How do you all feel about people using Dr. as their primary honorific title but are not a doctor?

a reply to: Zrtst
I am entitled to call myself a Bachelor.

a reply to: Xtrozero

I think the problem you have is silly. Most with a phd do not refer to themselves as doctor other than maybe a resume. Now if they did it might be they are proud of themselves because most dont realize what you have to do. i will say wrighting a Dissertation is by far the most difficult task you can take on in your life. it can take years for some people. I think i spent about 6 months.Well now that i think about it started almost 2 years before whie getting my degree. Now from my experience i have only seen people when they first accomplish it maybe put it on a business card. Its just a matter of celebration and eMy only question is why would you care?

originally posted by: DISRAELI
a reply to: Zrtst

I am entitled to call myself a Bachelor.

Ummm..."I am...entitled...

Which is precisely the premise of the thread...





YouSir

originally posted by: DISRAELI
a reply to: YouSir
There is nothing wrong with entitlement, when it is valid. It is a bad thing ONLY when it is based on false premises. For example, I am entitled to use the name on my borth certificate, and I am not entitled to use names which are not on my birth certifcate. Your jibe is based on the recent practice of calling people "entitled" when the real point is that they are making a false claim to entitlement. This is lazy use of language.

Ummm...all that is true with the exception that I was not jibing you in any personal fashion...and I'm certainly not attempting to denigrate you in any way...

I was merely using your post to illustrate the thread premise...

I respect you and your contributions to my evolution far too much to pass any judgement on your character...or your accomplishments...









YouSir

originally posted by: Xtrozero
This is a simple question in how do people feel about others who have a PhD, maybe not even in a STEM degree to use Dr. as their primary honorific title? I work with about 20 PhDs in engineering and none ever use this. There are many Doctors like Ben Carson who was a top neurosurgeon that he and even the media didn't use his title once he retired from the medical field. It seems people who may use it in degrees such as liberal arts are only doing so to compensate for something.

originally posted by: okrian
How is it that we are 3 pages in and no one has called the OP out on this pathetic topic... all stemming from some fragile dude that wrote an opinion article (in the WSJ) in an attempt to call out Jill Biden for having the title of Dr. for her PhD and not for being a medical Dr.? This was in the news just in the past few days (and since then this dude has been panned unilaterally across the professional landscape).

Clearly this is why this is being brought up. As the son of a scientist, plenty of people with PhDs are introduced as Dr., especially in professional circumstances. Just because some are painfully unaware of this, doesn't make it any less valid.

The author was pointing out that not that Jill Biden is not a real "Doctor". She has a Ph.D in Education.... and everyone knows those are handed out like high school degrees from low tier universities. Referring to these folks as Dr. cheapens the degree. There is a world of difference between a Ph. D in education and a Ph.d in a stem field.

The author was cancelled by the left for pointing out the obvious. no surprise.

you'd get a better response if you were complaining about politicians being addressed as 'Honorable'

originally posted by: Edumakated
There is a world of difference between a Ph. D in education and a Ph.d in a stem field.

The author was cancelled by the left for pointing out the obvious. no surprise.

What are the differences?
You're arguing that somehow one is harder to obtain than the other? Harder for who?

Youre disregarding the work and effort that was put in to gain the credentials because you dont feel like its worthy - different people have different passions and this is nothing more than elitism

originally posted by: VictorVonDoom

That's a great point and very true.

On the other hand, there are a lot of people who can do, but can't teach worth a damn. If it weren't for those who could pass on the knowledge, it would be lost.

I agree too, I'm in a technical training career field. Both my sons are in college right now and both have some God awful professors too, and some really good ones. Good or bad professors are not stupid otherwise they would not be were they are.

originally posted by: DISRAELI

So what you are asking is that an original and legitimate usage should be abandoned, to conform with a popular misunderstanding of what the word means.

What if the person does not teach, or has since stopped? In your example it would be the students calling the teacher "Doctor". I doubt back in the day teachers called each other doctor...Today they do call each other professor as is their trade, but also in today's societies everywhere a physician is called a doctor just like in academia the word professor is used a good deal.

As we look at the usage of the word today to use Doctor as your title when you do not teach, not a physician, not looked up as the leadership of your profession and you go by Doctor just because you have a PhD in liberal arts no matter how you got the degree is over compensating for something while trying to inflate your status with a title.

originally posted by: Kreeate

I guess Dr. Cooper, Dr. Hofstadter & Dr. Koothrappali from the Big Bang Theory makes that series about procreation then.

Or it makes it about a TV show...lol All three are also professors in the STEMS too. You bring up a point though with the show...Outside of work or work related situations do they demand the title doctor? When they are in their appts I don't remember them calling each other doctor, I might be wrong so help me there.

originally posted by: Xtrozero

originally posted by: Annee

You qualify that as earning it?

