PhD -- do you use the title Dr?

[aprilchem]

I am saying outside of academia when someone is introduced as a Doctor the average person is going to assume medical.

This has never happened to me, and I've had my Ph.D. for almost 20 years now.

To answer the question, though - I'm a woman with a Ph.D. in chemistry, and I do use Dr. professionally. If a student calls me "Mrs. Aprilchem" at work, I correct them and tell them to refer to me as Dr. All of my colleagues notice that this only happens with female faculty members, not the male faculty members. Friends and family don't call me Dr., of course.

Most of my female friends with Ph.D.s are now changing their social media to add Dr. or a Ph.D. after their name, in reaction to the WSJ opinion piece.

 

[CarolAnn856]

I am saying outside of academia when someone is introduced as a Doctor the average person is going to assume medical.

Despite the title of Doctor starting out in academia long ago, there has already been a partial semantic change.

I don't think it is far fetched that some time from now, could be hundreds of years, that Doctor is reserved for medical doctors and academic Doctors go by a different title.

Language changes and evolves in strange ways.

Spinster used to simply refer to the occupation.

Maybe it depends on the social and professional circles you are in, but I wouldn’t automatically assume that someone introduced to me as Dr. So-and-so was a medical doctor. And I believe that sentiment would be accurate for most people I know.

 

[Carol_]

People who have honorary doctorates or those who ‘earned’ them in social sciences after their close relatives arranged for the issuing institutions to gain a great deal of $$$ financially.... maybe don’t call those people Dr every chance you get.

 

[kdonnel]

Spinster occupation - what was that exactly?

Was a woman who spun fibers into thread as a profession. Originally it was added after the name much like PhD today.

Over the years the meaning transformed and now is a derogatory term for unmarried older women.

 

[kdonnel]

Maybe it depends on the social and professional circles you are in, but I wouldn’t automatically assume that someone introduced to me as Dr. So-and-so was a medical doctor. And I believe that sentiment would be accurate for most people I know.

It is very much dependent on social and professional circles.

Movies and TV are filled with jokes making fun of "lesser" doctors. Dentists, Optometrists, Psychiatrists, etc. It is a running joke in The Goldbergs, featured in The Hangover, etc, etc, etc. Non medical doctors usually get treated even worse comedy wise in movies and TV.

 

[Kestryl]

It is very much dependent on social and professional circles.

Movies and TV are filled with jokes making fun of "lesser" doctors. Dentists, Optometrists, Psychiatrists, etc. It is a running joke in The Goldbergs, featured in The Hangover, etc, etc, etc. Non medical doctors usually get treated even worse comedy wise in movies and TV.

This just reminded me of The Big Bang Theory- love it or hate it, it does show PhDs being called Dr.

 

[AustinTink]

This just reminded me of The Big Bang Theory- love it or hate it, it does show PhDs being called Dr.

Except for Howard as they often remind us.

 

[Kestryl]

Except for Howard as they often remind us.

Well, yes. Which is a whole other topic about how someone without a PhD is not lesser, but we could go all day with potentially problematic portrayals from that show, ha.

Still, at minimum that show should have brought forward the fact that non-medical Dr.s exist.

 

[Toolulu22]

I've never heard of someone with a juris doctor degree being referred to as "Dr". I have a family of lawyers, and that's never come up. Similarly, the designation "Esq" should be reserved for lawyers acting in a legal capacity. If you have a law degree, but are working somewhere in a non-legal capacity, it would be inappropriate to use "Esq" at the end of your name in emails or signatures. But, this is the only etiquette thing I'd consider when it comes to these titles. I've always referred to those who hold PhD's as "Dr", but I do agree it can easily be misconstrued as a medical doctor.

An administrator I worked with, who is a JD, choose to be referred to as Dr. X in his capacity as an educator.

 

[AustinTink]

Well, yes. Which is a whole other topic about how someone without a PhD is not lesser, but we could go all day with potentially problematic portrayals from that show, ha.

Still, at minimum that show should have brought forward the fact that non-medical Dr.s exist.

I know, I was just kidding. It's such a running joke on that show. One of my fave sitcoms.

 

[disykat]

Well, yes. Which is a whole other topic about how someone without a PhD is not lesser, but we could go all day with potentially problematic portrayals from that show, ha.

Actually, I feel like the show was quite clear that Howard was NOT considered lessor except by Sheldon, who did so because of a lack of capacity. On the last episode, Sheldon shows growth by finally giving Howard his due.

 

[Kestryl]

I know, I was just kidding. It's such a running joke on that show. One of my fave sitcoms.

I definitely have a love/hate relationship with it, ha, but that probably because I flirt with the edges of physics academia. It’s both very stereotypical and problematic while being

I know, I was just kidding. It's such a running joke on that show. One of my fave sitcoms.

I definitely have a love/hate relationship with it, ha, but that probably cause I flirt with the edge of physics academia.

You know, there are so many fictional non-medical doctors. Dr. Bruce Banner, Dr. Indiana Jones, Dr. Brown (Back to the Future), Dr. Spengler and Dr. Stantz and Dr. Venkman (Ghostbusters), Dr. Hank Pym, Dr. Otto Octavius (and probably half the villains from comic books, to be honest), Dr. Ian Malcolm and Dr. Alan Grant and Dr. Ellie Sattler (Jurassic Park)... Does The Doctor count?

