I have just started my M.A. studies

[Asher]

Only silly people are concerned with the names of degrees, it's what you do with them that matters.

The names of degrees are kinda important in getting to be able to do things with them.

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by Drogue
Only silly people are concerned with the names of degrees, it's what you do with them that matters. Well, or you get very confused, when a bachelors in civil law, music, divinity and philosophy are postgraduate degrees and a master of arts is an undergraduate degree. Oxford.

Names of degrees matter because they indicate what you've done to get them.

I know it's different in different places (and even knew about the Oxbridge MA < - > BA thing), but it's an indication of your level of academic preparedness and research experience.

The undergraduate degree I got was called a Joint Honours BSc in Mathematics and Physics.

The difference between that and a straight BSc in physics was huge.

I had to take 21 more math&physics credits (7 classes) and the classes I did take were harder (there were two sets of classes for most of the courses; one for regular students and one for honours students). As a result, my GPA was significantly lower than it would have been with equivalent effort in the regular stream.

So it does matter what it says on the degree...

[Addled Platypus]

I thougth it was about a new support group

step into the gutter to join my thought

[BeBMan]

I'm still shocked by the "mandatory religion courses" bit in the OP.

[muxec]

In Israel M.A. and M.Sc. is practically the same thing. Yes, the thesis is "pseudoscientific", you get Ph.D. for scientific thesis.

BeBro, what is OP?

[LordShiva]

Originally posted by muxec
BeBro, what is OP?

Orthopaedic Practice. I too would be shocked to find a mandatory religion course in an OP.

[muxec]

What is the connection to OP?

[LordShiva]

I have no idea. BeBro is strange, that way

[BeBMan]

Originally posted by muxec
In Israel M.A. and M.Sc. is practically the same thing. Yes, the thesis is "pseudoscientific", you get Ph.D. for scientific thesis.

BeBro, what is OP?

opening post

LS

[Jon Miller]

Master's of Arts in Physics are traditionally given part way into doing the work for a PhD.

And actually, in the US, I know of only a few institutions that have a serious masters program. Most are PhD (mainly) programs (which accept only students who are hoped to finish with a PhD).

JM

[Az]

Are you in Bar Ilan U.?

when, your fault, then. Shouldn't have signed up in the first place.

[muxec]

Jon Miller, M.A. physics students here are expected to continue to Ph.D.

Az: Yes, it's Bar-Ilan, and we have many advantages over physics in Tel-Aviv, the number of students per groups is more than 2 times lower, if you disagree with your grade you can appeal directly to the lecturer bypassing the committee. We do not pay for doing M.A. in physics, even the opposite. It's better than M.A. students from TAU who can not finish their diploma cause they need to work when they study. And we do not have people voting centrist parties harmful for our land.

[Jon Miller]

Then basically you started a PhD program?

In which case cool, there is a big difference between our two nations then.

Jon Miller
(I also applied to Math as well as to Physics, and got into a good Math school (like I got into several good Physics schools), but I only got into the (good) Math school's Masters program as a sort of probation for their PhD program)

[Az]

Good luck, muxie.