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Ph.D. Requirements (Effective through Spring 2008)

Students pursuing a Ph. D. in Philosophy should be aware of the requirements stated below and also those stated in the section "Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy" in the University Graduate School Bulletin.

Steps for Completing a Ph.D. in Philosophy

Nine units of distribution requirements (see below ): These requirements are intended to insure that the successful Ph.D. candidate has a well-rounded and broad understanding of philosophy. They are to be satisfied by the end of the third year.

Four units of concentration requirements (see below ): These requirements are intended to insure that the successful Ph.D. candidate has a deeper understanding of at least one branch of philosophy. They are to be satisfied by the end of the third year.

Minimum Grade Requirement The student must receive a grade of B or better in any course that receives credit toward the 90 credit hours required for the Ph.D.

Language requirement: There is no general foreign language requirement for the Ph.D. However, a student's Qualifying Committee or Dissertation Committee may require the student to achieve proficiency in a foreign language relevant to the student's research and may set the level of proficiency to be attained and the means of establishing that the required level has been attained. A student should consult with the DGS about whether he or she will need competence in a foreign language, and this consultation should begin in the student's first year, to allow adequate time for the student to develop competence.

Minor: Each student in philosophy is required to have a minor in another department or program. The minor should typically be completed by the beginning of the student's fourth year.

Qualifying exam (see below ): An essay, together with an oral exam, on a topic which the student plans to pursue further in the dissertation. The Qualifying Exam will test whether the student is ready to write a dissertation on the chosen topic.

Dissertation prospectus: A one- or two-page plan of the proposed dissertation. This is to be submitted to the Graduate School after it has been approved by the dissertation committee. The prospectus should be completed by the end of the first semester of the fourth year, normally earlier.

Dissertation chapter exam (see below ): A long essay (about twenty-five pages long) on the dissertation topic, with an optional oral component. This should be taken within one year of passing the Qualifying Exam.

Dissertation defense: The University's final examination, based on the student's completed dissertation. This will normally be taken in the student's fourth or fifth year.

Distribution and Concentration Requirements

For the purposes of stating these requirements, philosophy is considered as falling into four areas. Each of these areas has an Area Committee to administer the requirements in that area.

Metaphysics & Epistemology: Metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of language, philosophy of mind and action.

Logic: Logic, philosophy of logic and mathematics, philosophy of science, semantics.

History of Philosophy: Ancient, medieval, modern, recent.

Value Theory: Ethics, social and political philosophy, legal philosophy, aesthetics.

Each graduate student is required to concentrate in at least one area and satisfy distribution requirements in all four, though some exceptions are possible for students pursuing an interdisciplinary track (see below). Unless stated otherwise, courses used to satisfy the distribution requirements in an area will count towards the concentration requirements for that area.

Distribution Requirements

Distribution requirements in the four areas are defined below.

Metaphysics & Epistemology: (Two units) Two graduate courses in the area. The two courses should be in different sub-areas. At least one of the two courses must be on the list of automatically approved courses below. P590s will not count toward the M & E Distribution Requirement.

Logic: (Two units) Two graduate courses in the area, including at least one logic course. The student must demonstrate a thorough understanding of first-order logic. Successful completion of P505 will be taken as demonstrating such understanding.

History of Philosophy: (Three units) A unit in history can consist of any of the following: a graduate course, a written paper on a topic in one of the four historical periods (ancient, medieval, modern, and recent), a written examination on a topic in one of the four periods, or a written examination covering a broad range within the history of philosophy. At least one unit must be in ancient or medieval history and one in post-medieval history. The third "wild card" unit in history may be in any of the four historical periods. It may also be such a course as history of ethics, history of aesthetics, history of logic, etc., provided that such course is approved by the history committee.

In addition to the automatically approved courses listed below, P710 can count for any of the periods, depending on its content. Students must seek approval for P710 from the History Area Committee, and the Area Committee will decide whether the course counts based on course content and the student's competence in the philosophy of the relevant period. Other courses may be counted depending on Committee approval.

