About PhDs

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May I know what are the requirements for a PhD? Who should or should not take a PhD? And most importantly, can aspies do a PhD and what are the courses suitable for us if we want to complete a doctorade?

Although I am still in high school, I hope it's never too early to plan ahead. I'm just curious...

I have two master's and credits toward a doctorate. I'm also on SSDI and have never been able to build a career. It depends on your unique situation, but some of us really can excell academically.. it's life outside the ivory tower that is hard.

The requirements for a PhD usually are an undergraduate degree, and usually with sufficient background in the subject you are going for a PhD in, with some PhD programs demanding sufficient background in outside fields. It is best to research a specific program so as to know the requirements with certainty. The people who should take a PhD are those who are willing to forgo years of work to study a subject in extreme depth so as to be an expert on it. Aspies can and many have done a PhD. What is suitable depends upon the person, obviously a field that is analytical for us to get is good, but beyond that, it is perhaps best that the PhD be in a field that the aspie has a great interest in.

Here's the advising guide for Chemical Engineering PhD students at Oregon State University, with the requirements to obtain the PhD at the beginning:

http://cbee.oregonstate.edu/programs/gr ... hd_adv.pdf

The requirements are going to be pretty much the same for any science/engineering PhD, just with different core/required classes.

Oh thanks. I hope in future, I can complete a degree in urban studies or urban geography. I am particularly interested in cities we live in, and I would like to offer solutions to make our cities better places to live:)

My inspiration is in SimCity:)

The most basic requirement is that you have a bachelor's degree and the required undergrad courses for admission to that Ph.D. program. However, when it comes to actually getting accepted the requirements become a lot more hardcore:

- You'll want at least a year of research experience and something to show for it a (a poster presentation, attend a conference, a publication, an honors thesis, etc)
- Several letters of recommendation, at least one of which must come from a research mentor
- A high GPA. 3.3 is pretty much the bare minimum that you can have and still have any hope of getting accepted with. To have more realistic chances you'll probably want at least 3.5 and ideally 3.7+.
- Good GRE scores (the GRE being the college version of the SAT, and it's difficulty reflects that. The test will actually make itself harder for each question you get right (it's computerized))
- Lots of volunteer experience and extracurricular activities don't hut either
- A clean academic record (get caught cheating/plagiarizing and it's all over

Many times, not always-- I have a couple of good friends who are freaking brilliant who went from BS straight to PhD programs-- a person usually gets a masters degree before pursuing the PhD. Your masters need not be in the exact same area as the PhD (or bachelors) but it does need to be closely related.
--You will need to be an author on at least one publication. Yes there are exceptions, etc. But if you are in the sciences and doing the research and not at least the last author on something, that could be a problem. You should also be attending conferences and doing other active things at this point-- poster presentations, running a session at a workshop, etc.
--you should have great recommendations. It is really hard to get into PhD programs. Some programs have an emphasis on research, others on teaching (graduate students get funding by either being research assistants or teaching assistants). You have to be pretty special and stand out when it comes to what the school wants. You will need to click with the person who will be your adviser
--GPA and test scores
--The most important thing is that you love your area of study. The PhD takes a long time to get-- at least five years in most cases, and it can take many more. It is intense. Research and study of your subject have to be your idea of a personal Disney world, something that you want to eat sleep and breath. In order to avoid burnout you will need good mentors and support as well, once you get accepted. It also doesn't hurt to think about why you want the PhD and what you might do with it.