ba

ba — noun

1. the short way of writing 'Bachelor of Arts' — the qualification you receive afte

1.nounB2
Definition

the short way of writing 'Bachelor of Arts' — the qualification you receive after finishing about three or four years of university study in a subject like history, literature, or sociology; also the person holding such a qualification.

Example

Ravi finished his BA in history at the University of Auckland last June.

BA in [subject] for naming the field of study

The job listing asks for a BA from a recognised university.

BA from [institution] for naming where the degree was earned

Common collocations
  • BA in history
  • BA in English
  • earn a BA
  • complete a BA
  • BA with honours
  • joint BA
Synonyms
  • Bachelor of Arts

    the full form; used in formal documents and certificates

  • AB

    older Latin-order abbreviation (Artium Baccalaureus), still used at some American universities like Harvard

Antonyms
  • BSc

    Bachelor of Science — the parallel undergraduate degree in science subjects

  • MA

    Master of Arts — the higher-level arts degree taken after a BA

Grammar Patterns

BA in [subject]

BA from [university]

Usage Note

Almost always written in capital letters with no full stops in British English (BA) and sometimes with full stops in American English (B.A.). Often followed by 'in + subject' to name the field, or by 'from + institution' to name the university.

Common Mistakes

I have a BA on history.
I have a BA in history.
the field of study takes the preposition 'in', not 'on'.
She finished her ba last year.
She finished her BA last year.
write the abbreviation in capital letters.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

BA and BSc are the two most common British-style undergraduate degree abbreviations: BA covers the humanities and social sciences (history, languages, sociology), while BSc covers the natural sciences and many applied fields (biology, computing, engineering at some universities). AB is the same qualification as a BA but follows the original Latin word order (Artium Baccalaureus); a small number of older American universities such as Harvard and Princeton still award the AB rather than the BA. MA is the next degree up: students normally complete a BA first, then study one or two more years for an MA. So in a sentence like 'After her BA in English, Anna went on to do an MA in linguistics,' each abbreviation marks a different stage and field of study.

BA ↗BScABMA ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • BA degree
  • BA programme
  • BA student
  • BA graduate
  • BA dissertation

Phrases

  • hold a BA
  • be awarded a BA
  • graduate with a BA

Prepositions

  • BA in
  • BA from
  • BA with

Etymology

LatinMedieval LatinMiddle EnglishEnglish

BA is the modern English short form of 'Bachelor of Arts', a qualification that goes back to medieval European universities. The Latin name was 'Baccalaureus Artium', where 'baccalaureus' meant a young scholar who had passed the first set of university examinations and 'artium' referred to the seven 'liberal arts' (grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy) that formed the basic course of study. As English replaced Latin in university paperwork from around the 17th century, the title was reordered into 'Bachelor of Arts' and shortened to BA, while the Latin order survives in the abbreviation AB used at a few older American universities.