A Bachelor of Science (B.S., B.Sc. or less commonly, S.B. or Sc.B. from the Latin Scientiæ Baccalaureus) is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years (see below).
In the United States, a Bachelor of Science degree may be a more specialized version of B.A., with more focus on the subject and less on a broad liberal arts background; for example, a B.S. in economics may require several more advanced economics courses than a B.A. in economics, and possibly more support courses (such as statistics). The B.S. is also frequently used for professional areas of study such as engineering, journalism, and advertising. At least two American schools (Caltech, MIT) and the four service academies (United States Military Academy, United States Naval Academy, United States Air Force Academy and United States Coast Guard Academy) award the BS for all subjects, including, e.g., Literature.
In the UK and Canada, which subjects are considered science subjects varies, e.g. economics degrees may be B.A. in one university but B.Sc. in another. In addition, some universities, like the London School of Economics, offer the B.Sc. in practically all subject areas even when they are normally associated with arts degrees, while others award arts qualifications almost exclusively, namely the Oxbridge universities. In both instances, this is generally for historical and traditional reasons. A Bachelor of Science receives the designation B.Sc. or B.S. for a major/pass degree and B.Sc. (Hons) or B.S. (Hon) for an honours degree.
The B.Sc. from Germany was equivalent to a B.Sc. (Hons). Note that many universities in German speaking countries are changing their systems into the Ba/Ma system, thus of course also offering the full equivalent of a B.Sc.
Formerly at the University of Oxford, the degree of B.Sc. was a postgraduate degree. This former degree, still actively granted, has since been renamed M.Sc.
In Brazil, a Bachelor of Science degree is a graduation degree and is also more specific, usually containing a one-year mandatory probation time by the end of the course followed by relatively elaborate written and oral evaluations (Monografia).