Value Theory: (Two units) Two graduate level courses, at least one in ethics. At least one course should be either P540, P541, or P740. The second course should come from the list of automatically approved courses below. Students may petition to substitute for one or possibly both of the courses a course not on the list of automatically approved courses, but there is no presumption that any other courses will count. The decision whether to count any other courses will be made on the basis of what other courses the student has taken, the opportunities the student has had for taking automatically approved courses, and the student's Area of Concentration. Two courses with the same number can count toward the Distribution Requirement provided their course content is sufficiently different; students must petition for the second course to count.

Distribution requirements should normally be satisfied by the end of the student's second year, but in all cases should be satisfied by the end of the student's third year of graduate study.

View the Distribution Requirements Form

Interdisciplinary Track Distribution Requirements

An interdisciplinary track is considered to be 18 credit hours in a department or program outside of philosophy of importance to the student's area of specialty. It is usually in the area of the student's minor. Graduate students pursuing an interdisciplinary track may request an ad hoc exemption of one or two of the above nine units of the department's standard distribution requirements. The written request should be made to the Director of Graduate Studies before the end of the student's second year. A good case must be made for the usefulness of the outside work being proposed, either for the student's dissertation or for other career objectives. The specific courses being taken, as well as the distribution units to be dropped, must be described in the application. If the request is to drop two units from one area, the Director of Graduate Studies will seek the approval of the Area Committee before granting the request. If the student on an interdisciplinary track is given a one unit exemption in any Area, then the expectation is that the remaining unit (or units) that satisfy the Distribution Requirements in that Area will be courses on the list of automatically approved courses. [Note concerning cross-listed courses: If more than three credits of the 18 interdisciplinary track credits are from cross-listed philosophy courses, the above exemption will not be granted; if one to three credits are from such courses, then the exemption cannot be granted for more than one unit of the distribution requirements.]

Concentration Requirements

Concentration requirements in each of the four areas are defined below. Unless stated otherwise, courses used to satisfy the distribution requirements in an area will count toward the concentration requirements for that area. A student must achieve an average of A- in the courses that count towards the Concentration Requirement.

Metaphysics and Epistemology: (Four units) Four courses from at least three different sub-areas. At least two of the four courses must be on the list of automatically approved courses below. At most one P590 will count toward the M & E Concentration Requirement, with high standards (for M & E area centrality, rigor and breadth of reading, and written work). At most one course outside the philosophy department (including courses taken at an institution other than Indiana University) will count, with high standards (for clear philosophical content, M & E area centrality, rigor and breadth of reading, and written work). (The caliber of the department at another institution at which a course is taken will be an important consideration in granting petitions for approval of courses taken in other institutions.)

Logic: (Four units) Students concentrating in this area are required to do the following: ( i ) Take at least four courses in logic/formal areas of philosophy. (Note: P505 will not count for the requirement.) These courses must be well distributed; students are advised to consult the Logic Committee to ensure this. Students can have a B+ in at most one of these four courses, and an A- in another. In two of the courses they must have received an A (or better). (ii) Show mastery of the material of P505/P506. This requirement will be deemed as satisfied if a student has taken courses equivalent to P505/P506 with a grade of A- or better.

History of Philosophy: (Four units) The history units are as defined above, except that the "wild card" is not an option here. Students specializing in history must pass four regular history units, at least one in each of the four historical periods.

In addition to the automatically approved courses listed below, P710 can count for any of the periods, depending on its content. Students must seek approval for P710 from the History Area Committee, and the Area Committee will decide whether the course counts based on course content and the student's competence in the philosophy of the relevant period. Other courses may be counted depending on Committee approval.

Value Theory: (Four units) Four courses. At least one course should be P540, P541, or P740. At least one course should be in aesthetics, political philosophy, or philosophy of law. Students must take two or more courses in a single sub-area known as "the field of emphasis," and no more than one course in the field of emphasis may be taken outside the philosophy department. Students may petition to substitute a course not on the list of automatically approved courses below, but there is no presumption that any other courses will count.

Automatically Approved Courses

All of the following courses automatically count towards the Distribution and Concentration Requirements for the Area and Subarea under which they are listed, subject to the general description above of the requirements in each Area. Courses on the list may also satisfy the Distribution and Concentration Requirements for Areas or Subareas other than the ones under which they are listed. Approval for satisfying the Distribution or Concentration Requirements in an Area or Subarea other than the one for which the course is listed must be sought from the relevant Area Committee, either prior to taking the course or afterward:

Metaphysics and Epistemology

Metaphysics: P560, P571

Epistemology: P562

Philosophy of Language: P520, P720

Philosophy of Mind: P561, P570

P730 and P760 would count toward metaphysics, epistemology, or either, depending on content.

Logic

Logic: P505 (counts toward the Distribution Requirement in Logic, but not the Concentration Requirement), P506, P550, P751

Philosophy of Logic and Mathematics: P551, P552

P750 counts as either logic or philosophy of logic and mathematics, depending on content.

History of Philosophy

P710

Ancient: P511, P512

Medieval: P515

Modern: P522

Recent: P526, P530, P531, P535

Value Theory

Ethics: P540, P541, P740

Social and Political Philosophy: P543, P544, P743

Legal Philosophy: P545

Aesthetics: P546

Approval for satisfying the Distribution or Concentration Requirements for any course not on this list—including P590 course and courses given in other departments—must be sought from the relevant Area Committee, either prior to taking the course or afterward. Approval after the fact will only be granted in exceptional circumstances. No course may be counted as satisfying more than one unit of one Distribution or Concentration Requirement.

Area Committees decide whether to approve outside courses in part on the basis of whether the student has acquired a grounding in the Area by taking the sum total of the courses proposed to satisfy the Requirement. Because of this, it could happen that one student receives approval for a course and another student is denied approval for the same course

Regarding P590 courses that are taken concurrently with an undergraduate course, it is expected that a graduate student will use no more than two such courses to satisfy the Distribution and Concentration requirements as a whole, and no more than one such P590 course in any given area.

No course (understood as a particular course, not a course number) may be counted as more than one unit of one distribution or concentration requirement.

View the Concentration Requirement Form

Qualifying Exam

The Qualifying Exam consists of an essay (about fifteen pages long), together with an oral, on a topic that the student plans to pursue further in the dissertation. The Exam will test whether the student is ready to write a dissertation on the chosen topic. Students should provide the members of their Qualifying Committee with a copy of their Qualifying Exam essay at least three weeks in advance of the date scheduled for the oral exam.

The Qualifying Exam is normally taken after the student has completed all the course work for the Ph.D. and has satisfied the language requirement. Once the student has passed the Qualifying Exam and has satisfied the course and language requirements, he or she will be nominated to candidacy. (For information on candidacy, see the section titled, "Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy" in the University Graduate School Bulletin .)

Notes: (a) The Qualifying Exam will be administered by an ad hoc committee, consisting of at least three members, that will later evolve into the student's dissertation committee. A representative of the Minor may be included in the exam, if the Chair of the committee finds it desirable. Note that the University requires that a member representing the student's minor must belong to the dissertation committee. (b) The essay written for the Qualifying Exam will contain indication of the further work that the student wishes to pursue in the dissertation. (c) If the Qualifying Exam committee passes the student, then it may issue questions that the student is to address in the Dissertation Chapter Exam (see below). (d) And it may recommend immediate submission of the Prospectus to the Graduate School. If it does not recommend immediate submission, then the Prospectus will be submitted after the student passes the Dissertation Chapter Exam. (e) The Qualifying Exam should be taken by the end of three and one-half years of graduate study.

View the Qualifying Exam Form

Dissertation Chapter Exam

The Exam consists of a long essay (about twenty-five pages long) on the dissertation topic, with an optional oral.

Notes: (a) A request by a student for an oral exam will be honored. (b) Normally the Dissertation Chapter Exam should be taken by the end of the fourth year of graduate study. (c) In any case, it should be taken within one year of passing the Qualifying Exam.

View the Dissertation Chapter Exam Form

Dissertation Requirement

The dissertation is the most important and substantial piece of work during the candidate's student career. It is to be seen as a piece of apprenticeship, one that demonstrates:

• the student's familiarity with the literature in his or her area of concentration,
• an understanding of the standard tools of the area, and
• a substantial original contribution to the area.

It is to be completed in a timely fashion. Normal expectations are that it will be completed by the end of the fourth or fifth year. Students should provide the members of their Dissertation Committee with a complete copy of their dissertation at least 30 days in advance of the date scheduled for the dissertation oral exam.