Online PhD Degrees

Also known as a Ph.D., a doctorate is considered to be a terminal or final degree. There is no higher degree in a particular field of study than that of a Ph.D. In order to obtain a Ph.D., the student has to first attain a bachelor's degree and master's degree. When someone earns his/her doctorate, he/she will have accumulated many college or university credit hours, written both a thesis and dissertation, and finished a very long and busy academic journey.

As with the master's degree, a doctorate is considered to be a highly specialized achievement. When you receive a Ph.D., you have gone through an incredible amount of study and training in a niche of your chosen field and done an immense amount of intense work and research. A doctorate usually requires very advanced studies and original research in your field.

A doctorate often culminates in what is called a dissertation. Where a master's degree student completes a thesis, a Ph.D. student must research and write a dissertation. In some cases, a dissertation can take years to write and number in the hundreds of pages.

Once a doctorate has been awarded, the person who earned it will then be referred to as "doctor". However, a Ph.D. should not be confused with a M.D. (Doctor of Medicine). Many different fields outside of medicine have "doctors". University professors, school principals, research scientists and many other professionals often hold doctorates, and while they are referred to as "doctors", they may not practice medicine.

To earn a doctorate, you must have great persistence and invest a great deal financially. It is not uncommon for it to take over eight years to be awarded a Ph.D. Sometimes work in your field of study will be limited, especially since it is so specialized, but in the end you will have your title of "doctor" and doors will open for careers in academia or high-end jobs within your field.

Online PhD Degree Programs

• Adult Education
• Business Administration
• Business Professional Studies
• Corporate Training
• Curriculum Design
• Distance Education
• Educational Administration
• Educational Leadership
• Health Services
• Higher Education
• Humanities
• Information Technology
• K-12 Education
• Management
• Organizational Leadership
• Pharmacy
• Philosophy
• Physical & Health
• Physical Therapy
• Psychology
• Public Health
• Public Policy