Degree vs. Major — What's the Difference?

The amount, level, or extent to which something happens or is present

Major is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world.

A unit of measurement of angles, one ninetieth of a right angle or the angle subtended by one three-hundred-and-sixtieth of the circumference of a circle

Important, serious, or significant

A unit in any of various scales of temperature, intensity, or hardness

(of a scale) having intervals of a semitone between the third and fourth, and seventh and eighth degrees.

An academic rank conferred by a college or university after examination or after completion of a course, or conferred as an honour on a distinguished person

(appended to a surname in public schools) indicating the elder of two brothers.

Social or official rank

(of a term) occurring as the predicate in the conclusion of a categorical syllogism.

One of a series of steps in a process, course, or progression; a stage

A rank of officer in the army and the US air force, above captain and below lieutenant colonel.

A step in a direct hereditary line of descent or ascent

A major key, interval, or scale.

Relative social or official rank, dignity, or position.

A major organization or competition

Relative intensity or amount, as of a quality or attribute

A student's principal subject or course

The extent or measure of a state of being, an action, or a relation

A major term or premise.

A unit division of a temperature scale.

Short for major suit

(Mathematics) A planar unit of angular measure equal in magnitude to 1/360 of a complete revolution.

A goal.

A unit of latitude or longitude, equal to 1/360 of a great circle.

Specialize in (a particular subject) at college or university

The greatest sum of the exponents of the variables in a term of a polynomial or polynomial equation.

Greater than others in importance or rank

The exponent of the derivative of highest order in a differential equation in standard form.

Great in scope or effect

An academic title given by a college or university to a student who has completed a course of study

Great in number, size, or extent

A similar title conferred as an honorary distinction.

Requiring great attention or concern; very serious

(Law) A division or classification of a specific crime according to its seriousness

(Law) Legally recognized as having reached the age of adulthood.

A classification of the severity of an injury, especially a burn

Of or relating to the field of academic study in which a student specializes.

(Grammar) One of the forms used in the comparison of adjectives and adverbs. For example, tall is the positive degree, taller the comparative degree, and tallest the superlative degree of the adjective tall.

Designating a scale or mode having half steps between the third and fourth and the seventh and eighth degrees.

One of the seven notes of a diatonic scale.

Equivalent to the distance between the tonic note and the second or third or sixth or seventh degrees of a major scale or mode

A space or line of the staff.

Based on a major scale

A stage of proficiency or qualification in a course of study, now especially an award bestowed by a university or, in some countries, a college, as a certification of academic achievement. (In the United States, can include secondary schools.)

A commissioned rank in the US Army, Air Force, or Marine Corps that is above captain and below lieutenant colonel.

(geometry) A unit of measurement of angle equal to 360 of a circle's circumference.

One who holds this rank or a similar rank in another military organization.

(physics) A unit of measurement of temperature on any of several scales, such as Celsius or Fahrenheit.

One that is superior in rank, importance, or ability

(algebra) The sum of the exponents of a term; the order of a polynomial.

(Law) One recognized by the law as having reached the age of adulthood.

The dimensionality of a field extension.

A field of study chosen as an academic specialty.

(graph theory) The number of edges that a vertex takes part in; a valency.

A student specializing in such studies

(logic) The number of logical connectives in a formula.

A major premise.

(surveying) The curvature of a circular arc, expressed as the angle subtended by a fixed length of arc or chord.

A major term.

(geography) A unit of measurement of latitude and longitude which together identify a location on the Earth's surface.

A major scale, key, interval, or mode.

(grammar) Any of the three stages (positive, comparative, superlative) in the comparison of an adjective or an adverb.

A chord containing a major third between the first and second notes and a minor third between the second and third notes.

A step on a set of stairs; the rung of a ladder.

Majors Sports The major leagues.

An individual step, or stage, in any process or scale of values.

To pursue academic studies in a major

A stage of rank or privilege; social standing.

(attributive):

(genealogy) A ‘step’ in genealogical descent.

Greater in dignity, rank, importance, significance, or interest.

One's relative state or experience; way, manner.

Greater in number, quantity, or extent.

The amount that an entity possesses a certain property; relative intensity, extent.

Notable or conspicuous in effect or scope.

A step, stair, or staircase.

Prominent or significant in size, amount, or degree.

