I. The Ph.D. Program

  A. Rationale

The goal of the program is to provide students with a knowledge of the history, methodologies and sub-disciplines of philosophy, to give them the background for advanced study and independent research and to prepare them to become contributing members of the professional philosophical community. The focus in the first two years of the program, which culminate in the M.A., is on the history and methodology of the discipline. The core of study pursued at this level is a preparative to subsequent study and research at the Ph.D. level. The program is designed to prepare the student for substantial and advanced research in philosophy. Recipients of the Ph.D. should be equipped to make original contributions to philosophical scholarship and to enter professions in which philosophical activity will play a central role.

  B. Planning a Course of Study

  1. Career Goals and Academic Interests

The Ph.D. program provides suitable preparation for four modes of professional work: (a) academic careers in philosophy departments as moral, political, and social philosophers, and in certain other fields of philosophy, (b) academic careers in philosophy departments in the sub- specializations of applied philosophy in e.g., philosophy of medicine, philosophy of law, philosophy of business or environmental philosophy, (c) certain interdisciplinary academic careers, or (d) careers in law and government, business, health care or social service.

Together with their advisors, students should aim to develop plans of study that answer both to their career goals and to their academic interests. Students in the program play a significant role in designing their own courses of study. They and their advisors are responsible for preparing and filing with the Graduate College a TentativeDegreeProgram, which sets out their individual plan for completion of the requirements for the degree.

  2. Faculty Advisors

Students need to have an Advisor during the first half of the Ph.D. program and, in the second half of the program, they need to have a Dissertation Supervisor to direct and assist their dissertation research. This is not necessarily the same faculty member.

Once a student has been admitted to the program, the Graduate Committee assigns him or her to a member of the Graduate Faculty who will serve as the student's initial advisor. Advisors are expected to meet individually with their students to discuss their interests and goals and to offer advice as to how to benefit from the program. Once a student is familiar with the faculty, he or she may decide to select a different member of the Graduate Faculty to serve as his or her advisor.

The main academic role of the advisor is to advise the student on the choice of courses, on the choice of a dissertation topic, and to assist in preparing the Tentative Degree Program, which is a plan for completion of the degree.

  3. Options within the Program

The program has strict requirements, but the requirements can be fulfilled in a variety of ways. The program provides for a degree of flexibility in meeting the requirements, as explained below under “Flexibility.” Students need to plan their course of study with their career goals in mind and with a realistic understanding of the nature of the careers to which they aspire.

Those who would pursue academic careers in philosophy departments need to choose course work in the understanding that, in almost every department where they might be employed, they will be expected to be active participants in a wide range of contemporary philosophical conversations and debates where the history of philosophy and its methodologies as well as familiarity with work in a wide variety of the sub-disciplines of the field is expected as shared background. They also need to understand that there is a high expectation of regular publication in an academic career, and that the standards are rigorous. For this reason, they need to work very hard on their philosophical writing.

Those with a strong interest in moral, political, and social philosophy should consult with their advisors about the advisability of pursuing cognate studies in economics, law, political science, sociology, history or psychology, which would provide a broader basis for serious study of issues in moral and social philosophy. They might also consider an internship experience either in a non-academic setting or in a research center where considerable theoretical work in moral and social philosophy is undertaken.

Those who would pursue academic careers in philosophy departments in sub- specializations of applied philosophy such as philosophy and medicine or philosophy and the environment need to understand that the expectations they will face will be similar to those faced by colleagues with less applied interests. They also need to choose course work in the understanding that they will be expected to be active participants in the full, contemporary philosophical conversation where the history of philosophy and its methodologies as well as familiarity with work in a wide variety of the sub-disciplines of the field is expected as shared background. They also need to understand that there is a high expectation of regular publication in an academic career, and that the standards are rigorous.

Those with strong interests in applied philosophy need to consult with their advisors about the advisability of pursuing cognate studies which would lend credibility to their efforts at teaching applied topics and at applied research and publication. An internship experience might be especially appropriate for those with applied interests. An internship should give them classroom credibility as they claim to be able to teach applied courses and provide them with food for thought as they pursue research and publication in applied areas.

