Professional Doctorates
Introduction and Summary
Professional doctorates in the Faculty of Health Sciences allow candidates to pursue a higher research degree of a standard similar to the traditional PhD but one that will also contribute to improved professional practice of participants. These degrees are recognised and classified as research degrees. The purpose of this booklet is to provide information relating to the policies and procedures regarding the degrees and candidature.
The Faculty offers the following professional doctorates:
- Doctor of Nursing (DN)
- Doctor of Medicine (MD)
- Doctor of Public Health (DrPH)
- Doctor of Social Work (DSW)
- Doctor of Physiotherapy (PhysioD)
- Doctor of Clinical Science (ClinScD)
- with the following specialisations:
- Clinical Speech Pathology
- Clinical Vision Sciences
- Counselling and Psychotherapy
- Family Therapy
- Occupational Therapy
- Physical Activity, Sport and Health
- Prosthetics and Orthotics
- with the following specialisations:
Admission
Candidates for entry into professional doctorates will normally have either an honours degree (H2A standard) or equivalent, a Masters by research, a Masters by coursework with a substantial thesis component or equivalent. There are also provisions to admit some candidates through a special entry category. Please consult the Admission to candidature section for further information. Course Structure The professional doctorate programs involve the full-time equivalent of one year of coursework and two years of thesis. In the first full-time year of the program (or in first or second year for part-time students), all students will study subjects in Health Research. To complete first year, elective subjects will be taken from within the Faculty or outside the Faculty, to be agreed with the school of enrolment as being appropriate to the candidate's field of study, professional development plan and/or proposed research program. Up to 30 credit points of elective subjects may be taken from appropriate existing coursework Masters subjects, although doctoral level assessment is required.
Year 1 *
- PHE61HRA Health Research A 10 credit points plus
- PHE62HRB Health Research B 20 credit points or
- PHE62HRC Health Research C 35 credit points plus
- Electives (to make up 120 credit points)
Year 2 *
- Thesis 120 credit points
Year 3 *
- Thesis 120 credit points
* Includes attendance and participation in colloquia/seminars (see section on Colloquia/Seminars).
Electives
Students should discuss suitable electives with their Professional Doctorate Coordinator. There are a limited number of Professional Doctorate subjects but students may enrol in up to 30 credit points of Masters level subjects in which Professional Doctorate students are expected to undertake doctoral level assessment and class requirements.
Further information
The booklet should be read in conjunction with the publication 'La Trobe University Handbook for Candidates and Supervisors for Masters Degrees by Research and Doctoral Degrees' and the relevant University Regulation R21.3 Professional Doctoral Degrees. Both of these documents are available at the Faculty Office or the Research and Higher Degrees Office at La Trobe University (See Appendix 1 for contact details). Candidature for the professional doctorates classified as research degrees are overseen by the University Higher Degrees Committee. The Faculty Professional Doctorates Course Management Committee manages the more detailed issues regarding degree content. Initial enquiries should be made to the relevant school in which candidature is contemplated, or the Faculty Office. Postgraduate students at the University also automatically become members of La Trobe University Postgraduate Association (LUPA) which promotes postgraduate interests and provides advice on many issues such as supervision, grievance procedures and other University matters. Relevant contact names and numbers are listed in Appendix 1 of this booklet. A list of areas of research interests in the various schools is outlined in Appendix 2.