Doctor of Sciences

[1] By the same decision, a lower degree, "Candidate of Sciences" (kandidat nauk), roughly the Russian equivalent to the research doctorate in other countries, was first introduced.

Therefore, no academic supervisor is required; moreover, typically the candidate is an established scholar him/herself, supervising a few Ph.D. students while working towards his or her Doctor of Sciences dissertation.

However, it is normal practice when an experienced consultant is appointed to help the scholar with identifying the research problem and finding the approach to solving it; yet this is not technically regarded a supervision.

Prior to the defense, three referees holding Doctor of Sciences degrees themselves (the so-called "official opponents") must submit their written motivated assessments of the thesis.

Unless an academic holds a Doctor of Sciences, she or he can make it to a full professor only through 15 years or more of outstanding teaching service on the university level.

A Doctor of Sciences degree holder can become a tenured full professor after just one year of teaching experience in a non-tenured faculty position.

Although some exceptionally talented researchers in mathematics do earn Doctor of Sciences in their late 20s, the average age of the scholars reaching Doktor in most disciplines is about 50; this implicitly indicates the amount of contribution that must be made.