DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

Programs of advanced study leading to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) are offered in the following fields: agronomy, animal sciences, anatomy, biochemistry, biology, business administration, chemistry, comparative literature, counselor education, curriculum & instruction, economics, engineering, English, entomology, food science, health sciences, history, interdisciplinary toxicology, kinesiology, mathematics, microbiology and immunology, pharmacology, philosophy, physics, physiology, plant science, poultry science, psychology, and rehabilitation.

The degree of Doctor of Philosophy is awarded in recognition of high scholarly attainment as evidenced by a period of successful advanced study, the satisfactory completion of certain prescribed examinations, and the development of a dissertation covering some significant aspect of a major field of learning.

Declaration of Intent

Students who wish to become candidates for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy are expected to complete work equivalent to the requirements for the master's degree as determined by program faculty, and must file a statement of their intention to become doctoral candidates with the Dean of the Graduate School upon registration for their first semester of graduate work beyond the master's degree or its equivalent. A student cannot satisfy any part of the residence requirement for the doctoral degree until after a Declaration of Intent has been filed with the Dean of the Graduate School.

Immediately after the student has filed a Declaration of Intent and indicated the major field of study, a Doctoral Program Advisory Committee will be appointed, with the approval of the Dean of the Graduate School, from the graduate faculty to evaluate the student's preparation and fitness for further graduate work. If the student is allowed to continue as a prospective candidate for the doctoral degree, this committee will serve in an advisory capacity in working out and directing a suitable program of advanced study and investigation. The student's major adviser shall serve as chairman of the committee. Appointment of this committee does not constitute admission to candidacy for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, a very important and significant step in the student's graduate career which must be taken after the student has completed approximately two years of graduate work beyond the baccalaureate degree.

The degree must be completed within seven consecutive calendar years from the date of the Declaration of Intent.

Purpose of the Residence Requirement

Residence requirements are intended to insure that every doctoral student has ample opportunity for the major intellectual development which can result from a sustained period of intensive study and close association with other scholars in the intellectual environment of the University. The requirement recognizes that growth as an independent scholar is not merely a matter of class attendance, but rather involves a broader development of the intellect which comes about through intensive study, independent research, sustained association with faculty members and other colleagues who share common scholarly and professional interests, attendance at seminars and colloquia, intensive reading and familiarization with library resources, consultation with specialists in other disciplines and resource centers, and the opportunity for broadened exposure to current intellectual issues as they are revealed in various campus offerings.

Residence Requirement

After filing a Declaration of Intent to pursue the doctoral degree, a student must fulfill a residence requirement by completing a minimum of two consecutive semesters of full-time graduate study (ten hours or more per semester), either fall-spring, spring-fall, spring and a complete 12-week summer session, or a complete 12-week summer session and fall. This period of residence is independent of and in addition to that required for any other graduate degree. During this period of residence, the student must be continually involved on a full-time basis with the on-site academic, scholarly, and research activities of the academic department (or corresponding academic unit) in which the degree program is administered.

A student who does not concurrently hold appointment as a Graduate Assistant must satisfactorily complete a minimum of ten semester hours, including dissertation credits but exclusive of courses offered through the Division of Continuing Education, during each semester or summer counted in the residence period. For students who hold appointments as Graduate Assistants this requirement is six semester hours per semester if the appointment is for 50 percent time and nine semester hours per semester if the appointment is for 25 percent time. A student not on an assistantship who intends to satisfy one semester of the residence period during the summer must satisfactorily complete a minimum of five semester hours of such work during each of the five- or six-week summer sessions. For a student holding a concurrent assistantship of 25 percent or 50 percent time in the summer, this requirement is three semester hours per any five- or six-week summer session.

Students who also hold University appointments, other than those of Graduate Assistant, for half time or more will be considered to contribute to the residence requirements only for semesters or 12 weeks in the summer during which all of the following criteria are met: (1) the appointment is in the academic department (or corresponding academic unit) in which the degree program is administered; (2) the duties of the appointment primarily involve degree-related academic or scholarly activities such as dissertation research; (3) the departmental chairperson (or corresponding administrator) and the student's Doctoral Program Advisory Committee certify that the duties of the appointment do not interfere with the appointee's regular participation as a student, on an essentially full-time daily basis, in the normal on-site academic, scholarly, and research activities of the department and degree program and the associated scholarly demands thereof; (4) the student is enrolled, for each semester or summer session counted in the residence period in at least six semester hours in each semester or three hours in each of two consecutive five-or six-week summer sessions or 6 hours in an entire ten- or twelve-week summer session; and (5) file a plan for approval by the Graduate Dean in advance of satisfying residence requirements.

Program of Study

The objectives of the program of study leading to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy shall be scholarly achievement of high order and the development of a fundamental understanding of the major field and its relation to supporting fields of knowledge, rather than the satisfactory completion of a certain number of credit hours. The nature of the program of study will vary somewhat, depending upon the major field of study and the objective of the prospective candidate.

Language Requirement

Foreign language requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree vary from department to department. For specific details see departmental statements. These requirements should be completed early in the doctoral program.

Examination for Candidacy

After completing approximately two years of graduate study, and at least one year before completing all other requirements, the prospective candidate must take candidacy examinations in specified fields of study in accordance with the requirements of the department in which the candidate is working. These examinations may be either written or written and oral. Upon satisfactorily completing these examinations the student may be admitted to candidacy and may proceed to work toward completion of the remaining requirements for the degree.

Dissertation

Each candidate must complete a doctoral dissertation on some topic in the major field. The topic assignment shall be made and a title filed with the Dean of the Graduate School at least one year before the final examination, the specific problem and subject of the dissertation to be determined by the major adviser, the candidate, and the advisory committee. The completed dissertation must be a definite, scholarly contribution to the major field. This contribution may be in the form of new knowledge of fundamental importance, or of modification, amplification, and interpretation of existing significant knowledge.

Each doctoral candidate must register for a minimum of 18 hours of doctoral dissertation. After the student has passed the candidacy examinations the student must register for at least one hour of dissertation each semester and one hour during the summer session until the work is completed whether the student is in residence or away from the campus. For each semester in which a student fails to register without prior approval of the Dean of the Graduate School a registration of three hours will be required before the degree is granted.

Three typewritten copies of the completed dissertation in the prescribed form must be presented to the candidate's advisory committee for approval at least six weeks before the degree is to be conferred. After approval by the committee and the Dean of the Graduate School, two copies must be deposited in the Mullins Library at least two weeks before the degree is to be conferred, together with two copies of an abstract, of not more than 350 words, approved by the major adviser as suitable for publication. The third copy of the dissertation shall be presented to the candidate's major department.

Final Examination

The candidate's final examination for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy will be oral. The major adviser will forward to the Dean of the Graduate School, not less than ten (10) days before the date of the final oral examination, an abstract of the dissertation accompanied by a memorandum announcing the date, time, and place of the oral examination. The examination will be primarily concerned with the field of the dissertation, but may also include other aspects of the candidate's graduate work. This examination is open to the public. The examining committee shall consist of the student's advisory committee and others who may be included at the discretion of the major adviser and the Dean of the Graduate School.