How dare you dictate what it takes for me to earn something.... How do you compare a PhD at MIT to doing community college and jumping in some mainly online PhD degree program to that? Do you think they are equal? I know in engineering it does matter what college you went to even for a BS with many companies...

Just because society has become accustomed to one type doctor does not negate its full and correct usage, definition.

Meaning/definition of doctor/doctorate:

1a Christianity : an eminent theologian declared a sound expounder of doctrine by the Roman Catholic Church
— called also doctor of the church
b : a learned or authoritative teacher
c : a person who has earned one of the highest academic degrees (such as a PhD) conferred by a university
Most of the college's faculty members are doctors in their fields.
d : a person awarded an honorary doctorate (such as an LLD or Litt D) by a college or university
2a : a person skilled or specializing in healing arts especially : one (such as a physician, dentist, or veterinarian) who holds an advanced degree and is licensed to practice
b : MEDICINE MAN
3a : material added (as to food) to produce a desired effect
b : a blade (as of metal) for spreading a coating or scraping a surface
4 : a person who restores, repairs, or fine-tunes things

I don't try to police what other people call themselves.

I have better things to do.

originally posted by: uncommitted

If you have a doctorate then people are perfectly entitled to use it, a lot don't.

So you can't go to jail...lol

That wasn't my question... I didn't ask if you could use it... I asked if you saw it as normal for people to use it as their title when they only have a PhD and are not actually using it in careers that you might see the title used. As I said I'm around a lot of PhDs and none use it, as example, so I find it strange when someone does and they are not a physician where it is used as part of their profession, just as the title professor is used in acidemia.

originally posted by: Edumakated

originally posted by: okrian
How is it that we are 3 pages in and no one has called the OP out on this pathetic topic... all stemming from some fragile dude that wrote an opinion article (in the WSJ) in an attempt to call out Jill Biden for having the title of Dr. for her PhD and not for being a medical Dr.? This was in the news just in the past few days (and since then this dude has been panned unilaterally across the professional landscape).

Clearly this is why this is being brought up. As the son of a scientist, plenty of people with PhDs are introduced as Dr., especially in professional circumstances. Just because some are painfully unaware of this, doesn't make it any less valid.

The author was pointing out that not that Jill Biden is not a real "Doctor". She has a Ph.D in Education.... and everyone knows those are handed out like high school degrees from low tier universities. Referring to these folks as Dr. cheapens the degree. There is a world of difference between a Ph. D in education and a Ph.d in a stem field.

The author was cancelled by the left for pointing out the obvious. no surprise.

A doctorate is a doctorate, just an embarrassing thread it seems. Disraeli made an excellent post earlier in this thread around the origin of the word doctor that makes the point quite clear that the issue is in someone's mind.

originally posted by: JAGStorm
a reply to: Xtrozero

The person I was talking about was from
Big Pharma, but was not a medical Dr.
I’ve also worked in banking and knew some people that wanted their
Title used. I have many friends in education, some want to be called Dr. some don’t.

Interesting ... husband also works in pharma surrounded by Ph.D.s and Ph-level experience folks. The ones who go by Doctor as a matter of course are the ones whose Ph.D.s are in medical fields -- veterinarians (he's in animal pharma). The rest might sign doctor on formal paperwork or they might occasionally get introduced that way to peers when taking charge, but most of the time, they don't use the title for anything.

originally posted by: Chadwickus

Obviously someone with a liberal arts degree has upset you.

Personally I don’t care, if they have a doctorate in whatever they’ve studied then good on them.

It was just a question if people in general used it as a title outside of the typical areas we see it used. What would be your impression if a coworker referred to themselves as Doctor while their PhD has nothing to do with the job at hand...just an interesting social situation that I wanted people's opinion on and maybe examples of what they experienced.

originally posted by: AScrubWhoDied

originally posted by: Edumakated
There is a world of difference between a Ph. D in education and a Ph.d in a stem field.

The author was cancelled by the left for pointing out the obvious. no surprise.

What are the differences?
You're arguing that somehow one is harder to obtain than the other? Harder for who?

Youre disregarding the work and effort that was put in to gain the credentials because you dont feel like its worthy - different people have different passions and this is nothing more than elitism

Yes, there are differences. A doctorate degree through a correspondence course or receipt of an honorary Doctorate degree, does not necessarily confirm the same level of prestige. Just the facts.

Chiropractors call themselves Doctors... but go ask any medical Doctor if they consider a chiropractor a "Doctor".

Ron Paul is an actual MEDICAL DOCTOR. Rand Paul is an actual MEDICAL DOCTOR. Hardly anyone calls them "Dr. Paul".

No one gives a flip about an doctorate in education. Sorry.

originally posted by: brianrook

At any rate, I don’t usually have issues with others going by dr, but I also do find it to be as you say, compensating for something. I use mine in conferences specific to academia or research and never outside of that.

I think that is a great example of what most if they do use it they do it in certain professional situations.