Perceptions of BA without hons?

neas

Ah i had a quick google:

First-Class Honours (First or 1st) (70% and above) (OPEN UNIVERSITY 85%+)
Upper Second-Class Honours (2:1, 2.i) (60-70%) (OPEN UNIVERSITY 70-85%)
Lower Second-Class Honours (2:2, 2.ii) (50-60%) (OPEN UNIVERSITY 55-70%)
Third-Class Honours (Third or 3rd) (40-50%) (OPEN UNIVERSITY 40-55%)
Ordinary degree (pass) (OPEN UNIVERSITY AWARDED AT 300 CATS POINTS)

Seen as you didnt want to clarify....

So as i suspected honors is a useless way to distinguish a good degree from a poorer one... an honors degree being anything from 40%+.... why i dont bother state it lol.

bestpud

neas wrote: »

Ah i had a quick google:

First-Class Honours (First or 1st) (70% and above) (OPEN UNIVERSITY 85%+)
Upper Second-Class Honours (2:1, 2.i) (60-70%) (OPEN UNIVERSITY 70-85%)
Lower Second-Class Honours (2:2, 2.ii) (50-60%) (OPEN UNIVERSITY 55-70%)
Third-Class Honours (Third or 3rd) (40-50%) (OPEN UNIVERSITY 40-55%)
Ordinary degree (pass) (OPEN UNIVERSITY AWARDED AT 300 CATS POINTS)

Seen as you didnt want to clarify....

So as i suspected honors is a useless way to distinguish a good degree from a poorer one... an honors degree being anything from 40%+.... why i dont bother state it lol.

It simply indicates whether or not the student completed a dissertation.

I guess not having it indicates something is amiss and with all the graduates out there now, it makes no sense to draw attention to myself.

Plus as pointed out to me, it will be noticed on post grad applications and I don't want to close any doors at this stage.

BTW if I thought I was going to get a third, or even a 2:2, I'd have done something about it long before now!

alwaysonthego_2

bestpud wrote: »

It simply indicates whether or not the student completed a dissertation.

I guess not having it indicates something is amiss and with all the graduates out there now, it makes no sense to draw attention to myself.

Plus as pointed out to me, it will be noticed on post grad applications and I don't want to close any doors at this stage.

BTW if I thought I was going to get a third, or even a 2:2, I'd have done something about it long before now!

She is going to get a first!

MrsManda

I had always presumed you had to do a dissertation to get a degree. Isn't that the final proof you've learnt enough to actually do something original with it?
At my university you need a minimum 11 out of 12 units over the course of three years to get a degree and as the final year project/dissertation is 1.5 units I presume this means without a dissertation a degree won't be awarded/

Oldernotwiser

MrsManda wrote: »

I had always presumed you had to do a dissertation to get a degree. Isn't that the final proof you've learnt enough to actually do something original with it?
At my university you need a minimum 11 out of 12 units over the course of three years to get a degree and as the final year project/dissertation is 1.5 units I presume this means without a dissertation a degree won't be awarded/

I think that the undergraduate dissertation is a comparatively recent development. In the late 70s I certainly didn't have one although I remember other courses having an extended essay.

bitsandpieces

There are certainly current courses (at good universities) where you can get a 1st class honours degree without doing a dissertation. Not uncommon with joint honours courses, for example.

People get 'ordinary' degrees for a range of reasons. Often because they either fail, or aren't able to complete, some degree modules.

bestpud

alwaysonthego wrote: »

She is going to get a first!

I don't think I will now as I don't have enough A's banked.

A 2:1 is in the bag but I'd need to get an A for every single module left to receive a first now.

Not sure I can cope with the stress that aim would cause me tbh! I'm such a sap when it comes to pressure! :rolleyes:

MrsManda

bestpud wrote: »

I don't think I will now as I don't have enough A's banked.
A 2:1 is in the bag but I'd need to get an A for every single module left to receive a first now.
Not sure I can cope with the stress that aim would cause me tbh! I'm such a sap when it comes to pressure! :rolleyes:

You can but try - a 2:1 is impressive in itself - PhDs are usually offered to 2:1 minimum so you've got everything you need to open doors for you, a first is just shinier if you can get one

omelette451

bestpud wrote: »

It simply indicates whether or not the student completed a dissertation.

neas wrote: »

honors is 2:1 plus right?

MrsManda wrote: »

I had always presumed you had to do a dissertation to get a degree. Isn't that the final proof you've learnt enough to actually do something original with it?

No to all of the above! The exact definition of what constitutes an Honours degree is decided by each institution; there is no single definition that applies to the whole country. I have a BA (Hons), with a 2.1 grading, but completed neither a dissertation nor an extended essay: at my university Honours are given as a result of a combination of the grade given (anything higher than a 'Pass' counts, which means a third and above is ok) and the time taken to do it (deferring 'Finals' for more than a year removes one's eligibility for Honours). That doesn't mean though that other universities don't have different rules. Nor, incidentally, does it mean that I didn't have to 'do something for it' while I was there: I had to produce at least ten proper essays a term and studied a 'special subject' in quite considerable detail in my final year, but it was examined with a traditional exam rather than through a dissertation, which, believe me, actually made it considerably harder.

(And before you complain, I was at Oxford, so yes it definitely does count.)

bestpud

omelette451 wrote: »

No to all of the above! The exact definition of what constitutes an Honours degree is decided by each institution; there is no single definition that applies to the whole country. I have a BA (Hons), with a 2.1 grading, but completed neither a dissertation nor an extended essay: at my university Honours are given as a result of a combination of the grade given (anything higher than a 'Pass' counts, which means a third and above is ok) and the time taken to do it (deferring 'Finals' for more than a year removes one's eligibility for Honours). That doesn't mean though that other universities don't have different rules. Nor, incidentally, does it mean that I didn't have to 'do something for it' while I was there: I had to produce at least ten proper essays a term and studied a 'special subject' in quite considerable detail in my final year, but it was examined with a traditional exam rather than through a dissertation, which, believe me, actually made it considerably harder.

(And before you complain, I was at Oxford, so yes it definitely does count.)

Why on earth would anyone complain, or suggest you had it easier because you were assessed with finals?

I know it doesn't apply across the board and I was referring to my uni when I made that comment. I think it is more common now than it was when I first researched unis in 2004/5 though, so perhaps it is slowly rolling out.

Oxbridge unis will differ in quite a few ways though so can't really be used as a comparison imo. It's a very different experience I think, and becoming more so.

HE is a mess at the moment, and getting worse.