Double major in Graduate school.

[MySoS]

Right now I am leaning towards doing Actuaries and not graduate school, but some times I think about graduate school instead. I was wondering is it possible to do a double major in a graduate program (doctorate). I was thinking about getting a Ph.D in Statistics and Computer Science. Is this possible, and if it is would I need to do 2 dissertations or could I do 1 that combines both subjects.

 

[AtlantaBob]

The major classes in grad school aren't that bad (in my case, classes for the PhD major are just over a full semester's worth of work) -- from my experience, friends getting PhD's in hard sciences have even fewer classes. Most of the work comes from the dissertation/qualifying paper/comprehensive exams--I find it hard to believe that anyone would allow you to get two degrees with just one dissertation. However, you could just choose whichever subject you wanted to be credentialed in and then take some extra classes/try to get some other articles published in the other field.

 

[Gibsons]

Two Ph.Ds is possible, sure. But both at the same time? I imagine both graduate programs would frown on that.

 

[CanOWorms]

I've never heard of anyone getting 2 separate PhDs at the same time, but you can petition to combine two fields into one.

 

[silverpig]

I'm finding more and more that the label of the degree doesn't really matter much. My degree in astronomy (soon to be) is almost the same as a degree in physics because I've taken a lot of extra physics electives. My inclination is to say that you should just pick one of them and then do a dissertation on a specific topic that incorporates both.

 

[Babbles]

I highly and seriously doubt any graduate advisor would allow you to do such a thing. You have to keep in mind that most research at the PhD level is so specific and concentrated you may not have time to research anything else while working on one doctorate.

There are rare cases when you have a MD/PhD program or MD/MBA but those are pretty extreme students.

 

[xirtam]

Sure. Just go to multiple colleges.

 

[MySoS]

Well I was hoping it would be possible to do both in 4 years I guess not then.

 

[MySoS]

Originally posted by: AtlantaBob
The major classes in grad school aren't that bad (in my case, classes for the PhD major are just over a full semester's worth of work) -- from my experience, friends getting PhD's in hard sciences have even fewer classes. Most of the work comes from the dissertation/qualifying paper/comprehensive exams--I find it hard to believe that anyone would allow you to get two degrees with just one dissertation. However, you could just choose whichever subject you wanted to be credentialed in and then take some extra classes/try to get some other articles published in the other field.

Just wondering, what is your Ph.D going to be in.

 

[Babbles]

Originally posted by: MySoS
Well I was hoping it would be possible to do both in 4 years I guess not then.

Wow, dont' want to sound like a jackass but your chance of getting two PhDs concurrently in four years is about slim to none. I think you may be lucky to get one PhD in four years.

You may really want to think about your goals here because it seems like you may be wanting to bite off way more than you can chew.

 

[MySoS]

Originally posted by: Babbles

Originally posted by: MySoS
Well I was hoping it would be possible to do both in 4 years I guess not then.

Wow, dont' want to sound like a jackass but your chance of getting two PhDs concurrently in four years is about slim to none. I think you may be lucky to get one PhD in four years.

You may really want to think about your goals here because it seems like you may be wanting to bite off way more than you can chew.

I was actually just thinking about it, I am most likely not going to go to graduate school and do actuary work after I graduate with my B.A.S.

 

[AtlantaBob]

Originally posted by: MySoS

Originally posted by: AtlantaBob
The major classes in grad school aren't that bad (in my case, classes for the PhD major are just over a full semester's worth of work) -- from my experience, friends getting PhD's in hard sciences have even fewer classes. Most of the work comes from the dissertation/qualifying paper/comprehensive exams--I find it hard to believe that anyone would allow you to get two degrees with just one dissertation. However, you could just choose whichever subject you wanted to be credentialed in and then take some extra classes/try to get some other articles published in the other field.

Just wondering, what is your Ph.D going to be in.

Originally, I started out thinking Architectural History, Theory and Criticism. Now that I've been there for a year and a half, I'm seriously thinking about urban morphology (the way cities are laid out). Here's a blurb from the website:

"[Morphology] Is concerned with the formal principles that govern the generation, intelligibility and function of built form. Studies include modeling spatial structure, space syntax and the generic functions of layouts; architectonics; design languages; and spatial dimensions of virtual environments."