Would the bachelor's degree major matter if you get a masters in the best field?

[juillet]

We disagree on whether someone with no coursework in a particular field could enter a master’s program in that field. I know quite a few people who have done so. Sometimes they had to complete certain undergrad courses after entering the graduate program, thus lengthening their time to degree. We also disagree on how much prerequisite coursework would be required. You mentioned that often it might need to be the equivalent of a major. Again, I know quite a few applicants who were admitted with much less than the equivalent of a major. I think it depends on the particular department, the applicant’s statement, etc.

It really depends on the program and degree. Someone with no coursework in English literature or sociology would be very, very unlikely to get admitted to an MA program in those fields. But someone with no coursework in business or public policy could do an MBA or an MPP, because those are professional programs that require no background coursework. Generally speaking, academic programs do require prerequisites and professional programs may or may not. Of course, that can vary; there are some academic programs that are designed for people with little to no background (e.g., many applied statistics MA programs only require three semesters of calculus and linear algebra).

I also said that it might need to be the equivalent of a major. That’s not always the case, but in most *academic/i fields I am familiar with, having the equivalent of a major will make a student MOST competitive for good programs in the field.

Anyway, my main point is that you illustrated a lateral move through related fields. Moving from biology to biological anthropology, for example, is far easier than moving from art or fashion to anthropology.