Joanne Rowling's Doctorates

[bluesqueak]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, "Shaun Hately" 
<drednort at a...> wrote:
> On 13 May 2003 at 9:32, Coble, Katherine wrote:
> 
> > Mycropht says:
> > 
> > Medical Doctors are MDs.  That stands for Doctor of Medicine.  
They are
> > entitled to the Honorific.
> 
> Not in the UK. A Medical Doctor in the UK may hold an MBBS 
(Bachelor of Medicine, 
> Bachelor of Surgery) or a MBChB (Medicinae Baccalaureus, 
Chirurgiae Baccalaureus). 
> These are dual Bachelors degrees. They are a special case, and 
entitled to use the 
> courtesy title of 'Doctor' before their name (a courtesy title is 
very different from an 
> Honourary degree) as a matter of tradition. The distinction comes 
from the way Medical 
> education is handled. In the US, a Medical Doctor undertakes 
further education after 
> their basic degree (which may be in an area specifically designed 
to lead to 
> postgraduate study in Medicine) - in the UK, they can start 
formally training as a medical 
> Doctor as an undergraduate. This doesn't preclude British medical 
doctors from holding 
> academic Doctorates - but it's not a requirement.

I'm a bit puzzled, Shaun. The Medical Degree in the UK is MB. It 
does not qualify you to call yourself 'Doctor'. To do *that* you 
have to register with the General Medical Council, and take a year 
of further training in a hospital.

A medical doctor in the UK trains for 6 years (5 years degree, one 
final year hospital training). A PhD in the UK trains for 6 years (3 
years undergraduate, 3 yrs Postgraduate). Same length of time.

> 
> The fact that MBBS and MBChBs are entitled to call themselves 
Doctors has nothing to 
> do with their holding Honourary Degrees - most do *not* hold any 
such degree. It's a 
> courtesy based on longstanding tradition. Incidentally, British 
surgeons - who have gone 
> on to obtain more than their basic medical training - are 
traditionally called 'Mister' - so a 
> 'Doctor' becomes a 'Mister' when he becomes more qualified. Again, 
it's a matter of 
> tradition. And the traditions don't always slip neatly into the 
hard and fast academic 
> rules.
> 
Yup. It's a tradition developed from the fact that surgeons didn't 
used to be academically trained; physicians always were. The 
physicians used to insult the surgeons by calling them 'Mister', the 
surgeons took it up as a badge of honour.

Nowadays, Mister Brown the surgeon probably has enough letters after 
his name to provide alphabet soup to the entire hospital.


Pip