{{Short description|Academic profession}} In academia, a '''predoctoral fellow''' is a person combining study for a doctorate with some form of paid research or work, in other words a paid doctoral student. The term is only used in some parts of the world.
==Europe== {{More citations needed|section|date=August 2023}} Across EU, typically a doctoral fellow is somebody already registered in a PhD program at a host university to work together with a full professor in a certain topic of research.<ref>[http://www.zuv.fau.de/universitaet/organisation/recht/Promotionsordnungen-NEU2013/PromO-TechFak-AUG2017-en.pdf Doctoral Regulations for the Faculty of Engineering at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Part II §6]</ref>{{failed verification|date=August 2023}} Upon completion of the research work and other requirements (e.g. graduate courses/exams, see: all but dissertation), the pre-doctoral fellow can submit the thesis to the doctoral committee for review and upon passing the review is asked to defend the thesis in a public presentation for conferral of PhD degree.<ref>[http://www.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/dekanat-pe/Promotion/Allgemeine_Promotionsordnung_der_RUB_vom%204Nov2014_englische_Uebersetzung.pdf General Doctoral Statutes of the Ruhr University Bochum]</ref><!-- how is this different from a normal doctoral student? -->{{dead link|date=August 2023}}
==North America (USA/Canada)== In the USA a '''predoctoral fellow''' ('''pre-doc''') is a researcher who has a master's degree (or equivalent university graduate education), but not a doctorate, but is enrolled in a preparatory program at university for admission to PhD (doctoral degree program) and often granted a stipend.<ref>[http://www.stern.nyu.edu/programs-admissions/phd/academics/pre-doctoral-program New York University PhD | Pre-Doctoral Program]</ref><ref>[http://www.calstate.edu/predoc/ California State University Pre-Doc Program]</ref><ref>[https://cddrl.fsi.stanford.edu/graduate_programs Stanford Pre-Doc program]</ref> As the name implies, predoctoral fellows often use their time as a fellow to develop their skills and résumé before applying to graduate school for a doctoral degree. They differ from other research employees (research associates)<ref>[https://www8.gsb.columbia.edu/programs/pre-doctoral-research Columbia University Pre-Doc program]</ref><ref>[https://www.chicagobooth.edu/faculty/research-staff Research Staff Program at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business]</ref><ref>[https://www.hbs.edu/ra/Pages/default.aspx Research Associates Program at Harvard Business School]</ref> in that they primarily pursue research, rather than maintain the day-to-day function of a research facility, and may have external funding to support their research or educational activities, but typically are also reliant on the support of a research mentor whose lab they work in. {{Citation needed|date=March 2017|reason=Reliable source needed for the whole sentence}}
Predocs also refer to predoctoral (that is, before Ph.D.) research positions held at universities and research institutions as a transition, to doctoral studies. In recent times, for instance, the path to a PhD in Economics and Business often contemplates a period of research assistantship for faculty or researchers at universities and research institutions.<ref>[https://predoc.org PREDOC: Pathways to Research and Doctoral Careers]</ref> Such predoc research assistantship programs are available at many universities, business schools, and research institutions.<ref>[https://PREDOC.org PREDOC: Pathways to Research and Doctoral Careers]</ref>
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Category:Educational stages