New Email Signature

[laughthroughit]

For the new PhDs who are about to change their email signature line(s) to reflect a new position... Will you have "Dr" before your name or "PhD" after your name in your new signature? If so, which one will you pick and why? Do people at different types of institutions tend to have one over the other and are there job/institution differences around whether either is in signature lines at all?

Hoping that those who have already done this will also share!

[Just Defended]

I plan to use Ph.D. after my name. I think it is most reflective of my status. I think Dr. before one's name in an email signature is a bit pretentious.

[anon]

Honestly, I think they're both pretentious. And the only people I see doing it regularly are those that just got their PhD. Why do it at all?

[anony]

Yeah, the signatures of the faculty here (R1) have their title and department, PhD implied (e.g. Professor, Associate etc)

[Doodle]

When one is younger looking or female, it helps to have Ph.D. behind your name. I know a woman who was often touched by her students and called by her first name. Changing her perspective to introducing herself as Dr. So and So seems to have helped.

[Toocuteforwords]

I agree with Doodle. I'm a postdoc in an academic medical center who is female young-looking and a racial minority. Students, faculty and others tend to be too informal with me so my boss suggested having the phd on my signature and she always introduces me to students as Dr. So and So.

[taketwo]

I understand that it can be seen as pretentious, but I earned it! I'm going to use "Dr." for at least a few years.

[possibly]

The Dr. designation can go with several types of degree. There are MDs of course, but there are also increasingly non-academic degrees like a Doctor of Education, Doctor of Social Work, etc. that are applied/professional. People with these degrees sometimes use Dr. as well. Thus, PhD after the name is more specific.