Doctorate



A doctorate is an academic degree that indicates a high, if not the highest, level of academic achievement. A terminal degree in most countries, some Central and Eastern European countries place the doctorate second only to the habilitation.

The term doctorate comes from the Latin docere, meaning "to teach", shortened from the full Latin title licentia docendi, meaning "license to teach." This was translated from the equivalent Arabic term ijazat attadris, which was a distinction granted to certain Islamic scholars, thus qualifying them to teach.

Types of doctorate
Since the Middle Ages, there has been considerable evolution and proliferation in the number and types of doctorates awarded by universities throughout the world, and practices vary from one country to another. While a doctorate usually entitles one to be addressed as "doctor", usage of the title varies widely, depending on the type of doctorate earned and the doctor's occupation. See the main article for Doctor (title) for more information.

Broadly speaking, doctorates may be loosely classified into the following categories:

Research doctorates
Research doctorates are awarded in recognition of both mastery of research methods (as evidenced in class grades and a comprehensive examination) and academic research that is ideally publishable in a peer-reviewed academic journal, but that will minimally be assessed by submission and defense of a thesis or dissertation. The best-known degree of this type is that of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) awarded throughout the world; others include the U.S. degrees of Doctor of Engineering (DEng) and Doctor of Science (DSc or ScD), the UK Engineering Doctorate (EngD), and the German degree of Doctor rerum naturalium (Dr.rer.nat.).

The minimum time required to earn a doctorate varies by country, and can be a short as three years (excluding bachelor's and master's studies). However, some candidates can take anywhere from five to ten years to complete. The median number of years to completion of doctoral degrees for all fields in the US is seven years. Students are discouraged from taking unnecessarily long to graduate by having their financial support (stipends, research funds, etc.) relinquished. Furthermore, doctoral applicants were previously required have a master's degree, but many programs will now accept students straight out of undergraduate studies.

Higher doctorates
In some countries, especially the United Kingdom, Ireland and some Scandinavian, Commonwealth nations or former USSR countries, there is a higher tier of research doctorates, awarded on the basis of a formally submitted portfolio of published research of a very high standard. Examples include the Doctor of Science (DSc/ScD) and Doctor of Letters (DLitt/LittD) degrees found in the UK, Ireland and some Commonwealth countries, and the Danish doctorate (doktorgrad; e.g. dr.theol., doctor theologiæ, Latin for Doctor of Theology).

The German habilitation postdoctoral qualification is sometimes regarded as belonging to this category, even though, strictly speaking, the habilitation is not an academic degree, but rather a professional license to teach at a German university.

Higher doctorates are often also awarded honoris causa when a university wishes to formally recognize an individual's achievements and contributions to a particular field.

Professional doctorates
Professional doctorates are awarded in certain fields where most holders of the degree are not engaged primarily in scholarly research, but rather in a profession, such as law, medicine, music or ministry. Examples include the U.S. degrees of Doctor of Medicine (MD) and Doctor of Jurisprudence (JD), the Dutch Professional Doctorate in Engineering (PDEng), and the Czech degrees of Doctor of Dental Medicine (MDDr.) and Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (MVDr.).

The term Professional Doctorate is also used to refer to research doctorates with a focus on applied research. Among others, these include the Doctor of Education (EdD), Doctor of Applied Linguistics (DAppLing), and Doctor of Business Administration (DBA).

Honorary doctorates
When a university wishes to formally recognize an individual's contributions to a particular field or philanthropic efforts, it may choose to a doctoral degree honoris causa (i.e., "for the sake of the honor"), the university waiving the usual formal requirements for bestowal of the degree. Some universities (e.g., Cornell University, the University of Virginia ) do not award honorary degrees, feeling the bestowal unethical.

