- May 9, 2020
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For anyone interested...
I am American and also have been a teacher at the high school and college/university levels. Primary school (which Americans usually call "elementary" school) is generally 6 years, then middle school is grades 7 and 8, then secondary school ("high" school) is grades 9, 10, 11, and 12. Some school systems split grades 9 and 10 into "junior high," but that is just semantics. At graduation students are awarded a "high school diploma," which is generally required to go on to higher, also called post-secondary, education. To go to any college, students must apply. Some schools have "open" admissions, which means that anyone with a high school diploma who applies (and can pay) can attend. Other schools set standards and admit only a fraction of those who apply.
Post-secondary schooling can also include community or technical college, which is usually a lower-cost option that offers 2-year degrees ("associate" degrees or certificates in technical areas). And of course there are 4-year universities and colleges (in the US these terms are generally interchangeable) that typically cost more and offer bachelor's degrees. Many of these schools also offer master's degrees and doctorates (PhDs).
Obtaining a bachelor's degree can take students 3 years, 4 year, or much longer, depending on whether they study part time or full time and how aggressively they pursue their degrees. I obtained two degrees, so my undergraduate (bachelor's degree) studies took me 5 years. I later got a master's degree, which is normally a two-year process, but I did it in one.
Burgmeister & Royce (which to my American ears sounds like the name of a law firm, not a school) appears to be a standard liberal arts 4-year college/university. It must also be private, as public universities in the US generally all have the word "state" as part of their name and/or the name of the state itself (for example, New York University, Michigan State University, the University of Texas, etc.).
