My master’s degree: how should I talk and write about it?

There are many circumstances in which foreign students need to discuss their intentions to study for advanced degrees. Written statements of purpose to accompany university admission applications are the most obvious case, but the same situation arises in interviews with recruiters, IELTS speaking tasks, and verbal interactions of all kinds with civil servants. the universities you will attend.

Unfortunately, this is the time when many foreign students say things that sound less “English”. As a result, these unavoidable statements can often suggest that your command of English is weak. Even though all native English speakers who regularly hear foreign students make these statements have long since become accustomed to hearing them pronounced incorrectly, the error always registers at some level, albeit subconsciously.

To make the best impression on university administrators and IELTS examiners, use the appropriate language to talk about your degree and academic sentences.

The following are the most common errors:

“I’m going to learn a master’s degree.”

“I’m going to study for a master’s degree.”

“I plan to learn a master’s degree.”

Don’t make these unnecessary but common mistakes. All that is necessary for you not to do them is to clearly understand what they are and what the appropriate words mean.

– A “mastery” is a noun. When written, it always has an apostrophe, that is, “mastery”, not “mastery” or, worse still, “mastery”.

– However, a master’s degree is not a field of study. We don’t study for a master’s degree, we study a field in which we earn (or, more colloquially, “earn”) a master’s degree. That’s why, in English, we say that we plan to “get a master’s degree in marketing [or the name of some other field].”

– The title is what we get as a result of studying, not what we study. So when we talk about studying, we usually say, “I plan to study economics [or some other field].” It’s not wrong to say, “I plan to learn marketing,” but “I plan to study marketing” is more normal idiomatic English.

– The certificate confirming that we have successfully completed a course of study and obtained an advanced degree (not necessarily a master’s degree) is called a “diploma”. You can say: “I plan to get a degree in marketing” or, if you have completed the degree, “I have a degree in economics”. But if you do, keep in mind that a native English speaker won’t necessarily understand what graduate degree you’ve earned.

– The most appropriate verbs to use with “mastery”, before receiving the degree, are “study for”, “win” or “pursue”. So you should say, “I plan to get a master’s degree in communications,” “I plan to get a master’s degree in marketing,” or “I plan to get a master’s degree in engineering.”

This may seem like a minor issue in terms of language. However, making the most common mistakes can make a university official or IELTS examiner think less of your English language skills or, at worst, your intelligence.

So, practice writing and saying these simple but important sentences correctly.

Incorrect: I am going to study for a master’s degree.

Correct: I am going to study for a master’s degree.

Incorrect: I will study for a master’s degree in marketing.

Correct: I will study a master’s degree in marketing.

Wrong: I will learn a master’s degree in economics.

Correct: I plan to get a master’s degree in economics.