How do British and American bachelors/masters degrees compare with the German “Diplom”?
The German course of study leading to a “Diplom” is a higher level of qualification in terms of scope of psychological knowledge than most bachelor degrees of the type offered in Great Britain or the USA. BA degrees only require psychology to make up 50% of the degree course content. The share of course content made up by psychology in stage I (Grundstudium) of the German Diplom degree course, on the other hand, is 100% whereby the scope of psychological knowledge learned in the German first-part finals (Vordiplom) is significantly higher than in the bachelor’s degree. The German stage I studies (up to first-part finals) requires up to 3,520 hours of psychology. In stage II studies (Hauptstudium) students are allowed to opt for one or two non-psychological electives so that the non-psychological subjects in this part of the course make up no more than 23% – as a rule only 11.5% – of course content. In contrast, British master’s degrees require more practical placement experience and le