Argentina
Similar to other countries, in Argentina the doctorate (doctorado) is the highest. The intention is that candidates produce true and original contributions in a specific field of knowledge within a frame of academic excellence. The doctoral candidate's work should be presented in a dissertation or thesis prepared under the supervision of a tutor or director, and reviewed by a Doctoral Committee. This Committee should be composed of examiners external to the program, and at least one of them should also be external to the institution. The academic degree of Doctor is received after a successful defense of the candidate’s dissertation. Currently, there are approximately 2,151 postgraduate careers in the country, of which 14% were doctoral degrees. Doctoral programs in Argentina are overseen by the Comisión Nacional de Evaluación y Acreditación Universitaria, which is a decentralized agency in Argentina’s Ministry of Education, Science and Technology. <!-- === Brazil === The candidate is normally required to have received a Master's degree in a related field prior to getting a Doctor's degree. In a few cases however, some institutions may admit candidates who do not hold a Master's degree, based on their individual academic merit. A second and a third foreign language are also common requirements for those willing to enroll in a doctoral program in Brazil. The admission process varies by institution. Some require candidates to take several tests prior to admission to the program and others base admissions on a research proposal application and interview only. In both instances however, a faculty member must agree prior to admission to supervise the applicant for the duration of the doctorate.

The requirements for the Doctor's degree usually include satisfactory performance in a minimum number of advanced graduate courses, passing an oral qualifying exam, and submitting a doctoral thesis that must represent an original and relevant contribution to existing knowledge in the field of study to which the thesis topic is related. The thesis is examined in a final public oral exam administered by a panel of at least five faculty members, two of whom must be necessarily external examiners. After completion of the program, which normally lasts around 4 years, the candidate is commonly awarded the degree of Doutor (Doctor) followed by the name of the main area of specialization in which his/her research was conducted, e.g. Doutor em Direito (Doctor of Laws), Doutor em Ciências da Computação (Doctor of Computer Sciences), Doutor em Filosofia (Doctor of Philosophy), Doutor em Economia (Doctor of Economics), Doutor em Engenharia (Doctor of Engineering), Doutor em Medicina (Doctor of Medicine), and so on. The generic title of Doutor em Ciências (Doctor of Sciences) is normally used to refer collectively to doctorates in the natural sciences (i.e. Physics, Chemistry, Biological and Life Sciences, etc.)

All graduate programs in Brazilian public universities are tuition-free as mandated by the Brazilian constitution. Several graduate students with good academic standing are additionally supported by institutional scholarships granted by federal government agencies like CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico) and CAPES (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento do Pessoal de Ensino Superior). Personal scholarships are also provided by the various FAP's (Fundações de Amparo à Pesquisa) at the state level, especially FAPESP in the state of São Paulo, FAPERJ in the state of Rio de Janeiro and FAPEMIG in the state of Minas Gerais. Competition for graduate financial aid is very intense though and most scholarships support at most 2 years of Master's studies and 4 years of doctoral studies. The normal monthly stipend for doctoral students in Brazil is between 500 and 1000 USD.

A degree of Doutor usually enables an individual to apply for a junior faculty position equivalent to that of Assistant Professor in the United States. Progression to full professorship at the rank known as Professor Titular requires however that the candidate be successful in a competitive public exam and normally takes many years. In the federal university system, individuals who hold a doctorate and are admitted as junior faculty members may progress (usually by seniority) to the rank of Associate Professor and, then, become eligible to take the competitive exam for full professorship provided that a professorship is available. In the São Paulo state universities however, progression to the rank of Associate Professor and subsequent eligibility to apply for a full professorship is conditioned on an individual's obtaining first the qualification of Livre-docente, which is similar to the Habilitation in the German university system and requires, in addition to a previous doctoral degree, the submission of a second thesis or cumulative portfolio of peer-reviewed publications, a public lecture before a panel of experts (including external members from other universities), and also passing a written exam. -->

<!-- === France === In France, the doctorate (doctorat) is always a research-only degree. It is a national degree and its requirements are fixed by an official text of the minister of higher education and research. Except for a very small number of private institutions, only public institutions of higher education and research can award the doctorate. It can be awarded in any field of study. The master's degree in research (Master Recherche ) or the former diplôme d'études approfondies (DEA) is a prerequisite for pursuing a doctoral program. The official normal duration of the doctoral work is three years. The redaction of a comprehensive thesis constitutes the bulk of the doctorate's work. While the length of the thesis varies according to the discipline, it is rarely less than 300 pages, and often substantially more (unlike in the US for example). There are ~15000 new matriculations for the doctoral program every year and ~10000 doctorates awarded.

