Talk:Master's degree

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Higher education

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Apostrophe

Is it "masters" or "master's"? The article uses both. 86.182.85.138 (talk) 09:56, 5 November 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Definite apostrophe if used correctly. It's a possessive. The Big Hoof! (talk) 14:54, 1 July 2013 (UTC)[reply]

The Oxford Style Guide writes "Bachelors' degrees and Masters' degrees" in the plural (I can't find any example of the singular)

"When writing about multiple degrees, note that there is a singular and plural form for bachelors’ and masters’ degrees denoted by the placement of the apostrophe." (p.22) - https://www.ox.ac.uk/sites/files/oxford/Style%20Guide%20HT2016.pdf

Jansegers (talk) 13:53, 2 September 2020 (UTC)[reply]

I love the discussion of the apostrophe. Given that, for the third word in the page, there is a note with over a hundred words, including multiple references, I think it would be best to move the discussion of apostrophe usage to its own section in the page. I came to this page looking for information about apostrophe usage. 129.215.169.200 (talk) 12:21, 27 October 2023 (UTC)[reply]

Spelling of program(me)

The word "program(me)" is used throughout this article, spelled either as "program" (US English) or as "programme" (UK English). The word "program" is also used in British English to denote a computer program but this usage does not apply in the latter orthography to programmes of study or radio/TV schedules. I firmly believe that the spelling "programme" should be used when discussing courses of study leading to British, Irish and Commonwealth university master's degrees and the spelling "program" should apply to their counterparts in the USA, but what about master's degrees awarded in continental Europe, Asia, Africa, Central and South America? Or perhaps the term "program(me)" should be avoided altogether, to be replaced with "course of study" to sidestep the spelling issue? Helmardine (talk) 18:12, 17 March 2023 (UTC)[reply]

The Wikipedia guideline is given at MOS:ENGVAR. In a nutshell:

Usage of an English variant should be consistent throughout an article – we shouldn't use program in some sections and programme in others.
Where there is an established consistent usage, don't change it.
Where there is no established consistent usage, try to establish one by consensus. If that fails, follow the first variant established after the article was expanded past being a stub.

Robminchin (talk) 18:59, 17 March 2023 (UTC)[reply]