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Grab The RSSMasters Degree or Master’s Degree?
Edwin Johnstone wrote:
What is the proper way to spell masters degree ?
or is it master’s degree?
or Masters degree?
or Master’s degree?
To answer this question, I’ve consulted the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, and some university dissertation guidelines.
Speaking generically, you would write master’s degree:
Jack has finally earned his master’s degree.
Speaking of a specific degree, you would capitalize Master:
He holds a Master of Fine Arts from State University.
When it comes to abbreviating academic degrees, you’d better check the style book that governs your work.
For example, here is what the guidelines say on the site of Ohio University:
Use periods when abbreviating academic degrees.
Ex. Dr. Bond received her A.B., M.A., and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. –Ohio University
Northeastern University, like the MLA guide, prefers to drop the periods:
Punctuating degrees: Do not include periods in degree abbreviations. [Ex. BS, BA, MA, PhD] The single exception is Hon. for Honorary. –Northeastern University
NOTE: Not all universities use the same abbreviations for the master’s degree:
Harvard University and the University of Chicago for instance, use A.M. and S.M. for their master’s degrees and MIT uses S.M. for its master of science degrees. Master of Science is often abbreviated MS or M.S. in the United States, and MSc or M.Sc. in ; Commonwealth nations and Europe. –Wikipedia
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17 Responses to “Masters Degree or Master’s Degree?”
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You should do Ph D on this subject, or may be Ph.D or may be Ph.D.
nice brain-storming.
The Chicago Manual of Style (used by most U.S. publishing houses for fiction an nonfiction) says:
15.21: “In conservative practice, periods are added to abbreviations of all academic degrees (B.A., D.D.S., etc.). Chicago now recommends omitting them unless they are required for tradition or consistency. In the following list*, periods are shown only where uncertainty might arise as to their placement.”
*In the comprehensive list they give, the few listed where periods might be needed to avoid confusion are:
DMin (D.Min.)
LittD (Litt.D. — Litterarum Doctor or Doctor of Letters)
LLB (LL.B.–Legum Baccalaureus–Bachelor of Laws)
LLD (LL.D. –Legum Doctor–Doctor of Laws)
PhB (Ph.B. –Philosophiae Baccalaureus–Bachelor of Philosophy)
PhD (Ph.D.)
PhG (Ph.G. –Graduate in Pharmacy)
What is the difference between ‘can not’ and ‘cannot’?
You should have clarified futher. It’s a degree to be come a Master of your chosen subject, so the degree is a Master’s degree (possessive form: the degree of the Master). It is sometimes seen as Masters’ degree when referring to the course as a whole because it’s then a collective plural (referring to all the students who will become Masters: the degrees of the Masters). I often find that understanding is aided by contextual examples more than by just quoting lists of guidelines.
@ Peter Ki:
“Can not” is two words and implies there is something you can do, and something you can not do (I can not drive) which may be possible to change from “can not” to “can”.
“Cannot” is similar with the distinction that it is a single word and unbreakable. It is for something which you cannot do (I cannot fly) which is not possible to change.
Thank you for that concise, clear explanation. You’ve answered a very common question for international graduate students in a simple, authoritative manner.
Please explain when to use lie and lay and dreamed or dreamt. Once I said to my friend, “Last night I dreamed about …..” She replied, “Last night, I dreamt about……” So which is correct?
I think, masters & master’s both are acceptable…
@Brenda
You’ll find not one, but two posts on the difference between lay and lie in the DWT archives:
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/laylie-moribund-but-not-dead-yet/
http://www.dailywritingtips.com/mixing-up-lay-and-lie/
I’m almost ready to throw in the towel on those two verbs.
As for “dreamt” and “dreamed,” it’s a matter of choice. Personally I prefer the older form, “dreamt,” but your use of “dreamed” is perfectly acceptable.
@Jason
“It is sometimes seen as Masters’ degree when referring to the course as a whole…”
I’ve never seen such a usage. “Masters’ degrees” perhaps, but “Masters’ degree” makes no sense. Can you document it with an example from a reliable source?
When its a question of style I consider the context and choose the most popular usage, or consult the style guide used by the audience I am speaking/writing to (e.g. Chicago, MLA, APA, etc)
Google hits:
“Master’s degree” = 8.8 million
“Masters’ degree” = 5.6 million
“Masters degree” = 5.5 million
“Master’s thesis” = 1.8 million
“Masters thesis” = 0.6 million
‘Masters’ thesis” = 0.6 million
I wonder what percentage of those hits are links to people discussing the apostrophe
Google hits (not a definitive answer to my question):
“masters degree” and “master’s degree” = 500K
“masters thesis” and “master’s thesis” = 30K
My “When its” should be “When it’s”
Dan
Please read this short but informative article:
http://www.grammarmudge.cityslide.com/articles/article/733270/8600.htm
Who is this Jason? I think I love him!
Thank you for the clarification. Even though I possess a MLIS, I’ve seen it differ so many times.
When will this website host another short story writing contest?
Thank you
Which is correct correct article in sentence below
He got an/a/the/(no article required) M.A. degree.
@ Vivek: He got an M.A. degree because of the phonetic component ‘Em Ae’. Remember the rule guiding the a. e. i.o.u? – an apple, an egg, an inning, an opener, and an umbrella?
Of course, he could have gotten ‘the M.A. degree’ also, based on the context, ( like if you had mentioned the specific degree earlier on and then subsequently refer to it as ‘the degree’ )
‘He got a MA degree’ is an absolute no-no!
The apostrophe in master’s degree functions identically to the apostrophe in other words indicating possession.
A masters’ degree would be one degree earned by (possessed by) two or more masters.
A master’s degree is the degree possessed by the individual who earned it.