doctorate
Americannoun
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any of several academic degrees of the highest rank, as the Ph.D. or Ed.D., awarded by universities and some colleges for completing advanced work in graduate school or a professional school.
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an honorary degree conferring the title of doctor upon the recipient, as with the LL.D. degree.
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of doctorate
First recorded in 1670–80; from Medieval Latin doctōrātus; see doctor, -ate 3
Explanation
A doctorate is an advanced university degree. Another name for a doctorate is a PhD. If you stick in school long enough, you just might end up with a doctorate (and a whole lot of debt). Many years of specialized study can result in a doctorate, which qualifies the graduate to teach at a college or university. To be awarded a doctorate, a student has to complete a dissertation or thesis, a huge research project that focuses on her area of study. Someone who has a doctorate is known as a "Doctor of Philosophy," and the word itself comes from the Medieval Latin root doctoratus, or "made a doctor."
Vocabulary lists containing doctorate
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The 32-year-old recently received an honorary Doctorate in Law from Cambridge for his programme.
From BBC • Aug. 14, 2025
In 2021, 3% reported that COVID-19 influenced them to work only part time or not at all, for example because of pandemic-related family responsibilities, reduced hours, or layoffs, the Survey of Doctorate Recipients found.
From Science Magazine • Feb. 1, 2023
Experience: Doctorate in political science, master’s degree in social work and public policy.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 31, 2022
There, she became an executive editor of the Notre Dame Law Review and graduated first in her class in 1997 with a Juris Doctorate degree summa cum laude.
From Washington Times • Nov. 4, 2020
While I was studying for my Master's degree and my Doctorate, I felt the need of some interest to merge all the divergent sides of my nature.
From The Chamber of Life by Briggs, Austin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
