Baccalaureate is the term used to reference the undergraduate academic degree awarded by a higher education institution upon the completion of 120 semester credits, which is traditionally completed by full-time students in 4 years. In the United States, the baccalaureate degree is synonymous with the term bachelor’s degree. The time to complete a baccalaureate degree is variable. The degree may be reduced through a variety of pathways, such as increased summer course loads, transferred credits from high school Advance Placement (AP) courses or dual enrollment programs, or may take longer than the expected 4 years for those students who require remedial courses or who stop for a myriad of academic and/or personal purposes. Awarding of a baccalaureate degree infers the completion of the student’s major ...