Academics using 'Dr' - wankerish?

[RevoltingPeasant]

On the day I got my PhD, the first thing my mum said to me when I rang to say I'd passed was, 'Oh, I do hope you won't call yourself Dr, it's so pretentious...

...and congratulations!'

Anywho, I never get called Dr except on my office door and in rejection letters from journals. But I think most academics do use it in civilian life. I kinda want to. Does this make me a smug git, especially because my subject specialism is in something entirely useless to humanity literature?

I have a friend who uses it allll the time. His surname is 'Love' though.

Sorry, I think it is pretentious

Ooh, I know a Dr Love too !

And no, its not pretentious at all

None of my many mates with PhD use "Doctor" outside academic work, which is just as well, because I have a MASSIVE inferiority complex about it, so it would drive me mad.

Not in the least pretentious - they've worked for it!

Of course you should use it, you earned it. I certainly would.

Of course it isn't pretentious. You're not pretending. You are entitled. Use it if you want to.

If you are a Dr you must have worked really hard for it though.

Not pretentious imo.

I used to be a bit dubious, but I use mine all the time now -- it saves the Ms/Mrs/Miss palaver (see other thread!). I'm uneasy with the idea that I look like I'm flashing my PhD about, because I think many people have equal and greater achievements which are not recognised through titles, but I really like being gender neutral and not even opening the questions about marital status.

Yes to using phd dr in work life if relevant, but personally wouldn't outside of work environment, that said, i don't have one anyway.

Oh, and I also know a Dr Love!

I'd say you earned it. Also, I would only answer to that, when addressed by friends and family ;)

You earned it. I speak as one who saw how hard it was for DH to get a ph.d. I think it crosses over into the twatish territory is when you correct someone who calls you "Ms" when it doesn't matter, e.g telesales or in the shops.

Go forth and call yourself Dr with impunity.

You've earned the title. Use it if you want to.

Bil uses it, but only work related where it makes sense. Personal correspondence, no because it is different to a medical doctor.

If I had a PhD which I'd worked my socks off for years and years, I'd damn well use the Dr. My ex-H certainly does - although he has stayed in academia; does that make a difference to level of pretentiousness?

If you want to use it, use it. It's yours, you worked hard for it. No smug gittishness about it.

I use it sparingly. Its very handy when dealing with medical doctors because -(especially if they ask what I do and they don't quite understand it) it stops that tendency to patronizing god-complex.

I agree with BobblyGussets, I'd never correct it from 'Ms', except on the one occasion when someone was completing a form where DH was already down as 'Dr' and put me as 'Ms'. I felt the need to stake equal claim!

When I finally finish my PhD, I fully intend to change my name on here to DrVermiciousKnid.

No its not pretentious you worked very hard to receive your PHD regardless of what subject it was in and you should be proud of it.

Saying that one of my high school science teachers was a Dr. and if you ever called him 'sir' or 'Mr.' you got a right telling off and a lecture on how he hadn't studied for 10 years to be called a 'sir' blah blah blah so that was a bit wankerish.

I only use it outside work in extreme need (when up against patronising god-complex)

I've never understood why people think that academics using 'Dr' is pretentious, but don't have the same problem with MDs using it. That said, I've never met an academic who doesn't use his/her first name in a work context - to insist on being called 'Dr So-and-so' by students and colleagues would be OTT, but so would insisting on 'Mr/Miss/Mrs/Ms' IMO.

I'd probably only use it professionally but that's more because the public at large find it hard to differentiate between medical Drs & Phd Drs. You'd probably get waiters in restaurants asking you to diagnose them or air hostesses coming to your seat & urging that you help a fellow passenger with chest pain.

No, it's not pretentious.

You are a Doctor of Philosophy in your subject, you actually have the title Doctor.

Contrary to a medical Doctor, who "is" a Doctor but doesn't have the title Doctor (if that makes sense).

Congratulations Dr Peasant

I don't really need to use it at work because I can't think of anyone in R&D who doesn't have a doctorate.

The one absolute rule is never use it when booking an airline ticket!