Doctorate degree without a master's... possible?

Hi all. I've been digging around on the degree search page for a while but haven't found schools that offer a combined MA or MS with PhD. I also wasn't able to distinguish whether or not it was possible to attain a PhD without the MA/MS. So can anyone help me out? I just received my second Bachelor's degree (regular ground programs) and it would be nice to skip right on to the doctorate if possible.

Any suggestions appreciated!

 

It is possible in many cases. What is the field for which you are looking? That would help folks here give suggestions.

clint

 

Possible? Not uncommon.

Skipping the master's? No. Including it in your doctoral program, whether or not it is actually awarded, that's what you can expect.

 

Ah, right. Thanks, clint. I haven't decided on any one major right now but would probably aim for something in Psychology, Sociology, Public Health and other health-related fields, Fine Art.

If it helps any, my first degree was a BA in Developmental Psychology with a minor in Fine Arts. The second is a BSN in Nursing - I plan on working as a nurse, but wouldn't mind earning higher degrees in whatever field that would be suitable with those former degrees. I just enjoy pursuing higher education.

 

Is there a way to search for a combined program on this site? I wasn't able to find that option.

 

Hi Hikergirl,

I have read a number of posts wherein someone has either received a second bachelor's or was thinking about doing so.

I am just curious about how many hours your second bachelor's required.

Thanks!

 

What my wife did is, indeed, very common: being admitted to a doctoral program (in her case, Vanderbilt). At the end of two years of coursework, the Master's degree is awarded, and on passing the qualifying exams, one is admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D., with no further coursework required, just the dissertation. Thus the Master's is sort of a booby prize, as it were -- people who never complete the doctorate for whatever reason at least come away with a Master's degree.

 

Hi Jimmy,

For my particular program, it took a number of pre-reqs in the sciences that I did not have initially (for me it meant taking 6 courses at 3-5 credits each in the first year), plus the degree requirements which added up to 51 credits. The BSN degree was an accelerated one so altogether I spent 2.5 years pursuing my second degree with about/less than 70 credits.

Hope this helps.

 

Thanks for that information, John. So would the school's website indicate this alternative/possibility or is there a special way to hunt down programs? I'll look into Vanderbilt's degrees to see if they offer something I'd like in the meantime.

P.S. I have been a big fan of your books since attaining my first degree in '96, but have yet to pursue a distance degree. Hopefully this will be the first one.

 

I don't think there is a school that specifically has a "combined" program, unless it is something in different disciplines such as MD/MBA, PharmD/MBA, etc. To most schools a graduate student is just graduate student, with the only difference between Masters and Doctoral is the level of research involved, and more classes for the PhD. You are usually not considered a true PhD student (even if applied and accepted as one) until you pass your qualifying exams, which don't happen until a year or two you are in the program. After you pass that, you become a PhD candidate and start to be recognized differently.

Most PhD requirements say something like, "You must complete XX hours of course work and XX hours of research beyond the undergraduate level. Notice it doesn't say, "beyond a master's".

If you already have a Master's, that just means less courses required for you to take during your PhD. You usually transfer those classes in to your PhD program. Of course this depends on the school's policy, and if your master's is related to your PhD, if you did your Master's at the same school or not, was the school RA or NA, etc, etc. In general though about 26-30 credits transfer.

If you don't have a Master's, it means you have to take more courses and/or research hours until you meet the requirement. Having two bachelors don't help since those courses were at the undergraduate level.

Another option would be to apply in the schools Master's program, and then after a couple of semesters, apply to change to the PhD program. I've known a few students do this and it's a good option for people if they are not sure if they want to go all the way to a PhD.

In some schools if you want to go into their graduate program you can only apply to their doctorate program. If you don't cut it (e.g. fail qualifying exams, fail to write a dissertation), you are only given the master's degree as an exit award.

 

Edowave... excellent info. Thanks! I may just find a school with an MA/MS as well as PhD programs to do exactly what you said. Start at the master's level and move up later on.

 

Thanks for the kind comments.

Important thing to keep in mind: at the Master's level, admissions decisions are made at the departmental level, and at the Doctoral level, the key factor is usually an individual within the department. If a tenured faculty said, in effect, "I would like this person as my student," that smooths many bumps on the admissions road.

Marina wrote to perhaps a dozen faculty at various schools whose books or articles she admired, explaining who she was, and asking whether that person might be willing to work with her. They all replied with very helpful remarks. The Chair of the Philosophy department at Harvard wrote a four-page handwritten letter. A few, like Herbert Dreyfus at Berkeley, said, in effect, "For God's sake, don't come here." Others said yes, sure, or let's explore this further. She narrowed her choices down to three, visited each for a day, then made her decision.