Those who would pursue academic careers in interdisciplinary contexts either within or outside of philosophy departments should pursue course work that will prepare them to be active participants in interdisciplinary debates and conversations where they will need the ability to translate understandings of the history, methodologies and sub-disciplines of philosophy for those who do not share their philosophical background. Cognate studies can be useful in preparing them to enter into dialogue with professionals in other disciplines. An appropriately chosen internship experience would enhance the student’s understanding of, and perhaps provide experiences in using the methodologies of, other disciplines. It would also promote an understanding of the potential that a philosophical background has for complementing work in other disciplines. Those with interdisciplinary interests should realize that here too there will be high expectations and standards for regular publication.

Those who would pursue non-academic careers in law and government, business, health care or social service should choose their course work in the understanding that they will be expected to be active participants in practical conversations which require the abilities to convey an understanding of the history, methodologies and sub-disciplines of philosophy and to demonstrate their practical importance for those who do not share a philosophical background. Cognate studies and internship experiences might prepare them to enter into fuller and more regular dialogue with professionals who are addressing practical problems in non-academic contexts. An appropriately chosen internship would provide a fuller understanding of and, if possible, direct experience of the concrete practical problems of professionals working in non- academic contexts. It would also enhance an understanding of the potential of philosophical background to provide means for addressing such problems. In non-academic careers, academic respectability will be presupposed, and research for publication may still be expected. There will be the additional burden of making philosophical expertise and insight accessible to and useful for those who are addressing problems in non-academic contexts.

C. Overview of Basic Components of the Program

The following highlights the various stages of the program and the associated requirements. (In each case, the committee responsible for supervision is noted in parentheses.) Further details concerning these stages of the program will be found below.

1. Admission to Ph.D.

(Graduate Committee)

2. The First Two Years of the Program

Twelve four-hour seminars or courses in Philosophy, including five courses from the Group A Core Requirements. A three-hour course to prepare students for teaching Philosophy. (Graduate Committee and Advisor)

3.M.A. Examination

A portfolio of 3-4 papers totaling around 40-60 pages submitted to the Director of Graduate Studies by the first day of the student's fifth semester (not including summers) of residence.

(Graduate Committee and Director of Graduate Studies)

4. Course work Requirements Leading to Dissertation Research

Eight four-hour seminars in Philosophy from the Group B Core Requirements, some of which may be completed during the first two years of the program. [N.b. The total course requirement for the Ph.D. is at least sixteen four-hour courses or seminars in philosophy (16 courses, 64 hours), including the 12 courses in the first two years, and including the Group A and the Group B Core Requirements.]

(Graduate Committee and Director of Graduate Studies)

5. Audit Course Requirement

(Advisor, Graduate Committee and Director of Graduate Studies)

6. Optional Internship and Internship Report

(Advisor, Graduate Committee and Director of Graduate Studies)

7. Dissertation Research

(Dissertation Supervisor and Dissertation Committee)

8. Language Requirement

(Contingent on Dissertation Topic: Dissertation Supervisor, Dissertation Committee, and Director of Graduate Studies)

9. Cognate Course Requirement

(Contingent on Dissertation Topic: Dissertation Supervisor, Dissertation Committee, and Director of Graduate Studies.)

10. Preliminary Examination and Approval of Dissertation Proposal

Normally taken before the end of the sixth semester of the program (excluding summers).

(Dissertation Committee, Graduate College Representative and Director of Graduate Studies).

10. Writing of Dissertation

(Dissertation Supervisor and Dissertation Committee)

11. Defense of Doctoral Dissertation

(Dissertation Committee, Graduate College Representative and Director of Graduate Studies).

  D. Ph.D. Program Requirements

  1. Requirements in the First Two Years of the Program

TWELVE COURSE REQUIREMENT: (12 courses, 48 hours)

Twelve four-hour seminars or courses in Philosophy to be taken during the first two academic years, of which 5 are to be Group A Core Requirements. Some of the remaining 7 courses may be used to satisfy the Group B Core Requirements. In order for a student to complete all course requirements in three academic years, some Group B Requirements need to be taken during the first two academic years. Note that courses used to satisfy Group A and B requirements may not be taken for S/U grading, and no more than 2 reading or independent study courses can count towards Group B requirements.

