Professional Master's and Academic Master's are two different types of graduate students, and their main differences are in their training objectives and curriculum.
The academic master's degree is academic research-oriented, focusing on theory and research, and mainly cultivating academic research talents. Academic master's education focuses on cultivating teaching and scientific research talents, and the types of degrees awarded are mainly academic degrees. The curriculum of the Academic Master of Science focuses on strengthening the study of basic theories, focusing on cultivating students' ability and quality to engage in scientific research and innovation.
The professional master's degree is oriented to vocational needs and applications, focusing on practice and application, and mainly cultivating high-level talents who have received formal training in professional and specialized technologies. The outstanding feature of professional master's education is that the academic type and the vocational nature are closely integrated, and those who obtain a professional degree are not mainly engaged in academic research, but are engaged in jobs with obvious professional backgrounds, such as engineers, physicians, teachers, lawyers, accountants, etc. The professional master's program is oriented to practical application, aims at vocational needs, and focuses on the improvement of comprehensive literacy and applied knowledge and ability.
In terms of enrollment requirements, academic masters generally do not require applicants to have a certain number of years of work experience, while professional masters have different work experience requirements according to different majors. In terms of admissions examinations, the admissions examination for academic master's degrees is only the "unified examination" at the beginning of the year, while the professional examinations other than the unified examination are proposed and graded by each admissions unitThe examination for professional master's degrees is generally more difficult than for academic masters.
As for how to choose, it mainly depends on factors such as personal interests, career planning, and economic conditions. If you want to have more in-depth exploration and development in academic research, or want to gain more comprehensive subject theory and expertise, then the choice of Academic Master may be more suitable. If you are more focused on practical application and vocational skills development, or if you want to work in a field of expertise with a clear professional background, then a professional master's degree may be more suitable.