A professional degree prepares the conferee for a particular profession by emphasizing skills and practical analysis over theory and research. Most but not all of the professions associated with professional degrees are professions that require licensing in order to practice as a professional in the field. Professions include: audiology, architecture; dentistry; dietetics; many fields of engineering; K-12 public education; law; medicine (MD, DO or MBBS); chiropractic; podiatric medicine; nursing; medical laboratory science; music therapy, speech-language pathology; occupational; physical therapy; optometry; psychology; pharmacy; radiography; social work; urban planning; and veterinary medicine all require a person to first obtain a professional degree in the relevant subject area(s) prior to professional licensure, certification or registration. Other fields, such as speech-language pathology, require the professional to earn a graduate degree as well as the additional required licensing, registration, and certification to obtain employment.
