Doctor of Professional Studies

The Doctor of Professional Studies (or sometimes awarded as Doctorate in Professional Practice) (most commonly DProf, DProfPrac or ProfD, but also available as DProfSt,^[1] ProfD and DPS) is a doctoral degree for experienced professionals who wish to undertake a program that is applied in nature and of practical value to their career. The DProf is based on applied research of real world problems. The DProf has been available to graduate students in the United Kingdom since the 1980s. The first Doctor of Professional Studies program was started in 1972 at Pace University. As another form of research doctorate and a doctoral level academic qualification, the DProf is equivalent to the PhD in terms of academic level and rigour, with the difference between the two lying in the type of research conducted and consequently in the type of knowledge generated (academic vs. practice-based).