Precedence
The MA degree gives its holder a particular status in the universities' orders of precedence/seniority. In the University of Oxford a Master of Arts enjoys precedence, standing, and rank before all doctors, masters, and bachelors of the university who are not Masters of Arts, apart from Doctors of Divinity and Doctors of Civil Law. However, members of the university with undergraduate masters degrees automatically gain the precedence of a Master of Arts 21 terms after matriculation. Precedence, standing, and rank were formerly important for determining eligibility for appointments such as fellowships, but now generally have only a ceremonial significance.
Read more about this topic: Master Of Arts (Oxbridge And Dublin)
Famous quotes containing the word precedence:
“What is line? It is life. A line must live at each point along its course in such a way that the artist’s presence makes itself felt above that of the model.... With the writer, line takes precedence over form and content. It runs through the words he assembles. It strikes a continuous note unperceived by ear or eye. It is, in a way, the soul’s style, and if the line ceases to have a life of its own, if it only describes an arabesque, the soul is missing and the writing dies.”
—Jean Cocteau (1889–1963)
“Let not England forget her precedence of teaching nations how to live.”
—John Milton (1608–1674)
“It is difficult to separate the tapestry
From the room or loom which takes precedence over it.”
—John Ashbery (b. 1927)