Unlike undergraduates, graduate students begin specialized study on the first day of classes. You will probably be required to take certain courses and may be allowed as few as two or three electives. A doctoral program includes the writing of a dissertation involving original research. The dissertation may involve a year or more of research and at least a year of writing. U.S. institutions award more than 44,000 doctorates each year.
Research is a central feature of most graduate programs at U.S. colleges and universities.
U.S. faculty are expected to engage in original research in their academic field, in addition to teaching and helping to run the university. Most of the research in the United States is supported by various agencies of the U.S. federal government. Faculty members apply to those agencies for funding to support their research. Part of the research money is used to pay salaries of researchers, some of whom are graduate students. Other Options Other types of programs are offered in many settings, some outside the traditional university setting.