Master's degree

===21st century===
In 2000, renewed pressure was put on [[Oxbridge]] MAs in the UK Parliament, with Labour MP [[Jackie Lawrence (politician)|Jackie Lawrence]] introducing an [[early day motion]] calling for them to be scrapped and telling the ''[[Times Higher Education]]'' it was a "discriminatory practice" and that it "devalues and undermines the efforts of students at other universities".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/why-ithink-oxbridge-ma-degrees-should-be-scrapped/152170.article|title=Why I...think Oxbridge MA degrees should be scrapped|date=16 June 2000|author=Jennifer Currie|work=Times Higher Education|access-date=14 August 2016|archive-date=20 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160920081139/https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/why-ithink-oxbridge-ma-degrees-should-be-scrapped/152170.article|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/business-papers/commons/early-day-motions/edm-detail1/?edmnumber=806&session=1999-00|title=Early day motion 806|website=Parliament.uk|access-date=14 August 2016|archive-date=10 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160910234744/http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/business-papers/commons/early-day-motions/edm-detail1/?edmnumber=806&session=1999-00|url-status=live}}</ref> The following month the [[Quality Assurance Agency]] announced the results of a survey of 150 major employers showing nearly two thirds mistakenly thought the Cambridge MA was a postgraduate qualification and just over half made the same error regarding the Edinburgh MA, with QAA chief executive John Randall calling the Oxbridge MA "misleading and anachronistic".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/oxbridge-mas-are-misleading-says-agency-5369142.html|title=Oxbridge MAs are misleading, says agency|date=3 July 2000|author=Ben Russell|work=The Independent|access-date=4 September 2017|archive-date=2 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202001638/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/oxbridge-mas-are-misleading-says-agency-5369142.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

The QAA released the first "framework for higher education qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland" in January 2001. This specified learning outcomes for M-level (master's) degrees and advised that the title "Master" should only be used for qualifications that met those learning outcomes in full. It addressed many of the Dearing Report's concerns, specifying that shorter courses at H-level (honours), e.g. conversion courses, should be styled [[Graduate Diploma]] or [[Graduate Certificate]] rather than as master's degrees, but confirmed that the extended undergraduate degrees were master's degrees, saying that "Some Masters degrees in science and engineering are awarded after extended undergraduate programmes that last, typically, a year longer than Honours degree programmes". It also addressed the Oxbridge MA issue, noting that "the MAs granted by the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge are not academic qualifications".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.qaa.ac.uk/crntwork/nqf/ewni2001/contents.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010414020408/http://www.qaa.ac.uk/crntwork/nqf/ewni2001/contents.htm|archive-date=14 April 2001|date=January 2001|title=The framework for higher education qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland| publisher=Quality Assurance Agency|access-date=14 August 2016}}</ref> The first "framework for qualifications of Higher Education Institutes in Scotland", also published in January 2001, used the same qualifications descriptors, adding in credit values that specified that a stand-alone master should be 180 credits and a "Masters (following an integrated programme from undergraduate to Masters level study)" should be 600 credits with a minimum of 120 at M-level. It was specified that the title "Master" should only be used for qualifications that met the learning outcomes and credit definitions, although it was noted that "A small number of universities in Scotland have a long tradition of labelling certain first degrees as 'MA'. Reports of Agency reviews of such provision will relate to undergraduate benchmarks and will make it clear that the title reflects Scottish custom and practice, and that any positive judgement on standards should not be taken as implying that the outcomes of the programme were at postgraduate level."<ref>{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010302180216/http://www.qaa.ac.uk/crntwork/nqf/scotfw2001/contents.htm|url=http://www.qaa.ac.uk/crntwork/nqf/scotfw2001/contents.htm|archive-date=2 March 2001|title=The framework for qualifications of Higher Education Institutes in Scotland|date=January 2001|publisher=Quality Assurance Agency|access-date=14 August 2016}}</ref>

The [[Bologna declaration]] in 1999 started the [[Bologna Process]], leading to the creation of the [[European Higher Education Area]] (EHEA). This established a three-cycle bachelor's—master's—doctorate classification of degrees, leading to the adoption of master's degrees across the continent, often replacing older long-cycle qualifications such as the {{Lang|la|[[Magister degree|Magister]]}} (arts), {{Lang|de|Diplom}} (sciences) and state registration (professional) awards in Germany.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20090424125127631|title=EUROPE: Future of masters programmes|date=26 April 2009|work=University World News|access-date=19 August 2016|archive-date=20 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820091545/http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20090424125127631|url-status=live}}</ref> As the process continued, descriptors were introduced for all three levels in 2004, and [[European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System|ECTS]] credit guidelines were developed. This led to questions as to the status of the integrated master's degrees and one-year master's degrees in the UK.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uOV_Ch45lV0C&pg=RA1-PA52|title=The Bologna process and the UK|work=The Bologna process: fourth report of session 2006-07, report, together with formal minutes, oral and written evidence|author=Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Education and Skills Committee|date=30 April 2007|publisher=[[The Stationery Office]]|page=52|isbn=9780215033727|access-date=4 September 2017|archive-date=18 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210418094803/https://books.google.com/books?id=uOV_Ch45lV0C&pg=RA1-PA52|url-status=live}}</ref> However, the Framework for Higher Education Qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and the Framework for Qualifications of Higher Education Institutes in Scotland have both been aligned with the overarching framework for the EHEA with these being accepted as masters-level qualifications.