Clarification on MA and Phd

[videogamesrock]

So I've noticed many Phd programs will allow you to transfer in 9 credits. But I've also noticed that out of the 60 credits required, half of the courses were taken for the Masters program. So is a Phd just 30 credits above the Masters degree or should one skip the Masters and go straight for the Phd if that is their goal?

[mednat]

I think it varies. I know traditionally, with science, most students go straight from an undergrad degree to phd. They typically only award a masters if the student is unable to complete the phd. I have seen some programs where it is worded that a phd requires 60 credits with 30 allowed from a masters and i've seen some that just say 30.

[cookderosa]

it also matters if the program is online. For whatever reason, I have rarely found any online doctorate programs that allowed entry without a masters first- I'm going to guestimate that number to be >95% of the time. OTOH, on the ground doctorates almost never require a masters, it's more typical for you to go directly from undergrad to doctorate.

[Yanji]

it also matters if the program is online. For whatever reason, I have rarely found any online doctorate programs that allowed entry without a masters first- I'm going to guestimate that number to be >95% of the time. OTOH, on the ground doctorates almost never require a masters, it's more typical for you to go directly from undergrad to doctorate.

I agree with this. (although I'm not sure about the >95% part) I think the reason is that online PhDs are not designed for traditional academia-bound students and are for students with very specific mid-to-late career goals, which makes already having an advanced degree make more sense.

Master's degrees generally function as either stepping stone/consolation prize degrees on the way to a PhD or are professional degrees like the MBA/MFA. In many fields such as Economics, Engineering, Education, etc. a Master's degree can also function as a quasi-terminal degree for industry practitioners who require an advanced degree but are not involved in academia. The amount of time/effort required to complete a MA vs a PhD is huge. A bit of extra coursework (usually research seminars and the like) is only part of getting a PhD, which requires a substantial amount of research far beyond what is required for a MA thesis/capstone. There's a reason why most PhD programs are (at least partially) funded - the commitment is much bigger and extensive involvement in academia is required for at least a few years.

[sanantone]

I think part of it might also have to do with the types of majors that are typically offered as online doctoral programs. They tend to be in things like business and education. An online PhD in most of the liberal arts fields (math, science, social science, and humanities) is hard to find.

My PhD program is traditional, but it requires a master's. I can't recall if most criminal justice and criminology doctoral programs require a master's degree, but they are rare as online programs.

[cookderosa]

I agree with this. (although I'm not sure about the >95% part) I think the reason is that online PhDs are not designed for traditional academia-bound students and are for students with very specific mid-to-late career goals, which makes already having an advanced degree make more sense.

Master's degrees generally function as either stepping stone/consolation prize degrees on the way to a PhD or are professional degrees like the MBA/MFA. In many fields such as Economics, Engineering, Education, etc. a Master's degree can also function as a quasi-terminal degree for industry practitioners who require an advanced degree but are not involved in academia. The amount of time/effort required to complete a MA vs a PhD is huge. A bit of extra coursework (usually research seminars and the like) is only part of getting a PhD, which requires a substantial amount of research far beyond what is required for a MA thesis/capstone. There's a reason why most PhD programs are (at least partially) funded - the commitment is much bigger and extensive involvement in academia is required for at least a few years.

Ok,then 99% Seriously, I've never even found 1. But, I don't spend "all" my time researching lol. I'm sure there are some...somewhere.

Does anyone know of an online doctorate program that doesn't require a master's degree for admission?

[sanantone]

Dakota State University's Doctor of Science in Information Systems. There's another one I saw, but I can't remember it right now.

Edit: I think I remember the program. It was Clemson's PhD in International Family Studies or something like that, but they no longer offer it online. Courtesy of the other forum, I've found a couple of more schools. Union Institute and University doesn't require a master's, but they're in the process of teaching out a couple of their doctoral programs. Fielding Graduate University does not require a master's degree for any of its doctoral programs. I think there are many distance learning programs in the UK and Australia that don't require a master's.