternatives, taking into account that it represents a higher level of complexity and gives a greater range within the academic scale to those who complete it.

3. The rank it gives

As we have seen before, a master’s degree involves obtaining a higher level within your rank as a professional. In fact, having completed it, the person becomes a Master of Science (MSc) or another field of knowledge, which offers better job prospects .

Graduates, on the other hand, are smaller studies, and only represent a complement to your undergraduate degree.

4. The level of demand

In comparison with smaller alternatives, the master’s degree represents a clear difference in terms of the levels of demand made during the development of the studies .

This responds to the hierarchical order that exists within postgraduate studies. It is assumed that those who are taking this kind of study have previously gone through other academic challenges that have prepared them sufficiently.

Hierarchical order of postgraduate studies

Within the studies that can be taken once the university degree is completed, there is an order of hierarchy, which although it does not always have to be exact as to which is taken first, it is exact as to the level of demand of each one. Let us see what this order looks like.

1. Diploma

This represents a complement to the academic degree received in the undergraduate program, and could even be taken during the last semesters of the university career.

2. Specialization

This is based on preparing the individual academically within a specific area of knowledge . Depending on your university career, you can choose from different specialization alternatives. The degree of complexity of this is lower than that of the master’s degree, but higher than that of the diploma.

3. Master

It is usually taken after completing the specialization; however, sometimes it could be accessed only with the undergraduate degree. As we have seen, it represents a higher level than the previous ones in terms of demand and academic merit.

In this instance the emphasis is mostly on the scientific side. The aim is for the student to leave a significant contribution to the scientific community in his line of research .

4. The Doctorate

This is conceived as the ultimate academic achievement for a professional. In order to access this, you must have a Master’s degree, or otherwise a record of good grades in a specialization, and you must have some research product (thesis or similar).

Bibliographic references:

  • Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy of Language.