GROUP A CORE REQUIREMENTS (5 Courses, 20 hours):

PHIL 600 Pro-Seminar

PHIL 603 Logic and Analysis

PHIL 611 History of Ancient Philosophy

PHIL 612 History of Modern Philosophy

Either PHIL 621 History of Moral Philosophy, or PHIL 622 History of Political Philosophy

(Students are urged to consider taking both.)

TEACHING PREPARATION

PHIL 650 Teaching Applied Philosophy (3 hour)

  2. M.A. Examination

A portfolio is required to demonstrate a student’s ability (a) to understand, analyze, and evaluate positions and arguments in classical and contemporary philosophical literature, and on a variety of topics, (b) to engage in robust philosophical research (where this includes judgments about the proper assimilation of secondary literature); and (c) to formulate and defend original philosophical theses.  These virtues must be displayed at a level of sophistication indicating the student’s ability to write a doctoral dissertation.

To satisfy this requirement, a student must submit an extended writing sample.  A successful portfolio can be expected to consist of 3-4 papers totaling around 40-60 double-spaced pages, standard fonts and margins.  These may be revisions of seminar papers.  Each paper should present and defend a definite thesis and should be accessible to faculty members unfamiliar with the literature in question.  The papers in the portfolio need not be of publishable quality, but they must, collectively, demonstrate the specified skills.  Students must include at least one paper on normative philosophy and at least one paper on non-normative philosophy.

The portfolio must be submitted to the Director of Graduate Studies by the first day of  classes of the student’s fifth semester (not counting summers) in residence.  Portfolios will be evaluated by the entire graduate faculty of the Philosophy Department.  Toward the end of fall semester, the graduate faculty will meet to evaluate the year’s portfolio(s).  Each faculty member will read at least one paper from each portfolio, and each paper will be read by at least one faculty member.  The possible outcomes of the Department’s deliberations are (a) pass, (b) neither pass nor fail, with specific conditions to be met by a given date (e.g., a rewrite of one or more papers), (c) fail, with permission granted for complete or partial resubmission by a given date, (d) fail, with permission to apply for a terminal M.A., (e) fail.  Portfolio candidates will be informed of the Department’s decision by the Director of Graduate Studies.

3. Requirements Leading to Dissertation Research

GROUP B CORE REQUIREMENTS : (8 courses, 32 hours)

Eight courses at the 600-700 level from at least three of the following areas. No more than four courses can be counted from any one area:

(1) Moral and political philosophy, broadly construed (if more than one course is counted from this area, at least one course must be in contemporary moral theory).

(2) metaphysics, philosophy of mind, epistemology.

(3) logic, philosophy of language.

(4) philosophy of natural and social science.

(5) philosophy of religion, aesthetics, etc.

OVERALL COURSE REQUIREMENT FOR THE PH.D.

A total of at least sixteen four-hour courses or seminars in philosophy (16 courses, 64 hours) must be completed during the first three academic years of the program, including the 12 courses in the first two years. Of the 16, there are 13 core courses in Groups A and B (52 hours) and 3 Philosophy electives (12 hours).

• PHIL 650 is required in addition to the 16 course overall requirement.
• No more than six of the sixteen (24 hours) may be reading or independent study
• courses. study courses. No more than two reading or independent study courses can count
• towards count towards the Group B requirements.
• None of the following may be used in fulfilling the sixteen course overall requirement: PHIL 650, 651, 679, 691, 697, 698, 791, 797, 798.
• Courses taken to fulfill Group A or B core requirements cannot be taken for for S/U
• grading S/U grading. .
• Course requirements may be adjusted only with the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies and the Graduate Committee. See below under “Flexibility. ”

AUDIT COURSE REQUIREMENT

Doctoral students are required to audit for credit two seminars—one per semester during the two academic year semesters immediately following the completion of their course work is the norm. Courses should be judiciously selected to serve the following purposes as appropriate:

• Explore issues as part of the process of selecting a dissertation topic.
• Expand understanding of issues directly related to the selected dissertation topic.
• Expand understanding of issues tangential to the dissertation topic.
• Expand understanding of issues in an area of competence unrelated to dissertation topic.
• Develop understanding of issues in a previously unexplored area.

