The Doctor of Liberal Studies degree, abbreviated (D.L.S.), for the Latin Doctor Liberalium Studiorum, is an advanced academic degree offered by

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = "The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , ...

University of Memphis } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering, the Center for Ea ...

and other

research universities A research university or a research-intensive university is a university that is committed to research as a central part of its mission. They are the most important sites at which knowledge production occurs, along with "intergenerational kn ...

. Doctor of Liberal Studies programs are typically geared for accomplished professionals seeking a rigorous interdisciplinary academic program that can be tailored to their established expertise. Admissions to D.L.S. programs are very competitive, and cohorts typically consist of six to 15 students. All D.L.S. candidates already hold advanced degrees, typically more than one. The D.L.S. is a research doctorate that prepares students to make original intellectual contributions in their fields of study, and are not primarily intended for the practice of a profession. Rather than pursue research in a single discipline, D.L.S. students create new knowledge through the synthesis of interdisciplinary research. The

U.S. Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...

and the National Science Foundation recognize numerous non-professional, research-oriented doctoral degrees (such as the Doctor of Liberal Studies) that require a dissertation or corresponding project as equivalent to the

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

(Ph.D.) and does not discriminate between them. Through the required foundational courses in the humanities, specifically philosophy, theology, history, art, literature, and the social sciences, the Doctor of Liberal Studies establishes the intellectual and scholarly context needed to carry out serious interdisciplinary study and research in ethics and crucial issues in contemporary thought. Graduates of the program typically return to their established career domains, including national security, journalism, health care, education, law and other areas. A growing number has also secured respected university positions, including those on the tenure-track and in higher education administration.Pablo Molina, DLS profile (Georgetown University) , http://explore.georgetown.edu/people/molina/

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Liberal Studies Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term '' art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically th ...