What is the terminal?
The terminal level usually refers to the highest level that can be achieved when visiting a school for a specific subject. It is a term often used in American postsecundary education to distinguish the final level of education that most people in the subject achieve, although they may not always be the highest form that students in other subjects can monitor. The deadline can also be used for professional titles that some people will achieve to get a certain type of job, even if there are advanced titles above this level. The terminal degree may therefore refer to the highest level that can be achieved, or to the highest level that most experts receive to work in their field. In many fields it is a doctorate of philosophy (PhD) and is acquired only after extensive years of learning research work. For example, PhD work will usually require a bachelor's degree and a master's degree to be obtained in a field related to the subject in which the person receives PhD.
This means that the doctoral degree as a terminal usually requires at least four years of work for a bachelor's degree, then another two or three years for a master's degree and two to six years of work to finally get PhD. In other fields, however, the level of the terminal may be one of the "smaller" degrees that are usually obtained when working on PhD. For example, in performing and fine arts, the Master of Fine Arts (MFA) is usually considered to be the highest degree that can be obtained from entities such as writing.
The terminal level can also be a professional degree in which someone is likely to stop while trying to get education necessary to work in a certain profession. For example, although the master's degree can be obtained in a subject like education, most teachers require to be able to teach a bachelor's degree. This means that many students who are interested in becoming a teacher see a bachelor's degree like tErminal stage in this particular area. Such a title is often referred to as the first professional title, with available higher levels, but not always necessary for employment in the area.