Course requirements may be adjusted only with the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies and the Graduate Committee. See below under “Flexibility ”.  

  4. Dissertation Research

COGNATE STUDIES :

Graduate level work in a related discipline appropriate to student’s dissertation topic. At the discretion of the student’s Dissertation Supervisor and Committee and the Graduate Director, cognate courses may be required, as appropriate in light of the student’s dissertation topic.

LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT :

At the discretion of the student’s Dissertation Supervisor and Committee and the Graduate Director, reading competency in a foreign language may or may not be required, as appropriate in light of the student’s dissertation topic.

PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION AND APPROVAL OF DISSERTATION TOPIC :

The details of the Preliminary Examination are to be established by consultation with the Dissertation Supervisor and Dissertation Committee. A written Dissertation Proposal is defended before the Dissertation Committee, a Graduate College Representative and, possibly, the Director of Graduate Studies. This examination is normally taken before the end of the sixth semester of the program (excluding summers). On successful completion of the Preliminary Examination and approval of the dissertation topic, students are admitted to candidacy for the degree.

DOCTORAL DISSERTATION :

Students must complete a doctoral dissertation on a topic approved by their doctoral Dissertation Committee.

DEFENSE OF DOCTORAL DISSERTATION

An oral examination on the dissertation before the Dissertation Committee , Graduate College Representative and Director of Graduate Studies.

  E. The M.A. Examination

The M.A. Examination is intended to evaluate and monitor students’ progress through the Ph.D. program. It must be completed in the spring semester of the second academic year, or the fourth semester of the program (excluding summer semesters). Students are eligible to take the examination only if they are making “normal progress” in their course work, as determined by the Director of Graduate Studies with the advice of faculty. The Graduate College requires a student to have achieved a 3.2 GPA in graduate work in order to proceed in the program beyond the M.A. The Department has tended to expect 3.25.

A portfolio is required to demonstrate a student’s ability (a) to understand, analyze, and evaluate positions and arguments in classical and contemporary philosophical literature, and on a variety of topics, (b) to engage in robust philosophical research (where this includes judgments about the proper assimilation of secondary literature); and (c) to formulate and defend original philosophical theses.  These virtues must be displayed at a level of sophistication indicating the student’s ability to write a doctoral dissertation.

To satisfy this requirement, a student must submit an extended writing sample.  A successful portfolio can be expected to consist of 3-4 papers totaling around 40-60 double-spaced pages, standard fonts and margins.  These may be revisions of seminar papers.  Each paper should present and defend a definite thesis and should be accessible to faculty members unfamiliar with the literature in question.  The papers in the portfolio need not be of publishable quality, but they must, collectively, demonstrate the specified skills.  Students must include at least one paper on normative philosophy and at least one paper on non-normative philosophy.

The portfolio must be submitted to the Director of Graduate Studies by the first day of  classes of the student’s fifth semester (not counting summers) in residence.  Portfolios will be evaluated by the entire graduate faculty of the Philosophy Department.  Toward the end of fall semester, the graduate faculty will meet to evaluate the year’s portfolio(s).  Each faculty member will read at least one paper from each portfolio, and each paper will be read by at least one faculty member.  The possible outcomes of the Department’s deliberations are (a) pass, (b) neither pass nor fail, with specific conditions to be met by a given date (e.g., a rewrite of one or more papers), (c) fail, with permission granted for complete or partial resubmission by a given date, (d) fail, with permission to apply for a terminal M.A., (e) fail.  Portfolio candidates will be informed of the Department’s decision by the Director of Graduate Studies.

  F. Dissertation Research

  1. The Choice of Topic

Students need to begin thinking about a dissertation topic early in the program, well before they complete their course requirements. The topic obviously must be one that can sustain the student’s interest over several years. It also must be one that members of the Graduate Faculty are qualified to supervise.

  2. Dissertation Supervisor and Dissertation Committee

The choice of Dissertation Supervisor is crucial. The Supervisor must be someone willing and able to supervise a dissertation on the topic the student is interested in pursuing, and the Supervisor must also be someone the student can work with in a constructive manner. The Supervisor’s approach to philosophy will have a powerful effect on the nature of the student’s dissertation. Do not be afraid to ask for advice about your choice of supervisor or to ask prospective supervisors about their supervisory practices, such as whether they have a policy of meeting frequently or on a regularly scheduled basis with their students, whether they expect to see and read drafts of parts of the dissertation on a regularly scheduled basis, and so on. Once chosen, the Supervisor will assist the student in choosing the other members of the Dissertation Committee. It is the students’ responsibility to find a supervisor and other members of the committee.

