Doctor Medicinae (Danish and Norwegian degree)

Doctor Medicinae, also spelled Doctor Medicinæ and abbreviated Dr. Med., is a doctoral degree (a research doctorate) in medicine awarded by universities in Denmark and Norway. The degree has existed ever since the establishment of the University of Copenhagen in 1479, which was for centuries the only university of Denmark-Norway. The degree was first awarded by Norway's newly established Royal Frederick University in 1817 according to the regulations of the University of Copenhagen (despite Denmark and Norway no longer being in a personal union). In Norway, the degree was last awarded in 2008.

As the American term PhD is much more widely understood internationally, the degree is frequently translated as "MD, PhD". This, however, is somewhat misleading, as the PhD is officially considered a lower degree than the Dr.Med. in Denmark, where both degrees exist. In Denmark, Dr.Med. is frequently referred to as a higher doctorate along with other traditional doctorates (in Denmark, the PhD is not considered a doctorate, strictly speaking, but a lower degree).

In order to be awarded the Dr. Med. degree, one has to hold a Candidate of Medicine (Cand. Med.) degree (the same as an American style MD, approx. 6 years of studies).^[1][2]

The degree can also be written as Doctor Medicinæ (Æ instead of AE). In Danish and Norwegian, the degree is, similar to other Latin degrees, generally not capitalized (i.e. it's written as doctor medicinae or doctor medicinæ, and abbreviated dr. med.).

It should not be confused with the German degree Dr. med., which is not a degree at the same level (a Scandinavian Dr. Med. is comparable to a German Habilitation). The German Dr.med. is, in contrast, comparable to the American PhD.

It should also not be confused with the entry-level professional degree M.D., used in some English-speaking countries (not the Commonwealth).

References

1. ^ Dagens Medisin (2007-04-12). "Flere ikke-leger tar med.dr.grad" (in Norwegian). http://www.dagensmedisin.no/nyheter/2007/04/12/flere-ikkeleger-tar-med-dr/index.xml. 
2. ^ University of Tromsø. "PhD-utdanning" (in Norwegian). http://uit.no/med-forskning/phd-utdanning/. Retrieved 2008-05-07.