But I do not think having a certain name on your diploma means you have a specific "duty" to society at large beyond what we expect in terms of human decency.
The 67-year-old veteran from Johnsburg, N.Y., dropped out of high school at age 16 to join the U.S. Navy, but recently earned his diploma under Operation Recognition, a state program that allows certain veterans to earn high school diplomas if they left school for service before graduating.
Students attended for two to five years and sat either for a diploma or, in certain establishments, for university degrees or for a competitive examination, such as the agrégation.
According to the IB, there are two universities in Russia that officially recognise the IB diploma subject to certain guidelines.
Germany sets certain conditions for the IB diploma to be accepted (a foreign language at minimum A2 Standard Level; Mathematics standard level minimum; Economics, Geography or History as the Group 3 subject; and at least one Science or Mathematics at Higher Level).
A fifth of the pupils described diplomas as specific to certain jobs.
Regents exams are created by the state in a range of subjects, and students must pass a certain number of them to earn a diploma.
The guidelines include a requirement that applicants have a body-mass index of less than 40, no criminal record, a high school diploma and be free of certain health problems like AIDS and cancer.
Of course, a university diploma is not bad; it shows that you have a certain level of education, as well as a certain cultural standing.
A writer of a certain age might be tempted, even encouraged, to regard the detritus of his life — school diplomas, spelling-bee honorable mentions, expired passports, maybe the odd award — as his "papers".
