Graduate Diploma is a qualification pursued after completion of a first degree. The level of study differs in different countries. It varies from being considered at the same level as the senior year of a bachelor's degree to being at a higher level between a master's degree and a doctorate. In a few countries, the graduate diploma and postgraduate diploma are similar, whereas, in others (particularly where the graduate diploma is at undergraduate degree level), the postgraduate diploma is considered a higher qualification.  

Types of Graduate Diplomas Offered in Different Countries

United Kingdom  

A graduate diploma is a short course in the UK. It has a value of 80–120 UK credits which is equivalent to 40–60 ECTS credits. It is normally studied by students who have already graduated but in some other field. Graduate diplomas are different from graduate certificates by having a longer duration, equivalent to two-thirds of an academic year or more.

The British conservatoires of music offered 3-year undergraduate courses to some of their students until the 1990s, leading to the award of the Graduate Diploma, which was equivalent to a university degree in music. The graduate diplomas were replaced by the award of the BMus degree, over time, to all successful students when a number of conservatoires became affiliated to or constituent colleges of universities.  

In the UK, a graduate diploma should not be confused with a postgraduate diploma, which is a master's degree-level qualification. Previously, this was not always been the case, with a postgraduate diploma and graduate diploma used interchangeably, but the Quality Assurance Agency now makes a clear distinction between these titles. Some institutions have renamed courses; as a result, e.g., 

The College of Law renamed the official title for its law conversion course from Postgraduate Diploma in Law to Graduate Diploma in Law as, although the law conversion course is studied on a postgraduate level, the contents of the course are only undergraduate in nature.  

Canada

The graduate diplomas that are offered in Canada (French: Diplômed'études supérieures spécialisées) are normally pursued after the completion of a bachelor's degree. Successful completion of it allows progression to a master's degree. Varying institution to institution, a graduate diploma in Canada may be at the graduate level or bachelor's level. Similar kinds of courses at other Canadian institutions may be termed postgraduate diplomas at the graduate level and post-baccalaureate diplomas at bachelor's level.  

Malaysia

On the Malaysian Qualifications Framework, the graduate diploma forms part of the lifelong education pathway. Even though they are qualifications at the level of a bachelor's degree, but they are half of the credit value.

New Zealand

In New Zealand, land of the kiwis, a graduate diploma is an advanced undergraduate qualification usually completed after a bachelor's degree or done in parallel with the bachelors program, and can be used as a bridging qualification to demonstrate a student's ability to study postgraduate studies for a completely different field. A graduate diploma, such as 'Graduate A diploma in Education is different from a postgraduate diploma, which is a program at postgraduate level (e.g.,

Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Psychology etc.). In learning institutes and universities, a graduate diploma allows them to pursue a new profession and is commonly studied by students who have graduated in a different field. It normally involves studying courses in an accelerated undergraduate program (e.g., normally a blend of sophomore and junior year courses from the bachelor's program) in order for the student to fulfill the requirements equivalent to a student who studied for an undergraduate degree.

Australia

Normally the graduate diploma is taken following a bachelor's degree, and some master's degree programs have a graduate diploma as a nested (interim) award. The qualification is at level eight of the Australian Qualifications Framework, the same as an honors degree. This qualification is regarded equally as the postgraduate diploma qualifications awarded in New Zealand institutions. However, Australian graduate diplomas should not be confused with New Zealand graduate diplomas as they belong to two different qualification levels.