Master of Philosophy
The Master of Philosophy is offered by many universities in Australia, and it is often the only option to undertake a master's degree in select schools. In Australia, the Master of Philosophy is a research degree which mirrors a Doctorate of Philosophy (PhD) in breadth of research and structure. The candidates are assessed solely on the basis of a thesis. A standard full-time degree often takes two years to complete. The Australian National University, University of Sydney, Curtin University, Griffith University and Melbourne University are also examples of Australian universities offering Masters of Philosophy.
Doctorate
The doctorate of philosophy developed in Germany in the 17th century (likely c. 1652). The term "philosophy" does not refer solely to the field or academic discipline of philosophy, but is used in a broader sense in accordance with its original Greek meaning, which is "love of wisdom". In most of Europe, all fields (history, philosophy, social sciences, mathematics, and natural philosophy/natural sciences) were traditionally known as philosophy, and in Germany and elsewhere in Europe the basic faculty of liberal arts was known as the "faculty of philosophy". The doctorate of philosophy adheres to this historic convention, even though the degrees are not always for the study of philosophy. Chris Park explains that it was not until formal education and degree programs were standardized in the early 19th century that the doctorate of philosophy was reintroduced in Germany as a research degree, abbreviated as Dr. phil. (similar to Ph.D. in Anglo-American countries). Germany, however, differentiated then in more detail between doctorates in philosophy and doctorates in the natural sciences, abbreviated as Dr. rer. nat., and also doctorates in the social/political sciences, abbreviated as Dr. rer. pol., similar to the other traditional doctorates in medicine (Dr. med.) and law (Dr. jur.).