In the usage of the United Kindom, Australia, New Zealand and some other countries, the Master of Philosphy (M.Phil.) is a research degree, requiring the completion of a thesis. It is a lesser degree than the PhD, and in some instances may be awarded as a substitute for a PhD thesis which is a marginal fail. It may also serve as a provisional enrolment for the PhD. It is generally thesis only, and is regarded as a senior or second masters degree. An M.Phil. is generally considered equivalent to the French Diplôme d'études Approfondies or DEA, Spanish Diploma de Estudios Avanzados DEA, or First Doctoral Degree.
The University of Cambridge offers the M.Phil. as a one year taught degree. This is to distinguish it from the Oxford/Cambridge/Trinity Dublin MA degree, which is awarded to BA graduates after a certain period of time, but no further study (since the nineteenth century). It is increasingly becoming used as it is in the United States - a degree offered but rarely taken, by PhD/D.Phil candidates who have yet to complete their dissertation. Officially, however, students in the UK do not initially study for a PhD/D.Phil, they study for an M.Phil, and the decision to continue from M.Phil to D.Phil/PhD is decided at the end of year 2 by the student and supervisors.
In the Netherlands the M.Phil. is a special research degree and only awarded by selected departments of a university (mostly in the fields of Arts, Social Sciences, Archeology, Philosophy, and Theology). Admission to these programmes are highly selective and primarily aiming at those students opting for an academic career. After finishing these programs students normally enroll for a PhD program.
Some American universities award the M.Phil. At those universities the degree is awarded to Ph.D. candidates when they complete their required coursework but before they defend their doctoral dissertations. This status is also called A.B.D, or All But Dissertation (or All But Done). Many Ph.D. candidates at these universities view the M.Phil. as a formality and elect not to receive it in order to avoid the paperwork and costs involved. However some programs do not offer an en route M.A. or M.S., so the M.Phil. is the first opportunity to receive a degree between the Bachelors and PhD. |
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