Chess ratings as college degrees

Ok, I know this is entirely subjective, but I wanted to know what the general consensus was to a topic some friends and I were discussing. (it's all in good fun, no right or wrong answers)

In your opinion, what college degrees would be equal to what rating level in chess? After all, both take years of work and mental sharpening. I was saying that a Bachelor's Degree would be equal to an 1800 rating, a Master's would be a 2000, and a Doctoral degree equal to 2200.

Agree? Disagree? I'd love to hear some opinions.

I think it also depends on the field.

I would think PhD would equate to IM+ based on the amount of time and work. Masters probably closer to 2200. Bachelor's probably is the most variable, but 1800 is likely about right.

Only 30% of adults in the US have a bachelor's degree, and that equates to about 1400 USCF rating.  Master's Degree is 1800. PhD puts you in the 2100 rating range.

Ratings don't equal degrees. 

Some Middle School students are Chess Masters, and some PhDs can't even play chess, let alone earn a rating. SilentKnighte5 thinks a Master's Degree corresponds to 1800. My guess would be that most people don't even begin training as chess players unless they're talented enough to have an 1800 rating already. 

If I'm right, then you start training at 1800, call that the high school grad level, though as I say many Middle School players are higher rated. A Bachelor's might then be 2000, and so on from there. 

In Russia I hear you actually can major in chess. Will some Russian players tell us how the ratings work out there?

The OP isn't claiming they do.

I took it more as a time investment versus reward thing. X years of dedicated chess study, instead of schooling for fairly normal people (not prodigies for example).

Of course, not everyone can reach those levels but for many IMs or GMs is probably took 8+ years, of consistent learning and practice, to get to that level. Which would be approximately the equivalent of a doctorate., in time and effort.

Right, I wasnt thinking it was a literal equivalent, hence the subjective part. And prodigies are always the exception. Outliers just mess it up for everyone, hahaha.

I would agree, Martin, that it depends on the field. A Bacheor's in one field could be much less demanding than one in another. I never thought to go as high as IM. I did think that maybe a residency trained physician would be a GM (11 years minimum, up to 15 in some specialities).

Maybe the closest approximation would be the number of people (in my country of USA) who have each degree and match it to the number of rated players at a certain level, like Silentknight said. If 30% of adults have a Bachelor's degree, then that would be about the 70th percentile of chess ratings, which I assume is 1400? 

Re-read the OP's message.