PhD

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Coming Soon: Dr. Ashley Judd?
Coming Soon:
Dr. Ashley Judd?

Coming Soon: Dr. Ashley Judd?

Actress pursuing PhD at UC Berkeley

(Newser) - Ashley Judd might soon be a doctor—and no, she won't be playing one on screen. The actress, 48, says she'll attend the University of California Berkeley this fall as one of a few candidates accepted into a PhD program in public policy, reports New York . Judd—who...

91-Year-Old Earns PhD 30 Years After She Started

Colette Bourlier admits she 'took breaks'

(Newser) - The next time you feel tempted to say you're too old to start something, think of Colette Bourlier. The Frenchwoman began working on her PhD thesis 30 years ago, and she finally finished it up this year at the age of 91 to complete her degree, the Guardian reports....

Student Covers Most of Tuition With Mail-In Rebates
Student Covers Most of Tuition With Mail-In Rebates 

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Student Covers Most of Tuition With Mail-In Rebates

Auburn doctoral student has it down to a science

(Newser) - Here's a new strategy for covering tuition fees: Use mail-in rebates. That's what PhD student Jonathan Hood has done to pay for most of this semester at Auburn—some $3,500, or more than 200 debit cards' worth, Business Insider reports. That leaves just $1,000 to pay...

Guy 'Fesses Up to Everything in Own Obituary

Seems Val Patterson had a lot to get off his chest

(Newser) - Val Patterson died last week after a bout with throat cancer that gave him time to write a doozy of an obituary, in which the 59-year-old Utahan came clean about pretty much everything. "Now that I have gone to my reward," Patterson wrote with all the honesty of...

More People With PhDs Going on Food Stamps

Number of advanced degree holders on public assistance doubles

(Newser) - Melissa Bruninga Matteau has a PhD in medieval history, and a job as an adjunct professor, but she's still relying on food stamps and Medicaid to get by. "I am not a welfare queen," she tells the Chronicle of Higher Education . But with take home pay of...

Shaq Now a ... PhD
 Shaq Now a ... PhD 

Shaq Now a ... PhD

O'Neal to graduate with doctoral degree

(Newser) - That's Dr. Shaq to you: Shaquille O'Neal graduates Saturday from Barry University with a PhD, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports. The retired NBA star's doctoral degree, earned after 4½ years at the Miami university, is in education—or, if you want to get technical, Organizational Learning and...

Doctor Who? MDs Fend Off Rising PhDs

A doctorate does not a doctor make, say many MDs

(Newser) - As more and more nurses, pharmacists, and physical therapists are earning PhD degrees, a battle is raging over which health care professionals can use the prestigious title "doctor," reports the New York Times . Nurses especially are pursuing doctorates, eager to increase their pay and promotional opportunities—last year,...

Finally, You Can Get a PhD in Manga

Kyoto Seika University launches doctoral program in manga studies

(Newser) - To earn this PhD, you need to hit the books—specifically, Japanese comic books. Japan's Kyoto Seika University will launch the country's first doctoral program in manga studies next year, it announced today. The private university is well known for its manga and anime programs, and established a...

For First Time, Women Earn More PhDs Than Men

Men now get fewer degrees of any kind

(Newser) - Women earned more doctoral degrees than men in the 2008-2009 academic year for the first time in US history, the Washington Post reports. The PhD is the final degree to be affected by the groundswell of women in higher education—they already outnumbered men on undergraduate and master's degrees. As...

Germany Probes 100 Profs Over PhD Bribes

(Newser) - About a hundred professors across Germany are under investigation for allegedly accepting bribes for doctoral degrees, the Local reports. Prosecutors say professors may have taken bribes as high as $28,000 through an intermediary firm to give PhDs to undeserving students. "It involves teaching professors from all subjects, from...

Woman Gets PhD in Texting
 Woman Gets PhD in Texting 

Woman Gets PhD in Texting

Philosophy thesis is first on text message communication

(Newser) - A British graduate student has earned a PhD in texting—an academic first, Discover magazine reports. Caroline Tagg’s doctorate, more specifically, is in the philosophy of texting communication. Tagg studied 11,000 texts from 235 people over four years. Among the findings: The average text is 17.5 words,...

Title IX Turns to Science: Where Are the Women Physicists?

Gender-equality law looks beyond sports

(Newser) - Title IX, the federal mandate that requires gender equality in education funding, has been applied mostly to sports teams, but recently a new push has begun to apply it to university science departments. Decrying a dearth of women in physics and engineering programs, some women's groups and members of Congress...

PhD Will, PhD Will Rock You
PhD Will,
PhD Will
Rock You

PhD Will, PhD Will Rock You

Queen guitarist, 60, submits astronomy thesis after 36 years

(Newser) - Queen guitarist Brian May dropped his academic pursuits to tour the globe as a young rock star, but after 36 years he has finally handed in his PhD thesis, which he began researching in 1972. The 60-year-old aspiring astrophysicist delivered a 48,000-word study on "zodiacal dust clouds" to...

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