| > I'd prefer something like "The purpose of PhD programs is to advance the field". If you read Wikipedia under 'Doctor of Philosophy', you will find that a Ph.D. was once more of a prestigious title you got after doing the scholarship: "The first higher doctorate in the modern sense was Durham University's DSc, introduced in 1882. This was soon followed by other universities, including the University of Cambridge establishing its ScD in the same year and the University of London transforming its DSc into a research degree in 1885. These were, however, very advanced degrees, rather than research-training degrees at the PhD level—Harold Jeffreys said that getting a Cambridge ScD was "more or less equivalent to being proposed for the Royal Society." It is still possible to get a doctorate in this manner. Please see wikipedia under 'Doctor of Philosophy by publication'. "A Doctor of Philosophy by publication (also known as a Ph.D. by Published Work, PhD by portfolio or Ph.D. under Special Regulation) is a manner of awarding a Ph.D. degree offered by some universities in which a series of articles usually with a common theme are published in scholarly, peer-reviewed journals to meet the requirements for the degree, in lieu of presentation of a final dissertation. Many PhD by Publication programs require the submission of a formal thesis and a viva voce." It is offered in several countries in Europe. The wikipedia entry is incomplete: it is not just offered in the UK. Furthermore, it is relatively common to get advanced degrees from well known universities (e.g., Harvard) without having an undergraduate degree. |