A Doctor of Science (; most commonly abbreviated DSc or ScD) is an academic research doctorate awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries, a Doctor of Science is the degree used for the standard doctorate in the sciences; elsewhere a Doctor of Science is a "higher doctorate" awarded in recognition of a substantial and sustained contribution to scientific knowledge beyond that required for a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD).
Africa
Algeria and Morocco
In Algeria, Morocco, Libya and Tunisia, all universities accredited by the state award a "Doctorate" in all fields of science and humanities, equivalent to a PhD in the United Kingdom or United States.
Some universities in these four Arab countries award a "Doctorate of the State" in some fields of study and science. A "Doctorate of the State" is slightly higher in esteem than a regular doctorate, and is awarded after performing additional in-depth post-doctorate research or achievement.
Asia
Japan
Similar to the situation in the US, Japanese universities offer both the PhD and the ScD as initial doctorates in science.
India
In India only a few prestigious universities offer ScD/DScin science which is obtained in Graduate School after satisfactory evaluation of knowledge, research accomplishment, and a doctoral defence. The oldest institute to award a DSc degree in India is Rajabazar Science College, University of Calcutta.
Thailand
Higher education institutes in Thailand generally grant PhD for research doctoral degree, except some universities such as Chulalongkorn University award DSc. In exception, Mahidol University can grant both PhD and DSc Doctoral students in Faculty of Science are always awarded PhD, but some other programs award DSc.
Uzbekistan
The higher education institutes in Uzbekistan also grant DSc degrees. As an example, the National University of Uzbekistan and the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences offer DSc in various fields.
Europe
Austria, Germany, and Switzerland
In Germany, Austria, and the German-speaking part of Switzerland, the most common doctoral degrees in Natural Sciences are the following: Dr. rer. nat.: Doctor rerum naturalium, literally "Doctor of the things of nature" Dr rer. medic.: Doctor rerum medicarum, Doctor of medical sciences Dr. sc. med.: Doctor scientiarum medicarum, Doctor of science in medicine Dr sc. nat.: Doktor der Naturwissenschaften, Doctor of Natural Sciences Dr sc. ETH: Doktor der Naturwissenschaften ETH, Doctor of Natural Sciences, awarded by ETH Zurich, Switzerland. Dr phil. nat.: Doctor philosophiae naturalis, used only by Goethe University Frankfurt instead of Dr rer. nat; Doctor of Natural Sciences, awarded by Swiss universities. Dr.-Ing.: Doktor der Ingenieurwissenschaften (Doctor of Engineering), awarded by German universities in areas of technology and engineering. Dr mont.: Doctor rerum montanarum, awarded by the University of Leoben instead of Dr techn. Dr techn.: Doctor technicae, awarded by Austrian technical universities. Dr nat. techn.: Doctor rerum naturalium technicarum, awarded by the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna instead of Dr techn.
In these countries there are some related doctoral degrees with very similar names, these are the:
Dr sc. agr.: Doctor scientiarum agrariarum, Doctor of Agricultural science
Dr sc. hum.: Doctor scientiarum humanarum, Doctor of Humanistic Sciences
Dr sc. inf.: Doctor scientiarum informaticarum, Doctor of Science in Informatics
Dr sc. inf.med.: Doctor scientiarum informaticarum medicæ, Doctor of Science in Medical Informatics Dr sc. inf.biomed.: Doctor scientiarum informaticarum biomedicæ, Doctor of Science in Biomedical Informatics Dr sc. math.: Doctor scientiarum mathematicarum, Doctor of Mathematics Dr scient. med.: Doctor scientiæ medicæ, Doctor of Medical Sciences Dr sc. mus.: Doctor scientiae musicae, Doctor of Musicology Dr sc. oec.: Doctor scientiarum oeconomicarum, Doctor of Economics Dr sc. pol.: Doctor scientiarum politicarum, Doctor of Political Sciences Dr rer. pol.: Doctor rerum politicarum, Doctor of economics, business administration, or political science Dr sc. soc.: Doctor scientiae socialis, Doctor of Social Sciences