If your have a PHD this confers the title Dr. Which you should not put on your email or business cards (either as Dr or PHD and most definitely not both!). In academia the title is redundant, in industry the title makes you pompous. But above all, in the mega rare instance someone needs a quick bit of CPR at 30,000 feet the MD takes exclusive entitlement of the title for all other occasions?. So why if all this is true, is there any point in the term 'doctorate' in a PHD?

;-p Good point.

Really???! Where did you get this piece of news? Never heard of it!



I don't think so. I don't know in which country you leave/ work, but I can assure you that the Dr title still carries a lot of weight, especially if you work in academia. Actually, especially now, I don't think that you would be considered for any academic job without that little word in front of your name!



Yes, because it comes from the Latin Doctus (past participle of Docere= to teach).

Strange as it sounds; all these points come up when you look at Phd etiquette online. Admittedly mostly in the US where they seem hugely egalitarian. Personally I will use the title, but also be mindful not to abuse it. I dont want people to think im all that. But equally I dont want to hide it like a dirty secret! Like many a student I feel it a reasonable reward for the monumental effort involved.

Absolutely, I agree with you. It can be difficult to get the balance right, and it also depends on the environment you work/ live in etc. Some of my colleagues put the title even on their credit cards. I didn't - I feel that it would be too much (and surely the shop assistant doesn't care at all about it!). I suppose that it is a personal choice, you have to do what suits you best in the end, and things can be adjusted depending on the situation.

Perhaps DrStrangelove should also be changed to Strangelove.
It is simply redundant here.

Lol, exactly!

These are my current views almost to a tee. The one point I would differ is a PhD in academia does still ease upward progression as it infers (though does not necessarily mean) proven research ability.

I simply don't use the title. I'm just bog standard 'Mackem_Beefy' and not 'Dr Mackem_Beefy'. It is on my bank card, but that is the only place (i.e. a sort of proof I have the qualification if challenged). Professional qualifications are more useful on a CV or business card to be honest (i.e. ProfGradIMMM, Chartered status, etc.).

The PhD for me was a major high intensity project I did for the personal challenge, the opportunity to make new findings and provide a significant, original contribution to my field. Anyone going into it thinking it will help them professionally will realise unless they stay in academia, that it does not help greatly (perhaps one example where it might is Pharmacy) and even hinder if you later return to the real world. I had major problems returning to employment in the real world after my PhD and two post-docs.

If you are looking to progess in the real world, you're better looking at a good ''vocational'' masters in your chosen field (or a technical conversion course if you find your humanities degree is holding you back) to help your CV stand out and show your capabilities.

If you're going to do a PhD, do it for the right reasons.

Also, using in a real world context is dangerous if someone needs urgent medical treatment. I know of a case where an academic was pulled out of bed to treat an hart attack victim whilst hotel staff was waiting for an ambulance. It didn't go down too well with the hotel and their interpretation was 'Dr.' inferred medical expertise.

I wonder if PhDs should have a compulsory first aid course to cover this potential eventuality. It would only take a couple of days out of their studies. :-)

Finally, the opening poster is correct. You can call youself "Dr. Joe Bloggs" or "Joe Bloggs PhD", but not "Dr Joe Blogs PhD". This latter form infers you're doctor twice, which is a misrepresentation.

If titles have to be used, I prefer the "Joe Blogs PhD" representation, as this clearly differentiates you from a medical doctor ("Joe Bloggs M.D.") thus preventing the mix up the above academic experiences.

The 'safer' qualification after the name representation is fairly standard in North America.

Ian (Mackem_Beefy)

I agree it should not be abused.

Unfortunately in the UK at least, I've found it in some ways to be a dirty secret. It seems at times achievement is something that makes you a target to be shot down or at least brought down to earth with a big bump. Even if it is not the intention, in the UK if you stand out somehow it seems to some you're setting yourself up as someone 'better' than everyone else and thus some people see this as a green light to have a go at you.

Sorry about the three separate messages. I'm just trying to answer different aspects of this discussion. The word limit doesn't help at times. :-)

Ian (Mackem_Beefy)

Ian, thanks for the great posts and adding to the discussion. What are your veiws on professional doctorates like the DEng/EngD. This is more of an applied qualification, based in industry. Is the use of Dr Engineer still a no no in a relevant domain and setting?

My arguments with an EngD are the same as for PhD. Use only sparingly in a professional context. I'd once again personally see your professional qualifications.

The only time I'd reasonably expect to see 'PhD' or 'EngD' is on a CV. The only time I'd expect to hear 'Dr.' or 'Prof' for that matter is probably the introduction of an 'esteemed' speaker at a conference. Otherwise, who really gives a $#!+ what you do or what others do?

My friends after teasing me when I was awarded the PhD (one of them annoyingly so) have long since reverted to 'Mr.' Also, the direction my life has taken since I got it means the PhD is now a complete irrelevance to my life. I'm still glad I did it for the personal challenge, but it has no bearing on who I am and what I do now. There isn't any point in using either 'Dr.' or 'PhD'.

Ian (Mackem_Beefy)

I really have a problem with some of the replies here, which are speaking from a non-academia environment, or, I believe, speaking from outside the UK.

In the UK the Dr title is *not* redundant in an academic environment. Though when it is used it should be Dr John Smith, not Dr John Smith PhD. So if you are working as an academic of course it can be on your business cards.

I do not use my title outside academia, but I do have it on my bank card. The reason is that it gives me extra ID with my doctorness on it, which can be useful. But I never speak to any banking person who would see it, so it never comes up in that kind of conversation. Nor does it come up in any shop setting, because I'm the one bunging the card in the Chip and PIN unit.

I am a non-affiliated academic, due to severely disabling progressive neurological disease. But I have an honorary research fellowship (ongoing, probably for life), and am pursuing an academic path as much as I can, as an independent academic historian, publishing academic journal papers, speaking at academic conferences, and taking part in my university department's research community. In no way in any of these settings is my 'Dr' redundant.

I think the situation is very different for anyone working outside academia, and it can be different in other countries. But do not make broad claims for its misuse in academia in the UK.

Personally I can't wait to get the Dr title and I shall definitely be using it. I want to stay in academia anyway so maybe it's more relevant but even if it's not I will have earned it and therefore will be using it :)

I am with you on that one. I worked hard for my PhD, it was a major achievement and I do use the title (Just like you TreeofLife I couldn't wait to get that title!). I don't know whether it is superfluous outside of an academic environment but I can't think of one occasion it has been detrimental. I am no longer a researcher but I do work in a university setting and I think it does carry some weight.