Starting your college journey means you’ll probably run into words you don’t recognize or understand very well. That’s normal! We’re here to break it all down for you in the College Knowledge Basics series, specifically how and why these definitions matter at Colorado State University.
Exploring potential majors? What do all these letters mean, and how will they affect your college experience (and beyond)? Read on to learn the differences between a BA (Bachelor of Arts), BS (Bachelor of Science) and everything in between at CSU!
So, what are all these letters on degrees, and why do they matter? A very basic understanding between the two main degree distinctions — B.A. and B.S. — is that they vary academically. One path focuses on the liberal arts, while the other focuses more on math and science. But CSU has some deviations from the norm, and some specialized degrees, as well. Let’s get into it.
#1. Bachelor of Arts (B.A.)
If you opt for an academic path that results in a Bachelor of Arts degree, or B.A., you can expect a wide range of humanities courses, most related to your major. Overall, you’ll take more liberal-arts-focused academics, along with some natural sciences education, foundational math, plus coursework that may dabble in cultures, languages, social sciences, literature, or history. However, the range of B.A. degrees at CSU varies, and you may find yourself in a more-technical B.A. degree like Economics or Geography, where you’ll get more science and math.
#2. Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
A Bachelor of Science, or B.S., offers a more-technical, science/math-based academic path, and tends to have more lab work alongside your lecture courses. Students in majors that result in a B.S. will likely have more classes and requirements around quantitative reasoning and research-based sciences. The coursework will be highly dependant on your actual major. For example, students in the Chemical Engineering (B.S.) program will take advanced math and science courses that are specific to chemistry and chemical engineering processes. Students in the Apparel and Merchandising (B.S.) program will take some math and chemistry, but later focus in pattern making, textile sciences, and computer-aided design.
It’s worth noting that every college is different, so some majors may be B.A.’s or B.S.’s in one institution, but opposite at others. One prime example of this that you won’t find in many other universities is CSU’s Psychology degree. Many institutions direct their psych degrees toward the liberal arts, resulting in a B.A., but at Colorado State, Psychology majors take courses in biology, statistics, and writing in order to obtain better training for research and career paths that often require internships in clinics and/or future graduate studies.
#3. Specialized Bachelor Degrees
In addition to the standard B.A. and B.S. degrees at CSU, some degree designations allow you to specialize even further. Degrees like the B.F.A. (Bachelor of Fine Arts), B.M. (Bachelor of Music), and B.S.W. (Bachelor of Social Work) might appear on your diploma if you major in these areas. For classification purposes, the Art, B.F.A., Dance B.F.A., and Music B.M. are considered Bachelor of Arts degrees, while the Social Work major’s B.S.W. is considered a Bachelor of Science.
In short, knowing which degree designation you’ll leave CSU with is important not only because it will become a factor in what types of courses you take and what kinds of academic requirements you’ll have, but because they can determine career options for you after graduation. As you narrow down your majors of interest, be sure to note which ones are B.A. degrees and which are B.S. degrees. Then you can explore those majors in CSU’s catalog, and even see the classes you can expect to take laid out by year.
