PhD Requirements on or after Fall 2024

These requirements apply to all students admitted on or after the 2024 Fall Semester. Students admitted prior to this date may opt in for the new requirements. Toward the aim of streamlining our graduate program requirements, we trimmed the requisite number of hours, from 48 to 43, as follows:

Curriculum Requirements 

The revised curriculum reduces total required hours to 43, emphasizing earlier transition to research.

Required Credit Hours (43 total)

Methods: 9 hours

POLS 705, 706, 707

Core subfield proseminars: 9 hours

POLS 850 (Comparative Politics)

POLS 870 (International Relations)

POLS 810 (American Politics) or POLS 720 (Public Policy)

Major subfield electives (Primary field): 9 hours (eg: IR)

Minor subfield electives (Secondary field): 9 hours (eg: CP)

Preliminary research paper enrollment: POLS 997 (1 credit)

Dissertation hours: POLS 999 (6 credits)

Only 36 of the 43 required hours are formal coursework. The remainder is devoted to the prelim paper and dissertation research.

Preliminary Examinations

Timing:

Prelims will continue to be offered twice a year (September and February, respectively). However, the expectation is that students take the prelims during the 6th semester (fall of their third year). We agreed that offering the prelims in the spring will allow students who are unsuccessful during their first attempt to retake the exams in the spring. 

 

Prelim Prerequisites:  In order to advance students more quickly through the program, we also cut down on the coursework requirements for eligibility to enroll in prelims. The new requisites are as follows:

Methods sequence: 705-706-707

Core (Pro-Seminar) sequence: 850, 870, 720 or 810. 

Primary field: 9 credit hours (3 courses completed).

In other words, students need not have completed the 9 credit hours required for their secondary field and can continue to take courses toward the secondary field after or during prelims. This change is congruent with the new prelim procedures, wherein students no longer need to take a written preliminary exam in their secondary field. 

Process:

The preliminary examinations now consist of the written exam in the primary field, and a research paper. Students enroll in 997 during the semester that they are taking the prelim (typically, the 6th semester).

The prelim committee will consist of all subfield faculty, with a rotating Chair. The oral exam committee consists of primary and secondary faculty members and one outside member. That is, the prelim and oral committees’ formation and composition procedures have not changed. Again, consistent with the old procedures, the oral exam will be scheduled toward the end of the prelim semester. 

 

Template Schedule:

Assume primary fields: IR and CP

Year 1

Fall

  • POLS 705
  • IR elective (e.g., Conflict – 972)
  • IR elective (e.g., IPE – 973)

Spring

  • POLS 706
  • POLS 720 or 810
  • POLS 850 (CP core)