Philosophy M.A. Graduation Requirements
The Master of Arts in Philosophy is granted upon the satisfaction of the following requirements:
1. Completion of 33 semester hours of graduate level philosophy in addition to any course(s) taken to compensate for deficiencies in undergraduate preparation. Eighteen of these hours must derive from classroom courses at the 5000 level. PHIL 6850, 6901, 6902, and 6903 are additionally required as indicated in (2) and (3) below. The 33 hours must include at least one selection from each of the groups indicated below. Other course offerings may also count toward requirements at the discretion of the graduate chair.
- Logic and Philosophy of Mathematics (5020 or 5170 or 5200 or 5270)
- Ancient Philosophy (5180 or 5190)
- Modern Philosophy (5280 or 5290 or 5380)
- Value Theory (5300 or 5320 or 5340 or 5400 or 5420)
- Epistemology, Science, and Metaphysics (5140 or 5160 or 5170 or 5500 or 5510)
2. Enrollment in 6903 Seminar, 6850 Forum, and 6901 Supervised Teaching in each semester they are offered while in residence.
3. Enrollment (especially in the second year) in a suitable number of hours of 6950 Thesis.
4. Submission of an acceptable thesis on an approved topic, and an acceptable defense of it during an oral thesis examination. Unless there are exceptional circumstances, a student may attempt a thesis defense no more than twice during his or her maximal six-year term of admission.
Policy Regarding Adequate Progress Toward the Degree
Graduate students are expected to make continuous and adequate progress toward the degree.
Progress is defined as:
- Enrolling in appropriate philosophy graduate courses (9 hours per semester).
- Maintaining at least a 3.0 GPA.
- Avoiding grades of "I."
- Avoiding any more than two grades of "PR."
- Conferring with a thesis adviser and jointly settling on a research area for the thesis no later than the end of the 13th week of the spring semester of the student?s first year.
- Submitting a thesis proposal no later than the end of the first week of the fall semester of the student's second year.
- Securing two readers for the thesis (in addition to the adviser) no later than the end of the third week of the fall semester of the student's second year.
- Conferring frequently with one's thesis adviser, including updating her or him bi-weekly, starting in the fall semester of the student?s second year.
- Submitting a complete first draft of the thesis to the individual members of the student's thesis committee by the end of the second week of the spring semester of the student's second year.
- Submitting the final draft of the thesis to the Philosophy Department, for faculty review, three full weeks prior to the oral defense date.
Failure to satisfy any of these conditions can result in dismissal from the program.