Doctoral candidates can apply for a three-year fellowship, the most well known being the allocation de recherche du ministère de l'enseignement supérieur et de la recherche (4000 granted every years, gross salary of 18,369 euros in February 2007).

During the preparation of the doctorate, the candidate has had, since 2002, to follow a limited number of courses, but there is no written examination for the doctorate. The candidate has to write an extensive thesis which is read by two external reviewers designated by the head of the institution. According to the reports of the reviewer, the head of the institution decides whether the candidate can defend his thesis or not. The members of the jury are designated by the head of the institution and must be composed of external and internal academics. The supervisor of the candidate is generally member of the jury, as well as the reviewers of the thesis. The maximum number of members in the jury is 8. The defense lasts generally 45 minutes in scientific fields and are followed by 1h30 - 2h30 of questions from the jury. Defense and questions are public. At the end of the series of questions, the jury deliberates in private for 20-30 min and comes back to declare the candidate admitted or "postponed". "Postponement" is very rare. The admission of the candidate is generally followed by a distinction: "honourable", which is not highly considered, "very honourable", which is the usual distinction, and "very honourable with the congratulation of the jury" ( Très honorable avec félicitations). Because there exist no national criteria for the award of this last distinction, many institutions have decided not to award it. New regulations concerning this distinction were set in 2006.

Confusingly the title of doctor (docteur) is used only by the medical and pharmatical practitioners who hold not a doctorate but a doctor's state diploma (diplôme d'État de docteur), which is a first-degree and professional doctorate obtained after at least 9 years of studies. As they do not pursue research studies, they are not awarded a doctorate.

Before 1984 three research doctorates existed : the state doctorate (doctorat d'État, the old doctorate introduced in 1808), the third cycle doctorate (doctorat de troisième cycle), created in 1954 and shorter that the state doctorate, and the diploma of doctor-engineer (diplôme de docteur-ingénieur), created in 1923, for technical research. Since 1984, there is only type of doctoral degree, simply called "doctorate". A special diploma has been created called the "habilitation to supervise research" (habilitation à diriger des recherches), which is a professional qualification to supervise doctoral work. (This diploma is similar in spirit to the older state doctorate, and the requirements for obtaining it are similar to those necessary to obtain tenure in other systems.) Before only professors or senior full researchers of similar rank were normally authorized to supervise a doctoral candidate's work. -->

Germany
A research doctorate usually takes three to five years to complete. In Germany, most doctorates are awarded with specific designations for the field of research instead of a general "PhD" for all fields. The degree is written in front of the first name for addresses (within texts, the abbreviation "Dr." is common) and accompanies the person's name (unlike in German-speaking Switzerland).

There are no first degree doctorates but medical students can obtain a "Dr. med." after one semester of mostly undergraduate research or data evaluation. The "Dr. med." is not equivalent to a PhD but to a Masters degree. Medical Students going into research can obtain a research doctorate in some subjects, such as molecular medicine or human biology.

Upon the completion of the Habilitationsschrift a senior doctorate (habil.) is awarded. This senior doctorate is known as the habilitation. It is not a degree, but an additional qualification. It authorizes the owner to teach at (German) universities ("facultas docendi"), plus qualifies the holder of the "habil." to teacher in a certain subject ("venia legendi"). This or an equivalent professional experience is - traditionally - the necessary prerequisite for a position of Privatdozent and Professor. Now, with the Bachelor/Master model and the Juniorprofessoren to be introduced, this has already changed partially.

<!-- === Netherlands, The ===

The traditional academic system of The Netherlands provides four basic academic diplomas and degrees: propaedeuse, candidate, doctorandus (drs.) and doctor (dr.). After successful completion of the first year of University, the student is awarded the propaedeutic diploma (not a degree). The candidate degree, which was all but abolished by 1989, used to be attained after three years of academic study, after which the student was allowed to begin work on his doctorandus' thesis. The successful completion of this thesis allows one to use the doctorandus title, attainment of which means one's initial studies are finished. In addition to these 'general' degrees, a number of specific titles for certain subjects are available, each of which is equivalent to the doctorandus degree: for law: meester ('master') (mr.), and for engineering: ingenieur ('engineer')(ir.).In the last few years, the Dutch have incorporated the Anglo-Saxon system of academic degrees into their own. The old candidate's degree has been revived as bachelor's degree, the doctorandus' by the master's degree.

