In Russia there is a system of two advanced academic degrees: candidate of sciences and doctor of sciences. Historically, in imperial Russia there was a system of academic regulations and degrees based on European, mostly German patterns. Then in the Soviet period from 1918, the degrees of master's and doctor of sciences, which had existed for many years, were abolished. In 1934, a new decree established the academic degrees of candidate and doctor of sciences, which are still in existence. The degree of doctor of sciences ["doktor nauk"] is the highest. It requires the completion of a dissertation as well as extensive research experience and field specialization. Currently, approximately 4,000 degrees of this type are issued each year. The degree of candidate of sciences ["kandidat nauk"] is far more common (about 140,000 degrees each year) and generally considered to be the equivalent of a Western Ph.D., though they are not strictly equal, and to date there is no agreement on the equivalence. In this article, the author uses the term Ph.D., which is more familiar to the international audience, to refer to the degree of candidate of sciences, and the term "doctoral education" refers to this level of education. This paper seeks to fill some gaps in people's understanding of academic degrees in the nonacademic labor market. It also focuses on the analysis of the perceived status of the degree on the nonacademic labor market, using interview data and factor and cluster analyses. (Contains 3 tables.)