Education systems in the U.S. are of the highest quality worldwide. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the United States of America’s education system ranks number 1 in the world for 2020.
📙 The U.S. Education System (for Higher Education)
- Bachelor’s Degree or Undergraduate
In general this degree programme takes 4 years to complete with a number of subjects/fields to choose from, including arts (B.A.), science (B.S), engineering (B.Eng.) and law (L.L.B)
*Note: Some institutions allow the transfer of credits upon graduating from community college to study in the 3rd or 4th year of university.
- Pre-Master Course or Graduate Pathway
This is a foundation course to help prepare international students for postgraduate study. By enrolling in this course, students are able to use the credits towards their master’s degree at university, though conditions for each university may vary.
- Master’s Degree or Graduate
In general, this degree programme takes 2 years to complete. Although, some courses from various university will offer the 1 year period of study for Master’s degree.
- PhD/Doctorate
In general, this degree programme takes 4-6 years to complete and can be divided into 2 parts: (1) coursework, whereby students study theory in the classroom for the first 1-4 years and (2) thesis where students undertake a research project/thesis for the last 2-4 years.
🇺🇸 U.S. Institutions for Higher Education
There are more than 4,000 institutions in the United States, both public and private, that can be categorized into the following:
- College
- Community College
In this 2-year curriculum, students can choose to study 1 of the 2 pathways:
1. Transferable Programme
A foundation course that accounts to the first 2-years of the undergraduate degree, which allows students to transfer credits to a private or public university, in order to continue their 3rd or 4th year of study. Students can therefore graduate with a bachelor’s degree from a leading university.
2. Terminal / Vocation Track
After studying for 2 years, students can graduate with an Associate’s Degree in their chosen field of study. By transfer to another 2 years of Bachelor’s degree.
- Institute
A school that offers specialized courses, such as art & design, music, engineering, business and various other fields.
- Institute of Technology
Offering courses equivalent to a bachelor’s degree, that take at least 4 years of study, with some institutions offering other programmes, such as short courses and postgraduate programmes.
The university could be categorised by how it was established and funded by the state throughout the system. The public university is supported by the government. While a private university is supported by the tuitions and funding from individual or private organisation.
