PhD Candidacy
Candidate of Philosophy is a certification or a status, rather than a separate degree, that a postgraduate student achieves en route to a doctorate. It is abbreviated PhD (cand), PhDc, or simply PhC. Postgraduate programs vary in their requirements for completion of a doctorate, but most follow a pattern: completion of class requirements, a lower level exam, an upper level exam, and a final exam.
Candidacy is conferred or certified when the student has successfully satisfied specific requirements towards a doctorate, pending the completion of research projects and defense of a written dissertation. The completion of research, however, might or might not be necessary for candidacy. Rather, it depends on requirements that are specific to the program of study. The term "ABD" (All But Dissertation or All But Defended) usually means that a candidate has only to complete the writing and defense of the dissertation.
Although it is a minor distinction in postgraduate study, candidacy occasionally provides some benefits. It might mean an increase in the student's stipend and/or make the student eligible for employment opportunities. Neither of these, however, is guaranteed by candidacy. The primary benefit of PhD candidacy is that completion of the doctorate is nominally imminent so long as the student completes the final defense. This is, of course, not a given because a written dissertation and an oral defense of the student's work are typically not treated lightly by the faculty.
It is worth noting that the Candidate of Philosophy is not to be confused with Candidate of Sciences, an academic degree that has been used in certain countries in place of a PhD.
Some programs also include a Master of Philosophy degree as part of the PhD program. The MPhil, in those universities that offer it, is usually awarded after the appropriate MA or MS (as above) is awarded, and the degree candidate has completed all further requirements for the PhD degree (which may include additional language requirements, course credits, teaching experiences, and comprehensive exams) aside from the writing and defense of the dissertation itself. This formalizes the "all but dissertation" (ABD) status used informally by some students, and represents that the student has achieved a higher level of scholarship than the MA/MS would indicate – as such, the MPhil is sometimes a helpful credential for those applying for teaching or research posts while completing their dissertation work for the PhD degree itself.
Read more about this topic: Doctor Of Philosophy, Doctor of Philosophy Degrees Across The Globe, United States