Regent master (''Magister regens'') was a title conferred in the

medieval universities A medieval university was a corporation organized during the Middle Ages for the purposes of higher education. The first Western European institutions generally considered to be universities were established in present-day Italy (including ...

upon a student who had acquired a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

. The degree meant simply the right to teach, the ''Licentia docendi'', a right which could be granted, in the

University of Paris The University of Paris (french: link=no, Université de Paris), Metonymy, metonymically known as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, active from 1150 to 1970, with the exception between 1793 and 1806 under the French Revo ...

, only by the

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

of the Cathedral of

Notre Dame Notre Dame, French for "Our Lady", a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, most commonly refers to: * Notre-Dame de Paris, a cathedral in Paris, France * University of Notre Dame, a university in Indiana, United States ** Notre Dame Fighting Irish, th ...

, or the Chancellor of St. Geneviève. According to the Third Council of Lateran, held in 1179, this Licentia docendi had to be granted gratuitously, and to all duly qualified applicants. If the new member stayed in the university and continued to take an active part in its teaching, he was called a ''magister regens'', a practising teacher. If he were to look for another career, however, he would become ''non regens'': a passive member of the corporation of masters, without losing his affiliation to it, which usually lasted for life. An example of regent master was William Vorilong, French philosopher of the Middle Ages. Before the Licentia Docendi was developed in Europe, the certificates were given based on morality

Notes

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References

* ''Catholic Encyclopedia'' * Olaf Pedersen, Richard North, ''The First Universities'', Cambridge University Press, 1997 History of education Master's degrees Lateran councils University of Paris