Length of PhD program

[Kleene]

The length of a PhD program varies throughout the academic world. In the UK 3 years is about the norm, whereas the program takes 5 years in the US. Would this difference show in the quality of the thesis or the 'prestige' of the degree? I know that a PhD in the UK is usually more specialized than in the US, not requiring things as foreign language studies etc.

[raneck]

1) For the most part, UK Phds require a masters for admittance, while US Phds do not (it may help though).  Depending on the length of the masters degree that narrows the time difference to 1 year (for a 1 year masters) to nothing (for a 2 year masters)

 

2)That said, US Phds can often take longer than 5 years.

 

3) Foreign language requirements?  No idea what you mean by this. As a US Phd student I have not taken any courses outside of my general field.

 

In the end, what matters is the quality of YOUR work, not so much the program.  If you can do good, original research in a 3 year Phd, what difference does it make?

Edited January 21, 2014 by raneck

[Kleene]

1) For the most part, UK Phds require a masters for admittance, while US Phds do not (it may help though).  Depending on the length of the masters degree that narrows the time difference to 1 year (for a 1 year masters) to nothing (for a 2 year masters)

 

2)That said, US Phds can often take longer than 5 years.

 

3) Foreign language requirements?  No idea what you mean by this. As a US Phd student I have not taken any courses outside of my general field.

 

In the end, what matters is the quality of YOUR work, not so much the program.  If you can do good, original research in a 3 year Phd, what difference does it make?

1+2) I applied to a course that takes 5-7 years, depending on whether you already have a master's degree. That would still leave a 2 year gap (assuming a 2 year master's).

 

3) Some US PhD programs require you to study a foreign language. Berkeley has some programs, for instance. I don't know any UK programs with such a requirement.

 

Of course, but wouldn't everyone deliver a better product after an additional two years?

[thegirldetective]

I think this is highly field-specific. In my field, I'm told a US PhD includes a lot more coursework than a UK PhD, which is a big part of the difference in time. I'm also told that US institutions want to see more substantial postdoctoral experience from job applicants that got their PhDs in the UK, but I don't know if this because of differences in US and UK programs, or just some kind of elitism/unfounded bias.

[raneck]

And I am in a US program with no language requirements, and that will take me ~5 years (with no previous masters degree).  The large variability of PhD programs makes these comparisons difficult. 

 

As far as the "extra" two years (which would not even exist in my case), that may or may nor produce a better product.  It is very highly dependent on both the specific program, and the student in question.  Comparing US and UK PhDs as  monolithic groups isn't particularly useful.

[m-ttl]

I think this is highly field-specific. In my field, I'm told a US PhD includes a lot more coursework than a UK PhD, which is a big part of the difference in time. I'm also told that US institutions want to see more substantial postdoctoral experience from job applicants that got their PhDs in the UK, but I don't know if this because of differences in US and UK programs, or just some kind of elitism/unfounded bias.

 

From a humanities perspective: they simply don't have the same amount of experience upon graduation. The UK PhD goes straight to research. The US PhD generally needs 1-2 foreign languages they can read/translate, plus years of coursework, plus the quals, plus you're regarded as a coworker/employee so you likely teach and US students have more opportunities to use their course papers to present at conferences or publish in journals long before their thesis work. 

 

That's years of experience a UK PhD is competing with if they took their degree to the US. 

 

ex:

 

http://ntweblog.blogspot.com/2007/04/phd-uk-or-usa.html

http://www.sbl-site.org/publications/article.aspx?articleId=723

http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/news/us-scholar-damns-uk-phds-after-regrettable-experience/406519.article

 

It's not about quality or prestige, but about experience relevant to where you are, what you want to do. One is purely a research degree.