3. Cognate Studies

In order to familiarize themselves with work in other disciplines relevant to their research, students may be required to do graduate level work in a related discipline appropriate to their dissertation topic. The decision whether it is appropriate to require such work is to be made in a timely manner by the student’s Dissertation Supervisor and the Graduate Director, in light of the student’s dissertation topic. For example, a student focusing on environmental ethics might be required to take courses in biology, one concentrating in business ethics might be required to take courses from the graduate business curriculum, and a student interested in biomedical ethics might be required to take courses in physiology. Any required cognate studies must be completed before the Preliminary Examination is taken. (Of course, cognate studies may be appropriate in light of a student’s dissertation topic even if such studies are not required as a condition of admission to candidacy.)

Each cognate course of study is designed to meet the needs of the individual student through the combined efforts of the student and his or her dissertation committee. In those cases in which appropriate graduate level courses are not available at Bowling Green , students may arrange to take them at other institutions. Those students who enter the program without the background required to take the appropriate graduate level cognate courses must rectify this deficiency. Thus some students may be required to complete cognate work at the undergraduate level before undertaking the cognate requirement.

  4. Discretionary Language Requirement

At the discretion of the student’s Dissertation Supervisor and the Graduate Director, reading competency in a foreign language may or may not be required, as appropriate in light of the student’s dissertation topic. Any such requirement must be completed before the Preliminary Examination.

The precise way in which the student will meet this requirement, if it is imposed, will be determined by the student's Dissertation Supervisor in consultation with the student and with the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies. Normally, however, the requirement may be met by demonstrating a reading knowledge of the required language, which may be accomplished by passing an examination administered either by one of the foreign language departments or, in some instances, by a member of the philosophy faculty.

In some cases, again at the discretion of the student’s Dissertation Supervisor and the Graduate Director, and in light of a student’s dissertation topic, it may be appropriate to require the student to acquire a research skill other than a reading competency in a foreign language. Such a requirement could be discharged by taking a graduate level “tools course” selected with a view toward developing the research skill in question.

  5. Research Hours and Total Credit Hours

Students are required to enroll for “research hours” in PHIL 798 (Readings for the Preliminary Examination) and for at least 16 credit hours of PHIL 799, Dissertation Research, to bring the total credit hours to a minimum of 90 credit hours of graduate credit beyond the bachelor’s degree.

  6. Preliminary Examination and Dissertation Topic Approval

The Preliminary Examination is an oral examination in the subject area of the Dissertation. The Preliminary Examination is normally taken in conjunction with the oral defense of a written Dissertation Proposal, which outlines the proposed Ph.D. dissertation topic and proposed line of research. Approval of such a proposal is necessary if the student is to be admitted to candidacy.

Students may begin to register for prelim hours (Phil 798) once they have completed or nearly completed their required coursework and have selected a research supervisor.

The details of the Preliminary Examination are to be established by consultation with the Dissertation Supervisor and the student’s Research and Dissertation Committee. In some cases the student's committee may determine that an oral defense of some preliminary portion of a dissertation may satisfy both the preliminary examination requirement and the dissertation proposal requirement. (Technically, the student’s committee is called Research Committee until after the Preliminary Examination. It is called the Dissertation Committee when dealing with the dissertation proposal.)

The Preliminary examination is administered before the end of the sixth semester of the program (excluding summer semesters). Graduate College regulations permit a student to take the examination after (a) satisfaction of all conditions for admission to the Ph.D., (b) satisfaction of the language requirement, (c) virtual completion of at least 60 hours (approximately 15 courses) of graduate study, and (d) achievement of at least a 3.2 GPA in graduate studies.

The examination is administered by the student’s Dissertation Committee, augmented by a member of the graduate faculty of another department appointed by the Dean of the Graduate College , with approval of the Director of Graduate Studies. Since the Director must approve the dissertation topic, the Director may elect to attend the Preliminary Examination.

