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| Are you considering getting a PhD? |
| yes |
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5% |
[ 1 ] |
| no |
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42% |
[ 8 ] |
| maybe |
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31% |
[ 6 ] |
| already have one! |
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21% |
[ 4 ] |
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| Total Votes : 19 |
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| Author |
Message |
naturegirl321
Joined: 04 May 2003
Posts: 9041
Location: home sweet home
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 Posted: Sun Sep 12, 2010 12:58 pm Post subject: |
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| For those who have answered "yes" what is your PhD in? |
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markcmc
Joined: 18 Jan 2010
Posts: 262
Location: Taiwan
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| Posted: Sun Sep 12, 2010 2:20 pm Post subject: |
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| I thought about it after finishing my MEd, but the expense and time put me off. Perhaps in the future. |
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geaaronson
Joined: 19 Apr 2005
Posts: 948
Location: Mexico City
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| Posted: Sun Sep 12, 2010 6:07 pm Post subject: |
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No.
I received my masters in photography (bachelors in English literature) and that was a terminal degree. MFA Studio degrees are terminal degrees, You can�t get a PhD in an art, music or literary practice.
Yes, you can get a doctorate in literature, art history and music theory, but not in the actual practice of any of the arts.
Universities are well aware of the terminal quality of the MFA. When the requirement is that the professor have a terminal degree, a MFA is all that is necessary for a professor to teach lithography, painting, piano or a creative writing workshop.
At the time of finishing my MFA at the age of 42, I did consider going on for a PhD in Photographic History and Studies. It would have been nice to have a doctorate, but essentially this degree is geared for those who wish to work in the curatorial field, ie. managing photographic collections such as at the Eastman Kodak Museum, the Smithsonian, etc. |
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MrMrLuckyKhan
Joined: 08 Feb 2008
Posts: 282
Location: Kingdom of Cambodia
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| Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 2:24 pm Post subject: |
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| tttompatz wrote: |
| naturegirl321 wrote: |
| ttompatz, didn't mean to upset you. Those reasons are just ones that I've heard in my office for reasons to get a PhD. There is one thing I don't understand. If you've done all the legwork and research, why not just write up the dissertation? |
Ummm..
I was working on it, life changed, and there was/is no longer the need or incentive to spend the time doing a 600 page tome.
I am not alone, I have worked with many ABDs over the years and unless someone is looking for that "hallowed spot" on the wall there are often other things that come along to prioritize your time (that and the fact that it wasn't necessary for me to continue to do what I wanted to do).
It is always an option to sit down for a year and write it up... perhaps some day... but not in my near future.
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I would call you a quitter, but I guess you haven't even started.  |
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MrMrLuckyKhan
Joined: 08 Feb 2008
Posts: 282
Location: Kingdom of Cambodia
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| Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 2:27 pm Post subject: |
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| naturegirl321 wrote: |
| For those who have answered "yes" what is your PhD in? |
It appears as if NOBODY answered 'yes' on your survey... Am I looking at that correctly?? |
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HLJHLJ
Joined: 06 Oct 2009
Posts: 1218
Location: Ecuador
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| Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 3:16 pm Post subject: |
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| naturegirl321 wrote: |
| For those who have answered "yes" what is your PhD in? |
My PhD is in cognitive neuroscience. I've not worked in the field since I got my PhD, it was such a vile experience it put me off entirely. |
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GambateBingBangBOOM
Joined: 04 Nov 2003
Posts: 2021
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 3:19 pm Post subject: |
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| tttompatz wrote: |
If you have your PhD in a hard science and research is your goal then you are a happy clam. |
Of course, a doctorate is the FIRST graduate stage for people in sciences, with the masters degree being a sort of alternate exit, whereas in arts subjects, the masters is the first, and THEN you go on to do a doctorate.
| Quote: |
I received my masters in photography (bachelors in English literature) and that was a terminal degree. MFA Studio degrees are terminal degrees, You can�t get a PhD in an art, music or literary practice.
Yes, you can get a doctorate in literature, art history and music theory, but not in the actual practice of any of the arts.
Universities are well aware of the terminal quality of the MFA. When the requirement is that the professor have a terminal degree, a MFA is all that is necessary for a professor to teach lithography, painting, piano or a creative writing workshop.
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Not so long ago, an MA TESOL was considered a terminal degree. Then doctorates were drawn up because universities saw that there could be a market for it. It's already possible to do a PhD in Creative Writing, an MFA isn't necessarily the terminal level for arts. You can also do doctorates in music performance. Neither of these is all that common, but they may become more common in the future, for the same reason that doctorates in language teaching are becoming more common- the usual goal in doing one of these degrees is a good job in a university. Universities make you take more courses from them before you are qualified to teach there. If you do all levels of education at the same school, then by the time you work for them (if they hire you), they probably aren't actually spending any money except what you personally gave them for your education for a big, big chunk of your career. |
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tttompatz
Joined: 06 Mar 2010
Posts: 1951
Location: Talibon, Bohol, Philippines
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| Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 3:30 pm Post subject: |
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| MrMrLuckyKhan wrote: |
I would call you a quitter, but I guess you haven't even started. |
Ya, with 2 Associates, 3 Bachelors, 2 Masters and an ABD I guess you can say that I am indeed a quitter (or at least a very slow starter).
All But Done.
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HLJHLJ
Joined: 06 Oct 2009
Posts: 1218
Location: Ecuador
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| Posted: Mon Sep 13, 2010 3:41 pm Post subject: |
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| GambateBingBangBOOM wrote: |
| tttompatz wrote: |
If you have your PhD in a hard science and research is your goal then you are a happy clam. |
Of course, a doctorate is the FIRST graduate stage for people in sciences, with the masters degree being a sort of alternate exit, whereas in arts subjects, the masters is the first, and THEN you go on to do a doctorate.
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Perhaps it depends what country you are in. In the UK the masters comes first and then the PhD in sciences and arts, though with a good first degree some people are able to skip the masters and go straight to PhD.
Sometimes people drop out before getting the PhD and take an MPhil instead (which is also a qualification in its own right). |
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