Bachelor of Philosophy
The B.Phil.'s earliest form is as a University of Oxford graduate degree, first awarded in 1682. Originally, Oxford named its pre-doctoral graduate degrees the Bachelor of Philosophy (B.Phil.) (a two-year degree, partly taught and partly by research) and the Bachelor of Letters (B.Litt.) (a two-year research degree). After complaints, especially from overseas students, that this naming convention often meant that graduate degrees were not being recognised as such, the University renamed them Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.) and Master of Letters (M.Litt.). However, the Philosophy Faculty (then a Sub-Faculty) argued that its B.Phil. degree had become so well known and respected in the philosophical world that it would be confusing to change the name. In philosophy, therefore, the degree continues to be called the B.Phil. Those who pass the degree are given the choice of taking a B.Phil. or an M.Phil.; few if any choose the latter. (Note that Oxford also offers a number of other graduate degrees labeled as baccalaureate degrees: the law faculty's BCL; and the music faculty's B.Mus)
Licentiate (degree)
After the Bologna process, all official university degrees will fall into one of these three categories: "Grado" (Bachelor), Master or Doctor. Most "Grados" will consist of three or four years (240 ECTS credits), unless it is otherwise ruled by an EU Directive (like Pharmacy, five years, or Medicine, six years). All university students completing these four years will get a "Grado" and may then go on with Master's studies (one to two years, 60-120 ECTS credits). Doctorate studies will in most cases require a research-oriented master's degree and may or may not include specific courses.