first lady and "dr." jill biden

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:UVA makes a BFD about addressing professors as Mr (or Ms, I suppose -- I was there in grad school so I called most of my professors by their names). Mr Jefferson, he of the slave-raping, wasn't entitled to a higher title, and no one could be better than TJ, so no one got a higher title.

UVA makes a BFD about all those silly name things: "grounds" instead of campus, "first/second/third/fourth years" instead of freshman, sophs, etc.. Get over yourselves already.

[Anonymous]

I've read some interviews with Jill Biden; I believe she *chose* to teach in a community college. I suspect she could probably teach anywhere she wanted. If you have a PhD, you have earned the right to be called Doctor, same as with an MD or DDS. I've never heard of anyone calling a lawyer a "Dr" just because of the juris doctorate title. Silly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:[/b]No one called her Dr. Jill until her husband became VP.[b] Bothers me too. I went to college where we addressed our professors as Mr. or Mrs, not Dr.

That's because she earned her PhD in 2007, not long before the inauguration.

I think she actually has an Ed.D., not a Ph.D., but I may be wrong about that.

[Anonymous]

I agree with 8:41. As someone with a BS, an MS, and working on a PhD (so three different institutions) I've never heard undergrads refer to professors with PhDs as Mr. or Ms.-- it's always Dr. (& usually first names for grad students). And I've never heard my lawyer husband or any of his fellow lawyers be referred to as "Dr" (or want to be). I also don't think a person with a doctorate is more or less well-educated than someone with a JD.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Jill Biden does not have a PhD, she has an EdD.

I am enough of an intellectual snob to care about the difference, in the sense that I think it takes more intellectual firepower to get a PhD. On the other hand, I don't think what degree you have is indicative of your worth as a human being, just a reflection of your professional trajectory.

This. I don't mind if PhDs are called 'Dr', but the EdD is just not as rigorous. Not by a stretch.

I think one of the main distinctions is that many EdD degrees don't require original research for dissertations. I've heard many academics criticize the EdD degree.

My friend has one, and her diss used original research. It was quite good, and she even thanked me!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Jill Biden does not have a PhD, she has an EdD.

I am enough of an intellectual snob to care about the difference, in the sense that I think it takes more intellectual firepower to get a PhD. On the other hand, I don't think what degree you have is indicative of your worth as a human being, just a reflection of your professional trajectory.

This. I don't mind if PhDs are called 'Dr', but the EdD is just not as rigorous. Not by a stretch.

I think one of the main distinctions is that many EdD degrees don't require original research for dissertations. I've heard many academics criticize the EdD degree.

I've heard just the opposite. Many academics would say an EdD in some respects is more academically rigorous than a PhD. This coming from PhD's themselves.

We could also spend quite some time discussing the more academically rigorous area of study but that would be beside the point. Regardless, an individual with a PhD or EdD is and should be addressed as "Dr." out of plain old respect unless he/she says otherwise.

[Anonymous]

Why the need for the title outside of an educational/work environment? I have no problem with the hosts of the view calling her Dr. Biden, but unless she was my teacher, I'd call her Ms. Biden.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why the need for the title outside of an educational/work environment? I have no problem with the hosts of the view calling her Dr. Biden, but unless she was my teacher, I'd call her Ms. Biden.

Both my parents have PhD's and growing up our friends always referred to them as Dr. So-and-so. I always thought it was strange and a little uncomfortable. Yes, they were professors but weren't teaching any of our friends. Later on I realized it was just the nice thing to do and I'm sure they (my parents) appreciated it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why the need for the title outside of an educational/work environment? I have no problem with the hosts of the view calling her Dr. Biden, but unless she was my teacher, I'd call her Ms. Biden.

It's one thing if you are on a first name basis with someone, but otherwise, no, MDs, EdDs, PhDs, DVMs, etc are not Mr or Mrs... They are Dr, period, regardless of context, in my experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why the need for the title outside of an educational/work environment? I have no problem with the hosts of the view calling her Dr. Biden, but unless she was my teacher, I'd call her Ms. Biden.

It's one thing if you are on a first name basis with someone, but otherwise, no, MDs, EdDs, PhDs, DVMs, etc are not Mr or Mrs... They are Dr, period, regardless of context, in my experience.

No way. I work with a ton of PhD's (many of whom are not that bright) and none of them go by doctor. Occasionally, some of them with add ", PhD" after their name on a professional paper or something, but that's about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:JDs are not addressed as Dr., but PhDs are. Get over it.

This is the simple truth (and I love Mrs Obama and am very much more impressed by degrees from Ivy League colleges than from non-Ivys).

[Anonymous]

"No way. I work with a ton of PhD's (many of whom are not that bright) and none of them go by doctor. Occasionally, some of them with add ", PhD" after their name on a professional paper or something, but that's about it. "

Ditto.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"No way. I work with a ton of PhD's (many of whom are not that bright) and none of them go by doctor. Occasionally, some of them with add ", PhD" after their name on a professional paper or something, but that's about it. "

Ditto.

I take it that neither of you teaches at a college or university. Jill Biden does--therefore, calling her Prof. or Dr. is perfectly within reason.

A JD who is also a professor (say, at a law school), BTW, would be called Prof. or Dr. Since Michelle Obama does not teach in higher ed, she does not have this title.

Context, people, context.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why the need for the title outside of an educational/work environment? I have no problem with the hosts of the view calling her Dr. Biden, but unless she was my teacher, I'd call her Ms. Biden.

It's one thing if you are on a first name basis with someone, but otherwise, no, MDs, EdDs, PhDs, DVMs, etc are not Mr or Mrs... They are Dr, period, regardless of context, in my experience.

Nope, no thanks. A person with a degree is no more worthy of a title of respect than a poor street kid in Honduras. I would refer to them as Dr. in the appropriate work/educational setting.

[Anonymous]

I work at a patent law firm and almost all of the lawyers have a PhD in addition to their JD. Every single one of them is referred to as "Dr" and they're not in a "teaching" profession.