(01-15-2019, 11:31 AM)sanantone Wrote: If you're interested in health science and just need a doctorate to teach clinical courses, then Eastern Virginia Medical School has a Doctor of Health Science that does not require a dissertation or research project. Even though the program is only 42 credits, they only allow students to take two courses each fall and spring and one course in the summer making the program three years long. 

Tuition is $919 per credit hour. All coursework is online. You need a master's degree related to health science, education, or management. 

https://www.evms.edu/education/doctoral_programs/doctor_of_health_sciences/

(01-15-2019, 06:03 PM)sanantone Wrote: Most doctoral programs take more than four years. I believe the average length is over eight years now. Even if you knock off two years for having a master's degree, that's still six years. The fastest doctorate I've seen is ASU's DBH. It's 18 months.

I checked UoP's website, and the DBA and DM require a dissertation. If I had to guess, I would say that 99% of the online professional doctorates require a dissertation, applied project, or a capstone that takes almost as long as a dissertation.

(01-15-2019, 06:22 PM)Merlin Wrote:

(01-15-2019, 06:03 PM)sanantone Wrote: Most doctoral programs take more than four years. I believe the average length is over eight years now. Even if you knock off two years for having a master's degree, that's still six years. The fastest doctorate I've seen is ASU's DBH. It's 18 months.

I checked UoP's website, and the DBA and DM require a dissertation. If I had to guess, I would say that 99% of the online professional doctorates require a dissertation, applied project, or a capstone that takes almost as long as a dissertation.

From what I've seen most doctorate programs expect a 4-8 year investment, though professional doctorates are supposed to take less than 4. I haven't heard about ASU's DBH, not that it applies to me, but 18 months super-quick.

As for UoP, you're right. I just went back to look and I see a dissertation listed now. I must have missed it when I originally looked a couple months back. I could have sworn those weren't there though. In fact, I'm pretty sure I found them as a referral for professional doctorates without dissertation requirements. That means I can pull UoP off the list completely though. The only reason they were on my list at all was because I thought those degrees lacked the dissertation requirement.

While I am still doing my research, I was under the impression that most professional doctorates did not have a dissertation requirement. I've seen articles discussing professional degrees in business (like DBA, DM, and DL) that don't have a dissertation requirement, but I haven't actually found any yet. Perhaps they're only at B&M schools. Then again, if they have a project or capstone that takes more than a year to complete then it might as well be the same thing. The point is to find a quicker path to the degree (at least for me, given I'd be retirement age before I could complete a traditional Ph.D.). The sooner I can earn the degree, the sooner I can put it to use.

I may end up forgetting about the PhD if I can't find an accelerated path. Maybe I'll just focus on a second masters and call it good.

(01-15-2019, 11:31 AM)sanantone Wrote: If you're interested in health science and just need a doctorate to teach clinical courses, then Eastern Virginia Medical School has a Doctor of Health Science that does not require a dissertation or research project. Even though the program is only 42 credits, they only allow students to take two courses each fall and spring and one course in the summer making the program three years long. 

Tuition is $919 per credit hour. All coursework is online. You need a master's degree related to health science, education, or management. 

https://www.evms.edu/education/doctoral_programs/doctor_of_health_sciences/

(01-29-2019, 07:57 PM)Sagan Wrote: Traditionally, professional doctorates and scholarly doctorates differ primarily on the basis of the thesis. Scholarly doctorates typically require original and significant contribution to theory. This is typically done by either building or testing theory, fills a new niche in the field, and builds on the work of others.

Professional doctorates typically do not require original, significant contributions to scholarship. Instead, they tend to require significant contributions to practice instead of scholarship.

Typically, the PhD is a scholarly doctorate while other, alternative titles (EdD, DBA, etc.) are professional. However these lines are sometimes blurred, with such degrees still requiring an original and significant contribution to scholarship.

Blurring things further are doctorates that do not require a thesis/dissertation at all. Some require a comparable (or, at least, substantive) project, but others without the requirement are emerging.

Finally, there are first professional doctorates. These are not really doctoral degree programs, despite their titles. They are entry-level credentials for certain professions that, typically (there's that word again) call their practitioners "doctor." The MD, OD, DO, DC, DDS, and (recently emerging) the DNP are examples.

While we're at it, let's clear something up about the title "doctor." Yes, academics who have completed a doctorate are fully entitled to the use of the title. In fact, scholarly doctorates pre-date professional doctorates by hundreds of years and is based in scholarship, designating an advanced scholar (and often faculty member) of a university. Applying the title "doctor" to physicians, dentists, and the like stems from their profession; the degrees came later.

Is it appropriate to refer to one's self as "doctor"? For both medical professionals and academics, IMHO, only when it's relevant in a professional setting. Even then, it's not really necessary most of the time.

Is it appropriate to refer to someone else as "doctor"? Sure. It goes for both medical professionals and academics. But it's not important and it would be really rude to correct someone unnecessarily.