Professional Degrees
In the United States, numerous fields of study have professional doctorates, such as medicine/osteopathic medicine, public health, dentistry, optometry, pharmacy, psychology, physical therapy, occupational therapy, health science, advanced practice registered nurse, chiropractic, naturopathic medicine, law, education, teaching, and many others that usually require such degrees for licensure. Some of these degrees are also termed "first professional degrees," since they are also the first degree in their field.
Professional doctorates were developed in the United States in the 19th century during a movement to improve the training of professionals by raising the requirements for entry and completion of the degree necessary to enter the profession. These first professional degrees were created to help strengthen professional training programs. The first professional doctorate to be offered in the United States was the M.D. in 1767 by Columbia University which was nearly one hundred years before the first Ph.D. was awarded in the U.S. in 1861. The Juris Doctor (J.D.) was subsequently established by Harvard University for the same reasons that the M.D. was established. A Doctor of Pharmacy is awarded as the Terminal/Professional degree in Pharmacy replacing BS in Pharmacy. It is the only Professional Pharmacy Degree awarded in the US and the Pharmacy School needs accreditation of American Council on Pharmacy Education (ACPE). Pharmacy programs vary in length between 4–6 years depending if a matriculating student has earned a BS/BA or not.
Recently there has been a trend for introducing professional doctorates in other fields as well, including the Doctor of Audiology in 2007. Advanced Practice Registered Nurses are expected to completely transition to the Doctor of Nursing Practice by 2015 and physical therapy to the Doctor of Physical Therapy by 2020.
| Profession | Professional doctorate in the United States | First awarded |
|---|---|---|
| Allopathic Physician | Medicinae Doctor and Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) | 1767 |
| Osteopathic Physician | Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.) | 1892 |
| Chiropractor | Doctor of Chiropractic (D.C.) | |
| Dentist | Doctor of Dental Surgery (D.D.S) and Doctor of Dental Medicine (D.M.D.) | |
| Occupational Therapy | Doctor of Occupational Therapy (O.T.D.) | |
| Social Work | Doctor of Social Work (D.S.W.) | |
| Physical Therapy | Doctor of Physical Therapy (D.P.T) | |
| Podiatrist | Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (D.P.M.) | |
| Pharmacist | Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) | |
| Government | Doctor of Public Administration (D.P.A.) | |
| Veterinarian | Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.) and Veterinariae Medicinae Doctoris (V.M.D.) | |
| Advanced Practice Registered Nurse | Doctor of Nursing Practice or Doctor of Nurse Anesthesia Practice (DNP or DNAP) | 2005 |
| Optometrist | Doctor of Optometry (O.D.) | |
| Audiologist | Doctor of Audiology (Au.D.) | 1996 |
| Lawyer | Juris Doctor or Doctor of Law or Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D.) | 1870 |
| Physician Assistant | Doctor of Science Physician Assistant (DScPA) | |
| Health Science | Doctor of Health Science (D.H.Sc.) | |
| Public Health | Doctor of Public Health (Dr.PH.) | |
| Minister/Clergy | Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.), Doctor of Practical Theology (D.P.T. or D.Th.P.) or Doctor of Biblical Studies (D.B.S) | |
| Psychologist | Doctor of Psychology Given in School and Clinical Psychology programs(Ph.D. or Psy.D.) | |
| College Teaching | Doctor of Arts (D.Arts/D.A.) | |
| Music | Doctor of Musical Arts (D.Mus.A/D.M.A.) | |
| Management | Doctor of Management (D.Mgt.) |
Read more about this topic: Doctorate, Practice By Country, United States
Famous quotes containing the words professional and/or degrees:
“The professional celebrity, male and female, is the crowning result of the star system of a society that makes a fetish of competition. In America, this system is carried to the point where a man who can knock a small white ball into a series of holes in the ground with more efficiency than anyone else thereby gains social access to the President of the United States.”
—C. Wright Mills (1916–1962)
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—Aldous Huxley (1894–1963)