Actually, I feel like the show was quite clear that Howard was NOT considered lessor except by Sheldon, who did so because of a lack of capacity. On the last episode, Sheldon shows growth by finally giving Howard his due.

That is true, and it showed growth. I’m glad they eventually tackled it.

 

[Cogswel_Cogs]

I just meant I know more than a few Doctors and nurses who have died due to putting hours at hospital for the most part in ERs.

 

[RangerPooh]

My husband goes by Dr. He worked hard to complete his PhD, so why not go by the title when it necessitates.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Eh use whatever you want with respects to your credentials. If you want me to call you doctor no problem, if you want to use doctor no problem.

It is still around that women are often expected to use a title to refer to their marital or age status versus there educational title.

I have a BA in Psychology but I'm not presently in that field. There's no need for me to add that as a designation IMO.

My husband on the other hand has a BS in Aerospace Engineering and presently works as a Mechanical Engineer. In professional settings on his company e-mail and business card it says Mechanical Engineer with his designation of P.E. for professional engineer; he is licensed as such and has a seal/stamp (though he really won't need it presently with his company) and must continue to take courses to keep his license. In his company most don't go for Masters degree as the usability of it isn't there but it is expected to get your P.E. once you are eligible for it. In personal life there is no designation used meaning he doesn't introduce himself as anything other than his first name.

 

[nkereina]

That may work in American English although it could look very strange to others if appended to a female lawyer's name.
In British English, Esquire or its abbreviation Esq is very widely used as an unofficial title of respect, having no precise significance, sometimes placed, especially in its abbreviated form, after a man's surname in formal written address.

ford family

In the legal industry in America, attorneys of both genders use "Esq" (Esquire) as a designation on their names when acting a legal/lawyer capacity. Its not gender specific. Like many words and connotations in the English language, this is just one of those things that varies between US and UK, I guess.

An administrator I worked with, who is a JD, choose to be referred to as Dr. X in his capacity as an educator.

I guess that makes sense in an educational setting. It would be out of the ordinary if he were to do that working in a legal setting, but it would be more common in an educational setting.

 

[tex1989]

I think any designation of academic achievement and whether it should be used or not is more a function of the field in which you work. I have an undergraduate degree and two Masters degrees and work in the Energy industry. I do not include any reference to the degrees on any correspondence. Of course my degrees are two in finance and one in history. Now the engineers I work with all have the professional designations on everything. At the end of the day in the world I work in and have worked in for 39 years, I really don't care what your designation is, or what degrees you have, I care about your knowledge and how well you perform your job. I have worked with non degreed individuals who I valued far more than half of the PhD's I have worked with. Now outside of my job if you want me to address you as Dr., so be it, I will not be rude. While a PhD certainly warrants a certain amount of respect for the effort and dedication, I also tend to think that certain ones are easier to attain than others. A friend and I have had a running discussion that we could knock out a PhD in Education in half the time of a lot of others. My wife worked in the local school district and as a result interacted with many folks that had or were working on doctorates in education. Not being rude, but I met a lot of them and was not impressed. Also it seemed that everyone of them was basically attending school two nights a week while working to earn the doctorate. I have other friends with PhD's in other fields and they had to dedicate two to three years of their lives to achieve it. The had to teach classes, grade papers and live with almost no income. I am not saying that demeans the PhD in Education, but it does make you wonder.

 

[abdmom]

The average length of time to get a doctorate is more like 7 years, not two to three. Ed.D's take classes a couple of nights a week for about three to four years and then have to do a thesis after that. The average length of time to get a doctorate in education is almost 12 years according to this source. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2017/02/datapoint

An Ed.D. is different than a Ph.D. Both are doctorates though.

 

[tex1989]

I know quite a few Ed.D. and none of them took anywhere near 12 years. Most were less than 4.

 

[Kestryl]

I think any designation of academic achievement and whether it should be used or not is more a function of the field in which you work. I have an undergraduate degree and two Masters degrees and work in the Energy industry. I do not include any reference to the degrees on any correspondence. Of course my degrees are two in finance and one in history. Now the engineers I work with all have the professional designations on everything. At the end of the day in the world I work in and have worked in for 39 years, I really don't care what your designation is, or what degrees you have, I care about your knowledge and how well you perform your job. I have worked with non degreed individuals who I valued far more than half of the PhD's I have worked with. Now outside of my job if you want me to address you as Dr., so be it, I will not be rude. While a PhD certainly warrants a certain amount of respect for the effort and dedication, I also tend to think that certain ones are easier to attain than others. A friend and I have had a running discussion that we could knock out a PhD in Education in half the time of a lot of others. My wife worked in the local school district and as a result interacted with many folks that had or were working on doctorates in education. Not being rude, but I met a lot of them and was not impressed. Also it seemed that everyone of them was basically attending school two nights a week while working to earn the doctorate. I have other friends with PhD's in other fields and they had to dedicate two to three years of their lives to achieve it. The had to teach classes, grade papers and live with almost no income. I am not saying that demeans the PhD in Education, but it does make you wonder.

Uh... who are your friends? If your friends are getting PhDs in 2-3 years, then that is a total outlier. The average in my program was 5-6 years. A handful were done in 4. The “record” was 3.5 years. We were considered a shorter program as well, because we were well-funded. I regularly met people outside of my program that were in year 8. If people were leaving in 2 years, they were not leaving with a PhD.

(This is in the US. I know programs are very different elsewhere- maybe your friends did their degrees in Europe, where I hear they tend to skew closer to three years.)