This is not an official document and it is placed here for the potential applicants’ convenience. It is subject to constant change, especially in Areas B and C, as the participating departments change their offerings and/or the Program’s Graduate Committee modifies the requirements to meet the ever-developing needs of the field. One’s mileage can vary but one can always double check on the availability of a particular course in a particular session by visiting the websites of the appropriate departments.
Program Requirements
Under the thesis option, the candidate must complete 27 hours of course work and 3 hours of thesis research. Under the examination option, 30 hours of course work must be completed and a final examination taken. The examination option is rarely employed and only in unusual circumstances with special permission of the graduate committee. Under either option, the candidate must take 4 required courses, a 3-course sub-concentration, and enough electives to fill out the rest of the option selected. At least one of the courses must be a seminar.
Courses listed for graduation must total to a GPA of 3.0 or better. Any 300 or 400 course must be completed with a B- or better.
The requirements consist of 3 areas, A, B, and C.
In Area A, students have to take two technical courses, one philosophy/ethics course, and one sociopolitical course. In Area B, students must choose 3 in-depth courses from a considerable number of options offered by various programs. A student’s 3-course sub-concentration will usually emerge from a combination of Area A and Area B courses. Area C is a breadth requirement, and students have to choose 2 courses there from a large number of options. Between Areas B and C, students must choose courses from at least three different programs.
Within this general framework, each graduating program may specify some particular choices:
