Research Discussions

Doctorate VS PhD

Most of us consider a Doctorate and a PhD Degree to be one and the same thing. However, the major difference between these two degrees is that, all PhD degrees are Doctorate degrees, but all Doctorate degrees are not PhD degrees.

Type of study

All Doctorate Degrees including PhD require several years of research and study. After the research work, the student is supposed to submit a thesis or dissertation. The student needs to clear comprehensive exams and get the thesis approved. After this, the student is awarded the Doctorate degree. This time frame could be anything between 3 to 8 years depending on the field chosen, research topic, skills of the student and the number of attempts made to get the thesis accepted by the Dissertation Board.

What is the difference?

An academic or professional degree that permits the holder of the degree to become eligible for teaching at a university in a particular field, or to work as a professional in that particular field is called a Doctorate. A student with a doctorate in medicine attains an MD degree that is a Doctorate in Medicine. Similarly, a PhD holder gets a Doctorate in Philosophy. However, a PhD degree can be attained in various disciplines, not necessarily philosophy.

Though the Doctorate and PhD are quite similar in most of the cases and are considered almost equal due to requirement of similar study times and semesters, the major difference between them is that the dissertations of PhD are more theoretical while those for Doctorates are practical.