One of a series of progressive steps upward or downward, in quality, rank, acquirement, and the like; a stage in progression; grade; gradation; as, degrees of vice and virtue; to advance by slow degrees; degree of comparison.

(medicine) Involving great risk, serious, life-threatening.

The point or step of progression to which a person has arrived; rank or station in life; position.

Of full legal age, having attained majority.

Measure of advancement; quality; extent; as, tastes differ in kind as well as in degree.

(education) Of or relating to a subject of academic study chosen as a field of specialization.

Grade or rank to which scholars are admitted by a college or university, in recognition of their attainments; also, (informal) the diploma provided by an educational institution attesting to the achievement of that rank; as, the degree of bachelor of arts, master, doctor, etc.; to hang one's degrees on the office wall.

(music):

A certain distance or remove in the line of descent, determining the proximity of blood; one remove in the chain of relationship; as, a relation in the third or fourth degree.

Having intervals of a semitone between the third and fourth, and seventh and eighth degrees.

Three figures taken together in numeration; thus, 140 is one degree, 222,140 two degrees.

Equivalent to that between the tonic and another note of a major scale, and greater by a semitone than the corresponding minor interval.

State as indicated by sum of exponents; more particularly, the degree of a term is indicated by the sum of the exponents of its literal factors; thus, a2b3c is a term of the sixth degree. The degree of a power, or radical, is denoted by its index, that of an equation by the greatest sum of the exponents of the unknown quantities in any term; thus, ax4 + bx2 = c, and mx2y2 + nyx = p, are both equations of the fourth degree.

(postpositive) of a key Based on a major scale, tending to produce a bright or joyful effect.

A 360th part of the circumference of a circle, which part is taken as the principal unit of measure for arcs and angles. The degree is divided into 60 minutes and the minute into 60 seconds.

(campanology) Bell changes rung on eight bells.

A division, space, or interval, marked on a mathematical or other instrument, as on a thermometer.

Indicating the elder of two brothers, appended to a surname in public schools.

A position on a scale of intensity or amount or quality;

(logic)

A specific identifiable position in a continuum or series or especially in a process;

Occurring as the predicate in the conclusion of a categorical syllogism.

An award conferred by a college or university signifying that the recipient has satisfactorily completed a course of study;

Containing the major term in a categorical syllogism.

A unit of temperature on a specified scale;

(military ranks) A rank of officer in the army and the US air force, between captain and lieutenant colonel.

A measure for arcs and angles;

An officer in charge of a section of band instruments, used with a modifier.

The highest power of a term or variable

A person of legal age.

The seriousness of something (e.g., a burn or crime);

(music):

Ellipsis of major key.

Ellipsis of major interval.

Ellipsis of major scale.

(campanology) A system of change-ringing using eight bells.

A large, commercially successful company, especially a record label that is bigger than an indie.

The principal subject or course of a student working toward a degree at a college or university.

A student at a college or university specializing on a given area of study.

(logic):

Ellipsis of major term.

Ellipsis of major premise.

(bridge) major suit.

(Canadian football) A touchdown, or major score.

(Australian rules football) A goal.

An elder brother (especially at a public school).

(entomology) A large leaf-cutter ant that acts as a soldier, defending the nest.

(obsolete) mayor and {{en}}.

(intransitive) major in

Greater in number, quantity, or extent; as, the major part of the assembly; the major part of the revenue; the major part of the territory.

Of greater dignity; more important.

Of full legal age; adult.

Greater by a semitone, either in interval or in difference of pitch from another tone.

An officer next in rank above a captain and next below a lieutenant colonel; the lowest field officer.

A person of full age.

That premise which contains the major term. It its the first proposition of a regular syllogism; as: No unholy person is qualified for happiness in heaven [the major]. Every man in his natural state is unholy [minor]. Therefore, no man in his natural state is qualified for happiness in heaven [conclusion or inference].

A mayor.

A commissioned military officer in the United States Army or Air Force or Marines; below lieutenant colonel and above captain

British statesman who was prime minister from 1990 until 1997 (born in 1943)

A university student who is studying a particular field as the principal subject;

The principal field of study of a student at a university;

Have as one's principal field of study;

Of greater importance or stature or rank;

Greater in scope or effect;

Greater in number or size or amount;

Of the field of academic study in which one concentrates or specializes;

Of a scale or mode;

Of greater seriousness or danger;

Of full legal age;

Of the elder of two boys with the same family name;