The 4 differences between a doctor and a professor

These are the key differences between the title of doctor and that of professor

The term "doctor" is controversial, as it is often misused in the social environment. When a person says "I'm going to the doctor," he or she is usually referring to a family doctor, but the doctor does not necessarily have to have a doctorate.

Thus, the word is associated with the world of healthcare, but there can be a doctor who is a chemist, biologist, sociologist or political scientist. A doctor is any person who has a doctorate.

Thus, a doctor can be a doctor if he or she has a doctorate in medicine and surgery (for example), but not if he or she begins to practice as a professional after completing his or her degree and completing the relevant training. This linguistic error is probably derived from the English language, because to complicate things even more, in Anglo-Saxon culture all physicians are included under the term "medicine doctor" or merely "doctor".

Once we have clarified that a doctor is a person who has done a doctorate in any of the areas of knowledge that offer it (he or she does not have to be a doctor), it is time to move on to the next step: the differences between doctor and professor. Here we break down both terms and show you the practical distances between these figures.

What are the differences between a doctor and a professor?

As you will see in later lines, a doctor (doctorate) and a professor are much more similar to each other than a doctor (doctor) and a doctor (doctorate). Stay with us, because although it may seem confusing, we assure you that you will understand perfectly what we mean by so much abstract terminology in a moment. Let's start with the differences.

1. A doctor needs a doctorate, a professor requires something else.

According to the Oxford Languages dictionary a doctor is a person who has obtained the highest academic degree from a university, after having defended a doctoral thesis.. This great work is preceded by a training period known as a "doctorate", lasting 3 years, extendable up to a maximum of 5 years. If the person in question wants to complement his doctorate with another job, he can study part-time, expanding the period by up to 5 years (with a maximum extendable period of 8).

On the other hand, the Real Academia Española de la Lengua defines a catedrático as a professor who has the highest category in secondary or university education.. Within the university environment, a professor is a person who has completed a doctorate, has fulfilled certain requirements throughout his or her training career and has passed a selection test at his or her university of destination.

Let's simplify things:

• Doctor: 4 years of university degree +1 year of master's degree + 3 years of doctorate + doctoral thesis defense.
• Catedrático (university): 4 years of university degree + 1 year of master's degree + 3 years of doctorate + thesis defense + 3 years of seniority as full university professor + accreditation + selective test.

These are the standard requirements in countries such as Spain, but as we will see later, some professors need even more qualifications to reach this position.

2. There are different types of professionals in each category

There are different types of PhDs, depending on the doctorate they have completed and the focus of their research.. Let us look at some of them:

• Research doctorate: requires the defense of a doctoral thesis, based on original research with a normal duration of 3 years.
• Higher doctorate: this is the doctor who writes a thesis in order to become a professor. This figure is established in Germany and other countries, but not in all.
• Professional doctorate: doctorates that are aligned with an occupational specialty. For example, a doctor of physical therapy or dental medicine. These positions are typical in the United States.

However, it is necessary to clarify that a research doctorate does not only encompass physics, mathematics or chemistry.. The term "original research" can also be applied to sociological or political studies. Contrary to popular belief, not all PhDs are eminent in the pure sciences: from philology to astrophysics, any field of knowledge that lends itself to original research is a candidate for a thesis.

On the other hand, there are also different types of professors, although the one that automatically comes to mind is the university professor in all cases.. There are also high school and secondary school professors, although we are not going to focus our attention on these positions.

3. It is much more difficult to be a professor than a doctoral candidate

Completing a PhD is already a challenge in itself, as many students fresh out of their master's degree decide to embark on this project without any funding. If the new researcher does not receive a grant from the state, he or she will not be paid during the 3 to 5 years that the training stage lasts. As a result, only 1.1 % of the European population holds this degree.

However, reaching the position of professor is a much more difficult task. Here are the general requirements in Spain to achieve this status:

• To have been a full university professor (or university school professor). A full university professor is a professional with full teaching and research autonomy. He/she is a state employee who both teaches and conducts research.
• Hold a doctoral degree, i.e. have completed a doctorate (in research).
• Have a minimum of 3 years of seniority in the university environment.
• Present an accreditation of the curriculum by the National Agency for Quality Assessment and Accreditation.
• Pass the selective test of the host university.
• Not have any criminal record or problems with the law.

As you can imagine, very few people meet all these requirements. In addition, to make the process even more difficult, some fields of science also value the professor's productivity as a researcher when assessing his or her validity..

For example, to be a professor specialized in Physics or Chemistry, the full professor must have participated in at least 50 original research papers in internationally recognized journals during his or her teaching period.

4. The tasks of the two positions are very different

A Ph.D. is a person who has conducted original research and, therefore, after completing his or her doctorate usually engages in research. Studies carried out in the USA show that 57% of Ph.D. graduates stay on to combine teaching with research at their university of origin (full professors), while only 4% go to public institutions.

In other words, a doctor can remain in the university environment and teach, but he or she can also decide to devote himself or herself entirely to research by applying for a position in a public organization dedicated to it. In Spain, PhD scientists who do not continue at university usually go to centers governed by the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC). In these organizations, their job will continue to be to generate knowledge in the form of research.

A full professor, on the other hand, is like a tenured professor who goes one step further. In addition to teaching and research spread over the course of his or her working day, a full professor must take care of a number of administrative matters of the university where he or she works. For example, they often prepare university courses, conduct conferences, supervise the professors in their charge, direct the research of other professors, disseminate common results, and communicate with other entities.

Summary

As you can see, the terminological hotchpotch that has formed between the terms "doctor", "physician" and "professor" can be clarified if we look at the basic definitions of each of these professionals and the work they perform.

A doctor is a person who has completed and passed a doctorate, through the defense of a doctoral thesis. A doctor can be a physician, but also a biologist, geologist, sociologist, political scientist, philologist and many other things. To reach this position, one must complete 4 years of undergraduate studies, 1 year of a master's degree and 3 to 5 years of full-time doctoral studies.

On the other hand, a university professor is a person who researches and teaches in the university environment, but also manages other professors and manages logistical issues of the institution. A professor requires, in addition to all of the above, a specific number of years as a teacher, a minimum number of original research projects, accreditation of his or her curriculum and passing a specific entrance exam.