On successful completion of the Preliminary Examination, including approval of the dissertation topic, students are admitted to candidacy for the degree.

  7. Admission to Candidacy

A student becomes a candidate for the Ph.D. degree after passing the Preliminary Examination and receiving approval of the dissertation topic from the dissertation committee, the Director of Graduate Studies, the departmental Graduate Committee, and the Graduate Dean. The student must become a candidate before writing the dissertation.

  8. Progress Report on Dissertation Research

The student must submit by the departmental deadline a progress report to the Director of Graduate Studies each academic term including summers in which the student is registered for doctoral research (Phil 799). The report must be signed and dated by the student and the student’s faculty supervisor in order for the student to register. The report is due prior to the first day of classes. It must be typed in the format prescribed in Appendix 5.

  9. Doctoral Dissertation

The doctoral dissertation is expected to be a substantial and original contribution to the philosophical literature. It is generally a book-length work, at least 200 pages. The student writes it under the guidance of a Dissertation Supervisor and Dissertation Committee.

When the student’s Dissertation Committee determines that the dissertation is complete and the student is prepared to defend it, a public oral defense will be conducted. After a brief summary of the dissertation, the student will answer questions posed by members of the Committee and, as time permits, questions of other persons in attendance.

The student is responsible for making any revisions or corrections required by the Committee and for submitting the final copy of the dissertation in a form acceptable to the Graduate College . The student is required to submit a duplicate copy to the department at the same time. The Dean of the Graduate College must give final approval to all dissertations.

The dissertation defense must be held not less than two months prior to the deadline established by the Graduate College for submitting the final copy of the dissertation to the Graduate College . A complete draft of the dissertation must be in the hands of the entire committee not less than a month before the scheduled defense date. An exception to these deadlines can only be granted by vote of the entire graduate faculty.

  G. The Internship Option

A distinctive feature of the Bowling Green Ph.D. program in philosophy is the opportunity to do a funded internship – consisting of work in applied philosophy of some type other than taking courses in philosophy – for up to 12 credit hours (as determined by the student’s advisor with the approval of the Graduate Committee) and for a total of up to the equivalent of one semester, spread over one or more periods of time.

For students electing this option, the work is intended to serve two important functions: to enable the student to develop philosophical skills, experience, and knowledge useful for writing the doctoral dissertation, and to prepare the student for suitable placement in employment after completion of doctoral studies.

Examples of internships include working in a non-academic setting, working in a research institution, and taking a course of interdisciplinary studies. Students should try to find internships which allow them to develop and apply their philosophical skills, methods, concepts, and knowledge. Because the internship is supposed to have an integral place in the student's philosophical education, there will be careful supervision and review of the internship at all stages.

The internship may be undertaken during the summer or during a regular Fall or Spring semester. The maximum funded internship is the equivalent of one semester in length, but it may be spread over more than one period of time, such as two summers.

  1. Preparation

Because each internship should fit the student’s particular needs and interests, a good bit of time and effort is required in planning and preparing for an internship. The department provides resources to assist students in this process, including special directed readings, faculty advisors, and materials in the Applied Philosophy Resource Center .

Students on assistance should talk with the Director of Graduate Studies well in advance about the level of support provided by the department. No more than 12 hours of internship may be funded from the department’s Graduate College allocation, but more than one internship may be taken.

The next step is to explore internship possibilities and decide the general philosophical area in which one would like to do the internship.

Students should plan to register for a directed reading course related to the internship. (In the past some students have found that directed readings in departments other than philosophy have helped them in identifying or preparing for internships.) With this in mind, students need to find a professor willing to do the directed reading course.

Students also need to find a philosophy professor willing to serve as their on-campus Internship Supervisor. They need to choose a supervisor about a year before they plan to begin the internship.

Planning for the internship must go hand in hand with the student's long-range career planning and definition of the dissertation topic and research interests. Students should complete planning for the internship as soon as possible after completion of the M.A. examination, and they should plan to carry out the internship no later than the second semester of their fourth year in the program, so that they can complete the dissertation in a timely manner.

