Does anyone here know anything about earning a doctorate degree though distance learning in the U.K. through research? It is my understanding one reads a WHOLE LOT of research articles and journals and applies them to a rather lengthy dissertation rather than taking classes. Is such a degree the equivalent to a U.S. doctorate degree?
First of all, when you contact a UK school, don't tell them you wan't to do a distance learning doctorate. Don't ask about doctorates by research. Just tell them you want to pursue a part-time doctorate. To them, the dissertation-only doctorate is traditional, even if it looks non-traditional on this side of the puddle. That's just a matter of learning to speak their lingo. Yes, your British dissertation-only PhD would likely be accepted as equally as valid as a US PhD for purposes of future employment prospects.
That's the gist, but with one important corrolary. I spoke to some very kind people at the University of Edinburgh about doing a research doctorate, and the main thing to remember is that UK schools place an absolute premium on the quality of research you are doing. If you pick the uni you like the best and tell them about your interests, they will be underwhelmed to say the least. The expectation is that you know what type of research the university faculty are doing, you share their current research interests, and you will be able to contribute to the university research in a very meaningful way. It's not nearly as self-directed as we might typically think for all that you might be on the other side of the world.
fortiterinre, Is the University of Edinburgh offering "external" PHD's now? I had checked in with them several years ago and they said they were not. If you could share any information with me, that would be very helpful. Thanks! Page
Page/Robert - I think you would do well to go back and re-read Teds post. The UK schools do not typically speak in terms of DL doctorates or external doctorates. They have doctoral programs in which the sole product is a lengthy, rigorously examined dissertation. If you approach them just right, they might allow you to conduct your research at some considerable distance from the university. Do not expect them to welcome your application. They will not. You are asking them to do something that is entirely rare. You MUST expect to go to their campus once or twice per year, minimally. You will find it exceedingly difficult to get them to agree at the outset that you will never need to travel to their campus. You need to realize that what you are asking is that some established academic, who has never met you or spoken to you, someone who has no knowledge of you or your work, will be happy to put his professional reputation on the line by agreeing to become your dissertation advisor and, in addition, you are essentially refusing to ever, ever come to meet with him. Why would they want to do such a thing? You need to have the answer and you need to have it before you even try to contact them. Edinburgh is not Capella. What's more, they don't want to be. Jack You need to sell yourself to the school
Jack and Ted, thanks for the reply. I gotcha on the rarity of such a program. I was under the impression that is a common format for a doctorate degree in the U.K. From what you both a describing to me, I would have an easier time pulling teeth from an alligator than get such a program approved. Again, I will consider other options and thank you!
The fact of the British system doctorates being dissertation only is common. And they can be negotiated to be completed at a distance. But expect to have to materialize for on-campus visits from time to time.
Look, don't get me wrong, it happens all the time. People are engaged in these programs and they live away from the school but maybe they make the 3 hour drive to campus once or twice per month, depending on how often they need to use the campus library. Research doctorates are the way it's done in the UK (with just a few exceptions). You could do it too. You need to read up on all the faculty members and their research interests. If the university does not believe that they have a faculty member whose experience is sufficiently close to your expressed area of interest then they will turn you down regardless of how near or far you are from the school. Find the faculty member who could be your advisor. Email them. Tell them about yourself and your research interests etc. etc. Do your homework and it could work out for you. Of course, you must be prepared to make the trip to campus once or twice per year. Go to orbitz and check on the airfare/hotel rate. Add it to the costs of the university program, etc. Sometimes it even exceeds the cost of a US degree program. Makes you think, no? Jack
You list "BS Linguistics" in your sig line. I don't see such a degree at Excelsior's website. Where's the discrepancy?
That's a myth. You have to do coursework, too, as nearly everywhere else - the only difference is that you usually call it the M.Sc. or the M.Phil. phase... Getting into a program without doing this Master's phase is hardly possible. Cheers, T.
It is certainly not a myth within Australia Over here, it requires an Honours degree of at least an upper second standard. The Universities of Adelaide (select a subject), Melbourne (pdf), Sydney (pdf) and Australian National University (pdf), to name just a few. If of course the coursework is still done in Australia, would it not be done as part of an undergraduate Honours degree. A degree that is supposedly equivalent to a four year US RA Bachelors degree?
Yes, but since we were talking about Doctoral programs and not Masters programs I believe I'll stand by my statement. Jack
It's a long story involving an advisor moving on to a new job, a sympathetic dean, complications surrounding the introduction of the "area of focus", and the number of linguistics credits I transferred in. I don't know if they've made the same exception for anyone else or not.
I can imagine at a top ranked school in the UK how it must be much more difficult to convince cranky tenured professors to have you under their wing. BTW, I don't know about Edinburg, but some UK schools like Kent now offer the Ph.D American doctoral system (coursework and then the dissertation) as another option. This might be much more marketable if you want to work in US academia.
Jack and Ted have great advice on this topic. Edinburgh does not want to be Capella in the sense that it does not want to be a "customer-focused" for-profit business serving the student-customer. I am not at all slamming Capella, I think they are the cat's pajamas in many cases, but Edinburgh and many UK schools are old-fashioned (in the good way!) and research-oriented. If you are not able to say to a school rep, "I see your Dept. of X does research in such-and-such. I have an advanced degree in darn-close-to-such-and such, and my research interests are in permutations-of-such-and such," you have little reason to approach the school with anything like hope. Don't even mention (non) residency until this is established, and don't expect to avoid fairly regular pilgrimages to campus. These programs are not for those with few resources, financial and otherwise, so avoid that tack altogether. You have to be able to sell yourself as both an intellectual resource for the university as well as someone with the practical ability to contribute. And in the end, even if you are successful, you must decide if this has suitable utility for your situation.
It was not my intention to slam Capella either. I used it as an example of a university that is oriented toward DL (unlike Edinburgh). I am sorry if I was unclear in the way I expressed this thought. Jack
