Concurrent Degrees
Doctoral students enrolled at Duke University can pursue one master’s degree en route to the PhD, without paying for an additional 30 units of graduate credit.I’m very fortunate to have the opportunity to grow as a well-rounded scientist and complete concurrent PhD in Pharmacology/MA in Bioethics & Science Policy degrees at Duke without any additional tuition fee. What an excellent opportunity to reflect on the ethical issues in life sciences commercialization and prepare for a career in healthcare consulting and business after graduation. If you are a PhD student at Duke, you certainly do not want to miss this opportunity!”
– Khairunnisa Semesta, PhD’23
The process for applying for a Concurrent Masters degree while pursuing your PhD:
- Prepare a simple form providing an explanation of why you wish to pursue the second degree and the intellectual relationship of the two programs.
- You will need two letters of recommendation from Duke faculty, one from each department supporting the relationship between the Doctoral and Master’s program for which the applicant is applying.
- You will need the approval of both the Director of Graduate Studies in your Ph.D. program and in the Master’s program to which you are applying.
- The request then requires the approval of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the Graduate School.
You may not apply, however, until after you have successfully completed your preliminary examination.
You cannot double count any courses toward both your Ph.D. and the Masters. You must complete all of the requirements of both programs.