Those who choose to can enroll in a doctorate system after achieving a masters degree (or equivalent) recognised by the Dutch government. The most common way is to be hired as promovendus (research assistant with additional courses and supervision), perform extensive research, and write a doctoral dissertation (this course is normally four years, although the average duration to completions is about 5.5 years). It is also possible to conduct research without the research assistant status, for example through a business sponsored research laboratory, or in spare time. Regardless of the way, every thesis has to be supported by a promotor (full university professor who has the role of principal advisor) before it can be submitted. The written thesis is subjected to review by a committee of experts in the relevant academic field; who either approve or do not approve the submitted thesis. Failures at this stage are rare as the supervisors will rather hold back submission (causing delay beyond the 4 years) than allowing a substandard thesis to be submitted. Especially the promotor looses face with her/his colleagues allowing a substandard thesis to be submitted. After approval by the reviewers, the doctor's degree is awarded in a formal, public, defense session (failure durng this session is in theory possible but in practice this never happens).

The doctor title is the highest academic degree one can attain in the Netherlands. There is only one title "doctor", which is equivalent to PhD. There have been some attempts to introduce a professional doctorate, e.g. at the three Universities of Technology in the Netherlands (Eindhoven University of Technology, Technical University Delft, and University of Twente) who award the "Professional Doctorate in Engineering" (PDEng) (which replaced an old post-master degree). However, this study is too short (only two years) to be a real doctorate and does lack the crucial elements to be recognized as such. Although the name and professional course is registered at the Royal Dutch Institute for Engineers (KIvI), the degree is not is acknowledged by the Dutch law as a doctoral degree and is not incorporated in the Dutch Higher Education Act. Holders of the title PDEng are not allowed to entitle it a doctorate and to use the title of "doctor" in the Netherlands and internationally. -->

Spain
Doctor Degrees are regulated by Royal Decree (R.D. 778/1998), Decreto Real (in Spanish). They are granted by the University on behalf of the King, and its Diploma has the force of a public document. The Ministry of Science keeps a National Registry of Theses called TESEO. According to the National Institute of Statistics (INE), less than 5% of M.Sc. degree holders are admitted to Ph.D. programs, and less than 10% of 1st year Ph.D. students are finally granted a Doctorate.

All doctoral programs are of research nature. A minimum of 5 years of study are required, divided into 2 stages:

1) A 3-year long period of studies, which concludes with a public dissertation presented to a panel of 3 Professors. If the projects receives approval from the university, he/she will receive a "Diploma de Estudios Avanzados" (part qualified doctor).

2) A 2-year (or longer) period of research. Extensions may be requested for up to 10 years. The student must write his thesis presenting a new discovery or original contribution to Science. If approved by his "thesis director", the study will be presented to a panel of 5 distinguished scholars. Any Doctor attending the public presentations is allowed to challenge the candidate with questions on his research. If approved, he will receive the doctorate. Four marks can be granted (Unsatisfactory, Pass, "Cum laude", and "Summa cum laude"). Those Doctors granted their degree "Summa Cum Laude" are allowed to apply for an "Extraordinary Award".

A Doctor Degree is required in order to apply to a teaching position at the University.

The social standing of Doctors in Spain is evidenced by the fact that only Doctors and Grandees/Dukes can take seat and cover their heads before the King. All Doctorate Degree holders are reciprocally recognized as equivalent in Germany and Spain ("Bonn Agreement of November 14th 1994").

United Kingdom
All doctorates (except for those awarded honoris causa) granted by British universities are research doctorates in the sense described above, in that their main (and in many cases only) component is the submission of a thesis or portfolio of original research, examined by an expert panel appointed by the university.

Even the relatively new 'vocational doctorates' such as the EngD, EdD, DSocSci and DClinPsych require the submission of a body of original research of a similar length to a PhD thesis. In the case of the EngD, however, this might be in the form of a portfolio of technical reports on different research projects undertaken by the candidate as opposed to a single, long monographical thesis. Another important difference is that traditional PhD programs are mostly academic-oriented and normally require full-time study at the university, whereas, in an EngD program, the candidate typically works full-time for an industrial sponsor on application-oriented topics of direct interest to the partner company and is jointly supervised by university faculty members and company employees.

