A licentiate (abbreviated Lic.) is an academic degree present in many countries, representing different educational levels. It may be similar to a master's degree when issued by pontifical universities and other universities in Europe, Latin America, and Syria. The term is also used for a person who holds this degree. Etymology The term derives from Latin licentia, "freedom" (from Latin licēre, "to be allowed"), which is applied in the phrases licentia docendi (also licentia doctorandi), meaning "permission to teach", and licentia ad practicandum (also licentia practicandi), meaning "permission to practice", signifying someone who holds a certificate of competence to practise a profession. History The Gregorian Reform of the Catholic Church led to an increased focus on the liberal arts in episcopal schools during the 11th and 12th centuries, with Pope Gregory VII ordering all bishops to make provisions for the teaching of liberal arts. Chancellors and scholasters exercised a high degree of control over who could teach within their locus magisterii, or area of teaching authority. Throughout the 12th century, the degree of their control tightened to such an extent that they had essential monopolies over all teachers in their dioceses, and teachers were barred from acting as instructors without the explicit authorization of their scholasters. Conflicts sometimes arose between the scholasters and local independent educators who operated educational facilities without their permission, and chancellors often demanded expensive gifts before granting a license to teach. In response to these escalating abuses of power, Pope Alexander III demanded that a free licentia docendi should be granted to anyone deemed qualified to teach. This allowed the Church to progressively centralize its educational control, reducing the power of individual scholasters. Originally, for the student in the medieval university the licentia docendi was of a somewhat different nature than the academic degrees of bachelor, master or doctor. The latter essentially indicated the rank of seniority in the various faculties (arts, theology, law, medicine), whereas the licentia was literally the licence to teach. It was awarded not by the university but by the church, embodied in the chancellor of the diocese in which the university was located. The licentia would only be awarded however upon recommendation by the university, initially shortly before the candidate would be awarded the final degree of master or doctor, the requirements for which beyond having been awarded the licentia were only of a ceremonial nature. Over time however, this distinction