Names for schools and universities are confusing

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This article/section is a stub — probably a pile of half-sorted notes and is probably a first version, is not well-checked, so may have incorrect bits. (Feel free to ignore, or tell me)

Private school, public school

ELSEWHERE


Grad school, college, university

Education systems to differ per country - so so does the naming.

Translation can get confusing - and often also useful/necessary if you want a job in another country.


Countries where "grad schools" are a concept (mostly the US, to some degree other English-speaking countries) usually split things like:

  • college (rewards bachelor diplomas)
  • grad school (rewards masters, and possibly doctoral/PhD diplomas)

They may be part of the same institution, and that may be called a university. (and in that case, it is usually the university and not the college that awards titles)

The same countries tend to use:

Undergraduate tends to mean 'is doing or has finished a bachelor diploma',
postgraduate has something "anything after bachelor degree" (and, confusingly to me, not to graduate-school diplomas)


Note that various countries historically had a clearer cut universities meaning "here's a study, this is how long it is" (i.e. no inbetween diploma), and/or may (still) have a clearer distinction between bachelor diploma in university sense and the trade-school sense.

These countries tend to have universities be bachelor+master things, with no college/grad split, because because that's how they were set up.

Positions