  2. Approval of Internship

Before a student can engage in an internship with department support, the student must secure approval from the Graduate Committee and the on-campus Internship Supervisor on the Internship Approval Form (see Appendix 4). Proper application requires timely completion of the Internship Approval Form and writing an Internship Proposal. The form requires information about the hosting organization, the on-site supervisor, the term of the internship, description of the internship, and planned interaction with on-campus supervisor during internship. The interaction should involve weekly or bi-weekly telephone calls or letters from the intern to the on- campus supervisor. The Internship Proposal is to discuss the nature of the internship (i.e., the organization or institution in question, the tasks to be carried out) and its possible philosophical interest.

  3. Supervision and Review

There will be careful supervision and review of the internship at all stages including preparation and approval by the Graduate Committee and the on-campus supervisor and including an internship report which is presented to the Graduate Committee in the semester after completion of the internship. Internships are pursued under PHIL 691, 697, 791, 797.

In order to allow time for writing the internship report, the internship should almost certainly never involve more than 30-40 hours per week. Students should beware of being so caught up in internship responsibilities that they leave themselves no adequate opportunity for philosophical reflection.

  4. The Internship Report

Students completing a funded internship are required to complete and orally defend an internship report. The internship report is presented to the on-campus supervisor and the Graduate Committee in the semester after completion of the internship.

The Internship Report

The internship reportis a substantive original essay of 30-50 pages discussing philosophical issues related to the internship. The bulk of the report should discuss philosophical issues relevant to the internship and display knowledge of traditional and contemporary philosophical works relevant to the student's topic. Typically the report will include description and interpretation of internship activities as an introduction to treating philosophical issues or problems raised by those activities and to bringing traditional and contemporary philosophical texts to bear on the clarification/resolution of these issues/problems.

The Oral Defense

When the student's on-campus Internship Supervisor determines that the report is complete and that the student is prepared to defend it, a public oral defense of the report will be conducted. After a brief summary of the report, the student will answer questions posed by members of the student’s research committee, and, as time permits, questions of other persons in attendance. It is expected that, in addition to defending the report itself, the student will be able to provide informed responses to questions about the philosophical texts studied in preparing the report as the research committee has determined that these texts bear upon the issues/problems treated in the report.

H. Ph.D. Normal Progress

Students who are judged not to be making normal progress may lose their assistantship and/or be dropped from the program.

Year 1:

• Fall
  • 12 hours course work (plus PHI 650, Teaching Applied Applied Philosophy )
• Spring
  • 12 hours course work
• Summer
  • Recommended
  • Two Group B Courses

Year 2:

• Fall
  • 12 hours course work
  • Complete Group A Core Requirements
• Spring
  • 12 hours course work
  • Compete Group A Core Requirements
  • M.A. Examination (Portfolio)
  • Complete Tentative Degree Program (TDP)
• Summer
  • Recommended
  • Two Group B Courses
  • Complete Course Work (Students who do not attend in summers will not complete course work until fall.)

Year 3:

• Fall
  • Audit One Course. Readings for Preliminary Examination
  • Complete Group B Core Requirements Identify dissertation topic and committee
• Spring
  • Audit One Course
  • Readings for Preliminary Examination
  • 12 hours preliminary exam/dissertation preparation and/or additional course work
  • (Students who do not take summer courses will not complete the
    Group B Core Requirements until spring.)
  • Preliminary Examination/Dissertation Topic Approval
• Summer Recommended
  • Dissertation Research

Year 4:

• Fall
  • 12 hours dissertation preparation
  • Dissertation Topic Approval Dissertation Research
• Spring
  • Dissertation Research
• Summer
  • Recommended
  • Dissertation Research
• Fall
  • 12 hours dissertation preparation
  • Dissertation Topic Approval Dissertation Research
• Spring
  • Dissertation Research
• Summer
  • Recommended
  • Dissertation Research

Year 5:

• Fall
  • Dissertation Research
  • Complete Rough Draft of Dissertation
•  Spring
  • Dissertation Research
  • Complete Final Draft and Defend
• Summer
  • Available if Needed

Note 1: Students who fail to make normal progress may lose their assistantship and/or be dropped from the program.

Note 2: Students who do an internship are expected to attend in the summer so as not to fall behind in their degree progress.