Bachelor of Arts

An undergraduate Bachelor of Arts (BA or AB) degree is granted for completing an undergraduate programme in the arts, or in certain circumstances, other fields. The term "bachelor of arts" comes from the Latin baccalaureus artium, "baccalaureus in artibus," and "artium baccalaureus." In most countries and institutions, a Bachelor of Arts degree course may be finished in three or four years, depending on the nation and institution.

A Bachelor of Arts degree is denoted by the letters BA for an ordinary/pass degree and by the letters BA (Hons) for an honours degree, respectively. Students who have achieved an honours BA degree may refer to themselves as '(Hon)' or '(Hons)' following the degree abbreviation in parenthesis, depending on their academic standing. An honours degree is usually conferred in one of four classes, which are determined by the grades obtained in the final assessments and exams throughout the course of the course. Top students get a first-class degree, followed by students who receive an upper second-class degree, students who receive a lower second-class degree, and finally students who receive a third-class degree. In the event that a student has completed the full honours degree course but has not obtained the total number of required passes to merit a third-class honours degree, the student may be awarded an ordinary or unclassified degree (which does not confer the right to add '(Hons)' to the end of their name). Most of the time, these degrees do not have a dissertation requirement as part of the final year requirement.