The first professional executive doctoral program in the United States was established in 1972 by Pace University in the State of New York and is one of the flagship professional executive doctoral programs in the world. In the United States, the DPS is considered by the United States Department of Education and the National Science Foundation to be a research doctorate equivalent to the Ph.D.http://www.pace.edu/lubin/dpsProfessional doctorates became established in the United Kingdom in the 1980s, when it was recognised that high-level programmes were needed that were designed for experienced professional practitioners rather than for student academic researchers. Many professional doctorates are profession-specific and contain a mix of taught modules and a shortened dissertation, and in some respects can be considered as an extension of the part-time, modular approach that has become popular at master's level. In developing its professional doctorate Middlesex University drew on its experience as a leading international centre for work-based higher education, resulting in a generic doctorate where candidates undertake a project that is built around their professional activities. The success of the DProf has recently led to the development of similar doctorates in other UK universities, such as the University of Chester. The University of Chester's DProfs are an extension of its existing negotiated work-based programmes (see The Professional Development Unit).
Characteristics
In some respects the DProf is closer to the PhD than the longer-established modular doctorates, although it has important differences. While PhD theses typically make an original contribution to knowledge, the DProf is more concerned with making a significant contribution to practice: it requires high-level practical action, resulting for instance in significant change or development in an organisation or community of practice. The DProf project cannot be a purely academic study (and it does not need to be a research project in a conventional sense), but it needs to reflect the application of thinking that is at least of an equivalent level to that required for a PhD.
Encyclopedia
top
