Student - October 21, 2010
Lettter to the editor Resource#5, volume 5
Bachelor's/Master's
The word has two meanings in the English language, these being "single" and "holder of a Bachelor's degree". It's the second meaning we're now talking about. Nowadays, the word is being erroneously used in university circles and in this case, also in your magazine, to refer to the degree itself and not the degree holder.
In Anglo-Saxon countries, the term "Bachelor's Degree" is often abbreviated to "Bachelor's" and we should also keep to this term within university circles in Wageningen.
Likewise, we don't work towards, nor do we possess, a master, but a master's.
Please give some thought to stopping the proliferation of broken English in Wageningen.
A. Van Diest
Editor's note: The Netherlands does not have a degree system; the term "bachelor's" therefore does not apply here. The word "bachelor" refers in Dutch to a "bachelor education" or a "bachelor" title. The same goes for "master". These abbreviations are not only used by the press, but also by, for example, the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and the educational institutions themselves. "Bachelor" and "master" are therefore not English terms, but Dutch words derived from English etymology.