The PhD itself is a comparatively recent introduction to the UK, dating from 1917. It was originally introduced in order to provide a similar level of graduate research training as was available in several other countries, notably Germany and the USA. Previously, the only doctorates available were the higher doctorates, awarded in recognition of an illustrious research career.

The universities of Oxford and Sussex denote the degree of Doctor of Philosophy with the postnominal initials DPhil. The University of York also did this for some years, switching to the more conventional PhD quite recently.

Higher doctorates in the United Kingdom
Higher doctorates are awarded in recognition of a substantial body of original research undertaken over the course of many years. Typically the candidate will submit a collection of work which has been previously published in a peer-refereed context. Most universities restrict candidacy to graduates or academic staff of several years' standing. The most common doctorates of this type are those in Divinity (DD), Medicine (MD or DM), Laws (LLD), Civil Law (DCL), Music (DMus or MusD), Letters (DLitt or LittD) and Science (DSc or ScD).

Of these, the DD historically ranked highest, theology being the senior faculty in the mediaeval universities. The degree of Doctor of Canon Law was next in the order of precedence, but (except for a brief revival during the reign of Mary Tudor) did not survive the Protestant reformation, a consequence of the fact that the teaching of canon law at Cambridge and Oxford was forbidden by Henry VIII, founder of the Church of England. The DMus was, historically, in an anomalous situation, since a candidate was not required to be a member of Convocation (that is, to be a Master of Arts). The DLitt and DSc are relatively recent innovations, dating from the latter part of the 19th century.

Honorary doctorates in the United Kingdom
Most British universities award degrees honoris causa in order to recognise individuals who have made a substantial contribution to a particular field. Usually an appropriate higher doctorate is used in these circumstances, depending on the achievements of the candidate. However, some universities, in order to differentiate between honorary and substantive doctorates, have introduced the degree of Doctor of the University (DUniv) for these purposes, and reserve the higher doctorates for formal academic research.

Research doctorate in the United States
The most common research doctorate is the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.). This degree was first awarded in the U.S. at the 1861 Yale University commencement. The University of Pennsylvania followed shortly thereafter in 1870, while Harvard (1872) and Princeton (1879) also followed suit.

The requirements for obtaining Ph.D.s and other research doctorates in the U.S. typically entail successful completion of pertinent classes, passing of a comprehensive examination, and defense of a dissertation.

Professional doctorates in the United States
In the United States, there are numerous degrees which incorporate the word "doctor" and are known as "professional doctorates." Such fields include audiology, chiropractic, dentistry, law, medicine, occupational therapy, optometry, osteopathic medicine, pharmacy, physical therapy, podiatry, practical theology, psychology, veterinary medicine, and many others that usually require such degress for licensure. Generally, these degrees are considered "first professional degrees."

The primary difference between a professional doctorate (such as in the fields of medicine and law) and a research doctorate is that the former are, with few exceptions, not a terminal degree - that is, it is not the highest level of academic achievement in that field. In addition, the professional degree usually does not focus primarily upon research, which is the central component of doctoral and most master's level research degrees. In addition, the research doctorate will require the creation of an original idea adding to the body of knowledge in the field, which is not a requirement of the professional doctorate. Some law schools and a small number of medical schools require that the candidate perform original research and write a formal research paper; all accredited law schools have a writing requirement, but some allow it to be satisfied by a professional, as opposed to an academic-research, writing. Even when not a requirement, most medical students still conduct some form of academic research before residency, often leading to publication. The typical minimum term for such a degree (M.D.) is 4 years past postsecondary education. In addition, in many academic fields (such as law) the professional degree is the norm for academic and research careers.

Professional doctorates in Korea and Japan
As part of a reform plan adopted in 2004, South Korea is creating a system of American-style graduate law schools which will award a Juris Doctor (professional doctoral) degree. Only graduates of these law schools, scheduled to matriculate their first students in 2009, will be eligible to take the bar exam. In Japan, a similar reform was started in 2004 and the degree of Juris Doctor is awarded to graduates of three year graduate studies in law.