Detailed Description of Requirements of M.A. and Ph.D. Programs

M.A. Program

Requirements: The M.A. degree requires 30 semester hours of work in graduate studies approved by the department. The program consists of:

At least 30 semester hours of course work (10 courses) including the required courses listed below.

Completion of a seminar research paper as part of the course work required in PS8000 Research Design. The paper must be submitted to the Graduate Chair for certification.

M.A. students who have been admitted directly into the Ph.D. program and M.A. students who wish to apply for admission into the Ph.D. program must also also complete written Qualifying examinations in two of the four fields, American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations or Political Theory.

The ten courses must include the following required courses and electives:

Required Courses:

PS 8001 Political Statistics I
PS 8101 Core Seminar in American Politics
PS 8201 Core Seminar in Comparative Politics
PS 8301 Core Seminar in International Relations
PS 8000 Research Design

Five Electives:
Two elective courses in each of their two main fields and one in a minor third field. M.A. students who plan two continue into the Ph.D. program should take two elective courses in each of the two fields in which they plan to complete written comprehensive exams and one in a minor third field. Students are also allowed complete their fifth elective by registering for for Political Statistics II or Qualitative Methods in Political Science.

Course Selection: Students should consult with their faculty advisors or the Graduate Chair on course selection and exam preparation. Core seminars acquaint the student with the major literature and theoretical approaches to the study of both fields, while elective courses allow students to satisfy their particular interests in these areas.

The Seminar Paper: The seminar paper requirement is met by completing the coursework required in PS8000 Research Design. Students must submit the seminar paper, with the instructors' comments and grades, to the Graduate Chair. The Graduate Chair must certify that these papers meet the seminar paper requirement (i.e contain arguments grounded in extensive reference to relevant secondary and/or primary sources). Such certification must be granted before the degree is awarded and before taking the PhD Qualifying Exams (a.k.a. M.A. comprehensive exams). The M.A. program has a three‑year time limit; extensions are possible under special circumstances.

PhD Qualifying Exams: Once the above requirements are fulfilled, students wishing to apply for the Ph.D. program or students who were directly admitted into the Ph.D. program will take the Phd. Qualifying Exams (a.k.a. M.A. comprehensive exams) in two of the four fields: American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations or Political Theory.

Ph.D. qualifying examinations are given twice each year, towards the beginning of each semester. Students must apply to take their exam before the deadline posted. Students are not to take the examinations until the semester when they will complete all requirments for the MA degree.

The examination includes both written and oral parts. Students are examined in a two fields. Each field examination is conducted by a total of three faculty selected by the Graduate Chair. The three examiners have joint responsibility for writing and grading the field examination. In this exam students must demonstrate depth and breadth of knowledge and intellectual sophistication across their main intended Ph.D. field and a second field, (American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations and/or Political Theory) They should also be prepared to interpret political phenomena within the context of various theories, use empirical data to illuminate concepts, and be prepared to identify gaps in knowledge.

Students are encouraged to meet with faculty in their fields to discuss the general areas of content of the exams to ensure that they have accurately identified key theories, concepts, and literature. Professors may make sample questions, previous exams, or special reading lists available as study aids. In addition, core reading lists in each field may be available from the graduate secretary. The lists represent a minimum of representative readings with which a candidate should be familiar.

Oral examinations for students who have passed their written exams are scheduled soon after the student receives notice of the passing of the written exam. Except under extraordinary circumstances, students should take the oral exams in the same semester as their written exams. Each oral examination committee consists of the three written examiners. The oral exam allows the candidate to respond to the examiners' comments upon their written exam and to demonstrate his/her ability to connect the specific issues addressed in the exam to other related areas of inquiry within their intended Ph.D. field and second field. Students are urged to carefully review the examiners’ comments on their written preliminary examinations in preparation for the orals.

In the oral exam (as well as in the oral defense of a dissertation discussed below), the student must be able to converse in English adequately for professional purposes. If, in the judgment of a majority of committee members, the student is not demonstrating this ability, the examination will be suspended so that the student can take additional training in English language.

All incompletes on a student's transcript must be removed before a student can take the PhD qualifyiing examinations regardless of how many credit hours a student has completed. In practice this means that all incompletes must be converted to a letter grade by the date on which the application to take comprehensive examinations is due. All examinations are conducted within a designated period once each semester. Students presenting themselves for examinations must take all their exams within a single exam period. The Graduate School specifies that any student who fails all or part of these examinations twice is automatically dismissed from the program.

M.A. students applying to continue their graduate work in the Ph.D. program will be admitted to the program only upon completion of their M.A. work at a level that, in the judgment of their examiners and the department's graduate committee, evidences sufficient ability and preparation that they can be expected to complete the Ph.D. successfully.

Ph.D. Program

Requirements: The aims of the Ph.D. program are to develop specific expertise in the candidates' field and the theoretical and methodological sophistication necessary to complete the writing of a coherent, well‑argued, and comprehensively researched Ph.D. dissertation. Such development is tested by a Ph.D. Preliminary exam, taken after completion of the necessary course work for the M.A., by the Ph.D. prospectus defense, conducted after the writing of a dissertation prospectus in a reading course with the graduate chair and in consultation with the candidate’s major adviser, and by the writing and successful defense of a Ph.D. dissertation. The Ph.D. program has a seven‑year time limit; extensions are possible under special circumstances.

Course Work: The Ph.D. program requires a minimum of 55 semester hours. Course work constitutes 49 semester hours, including PS 9998 (Ph.D. Dissertation Proposal Preparation). The remaining 6 semester hours are taken as PS9999, Dissertation Preparation Submission. A maximum of 30 semester hours of course work may have been completed in the Temple M.A. program or transferred in from another M.A. Normally less than 30 credits transfer in, as prior M.A. work does not usually fulfill all of Temple's M.A. requirements.

For students holding a Temple M.A. in Political Science or for transfer students having successfully passed the Ph.D. qualifying exams, Ph.D. course work involves three required courses and three elective courses in the field in which the candidate plans on writing the dissertation.

Required Courses:
PS 8401 Symposium in Political Science (3 credit hours)
PS 8601 Teaching Methods (1 credit hour)
PS 8002 Qualitative Research Methods or
PS 8003 Political Statistics II (3 credit hours each)

Elective Courses
At least three electives in the candidates' main Ph.D. field, (American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations or Political Theory) and/or Political Statistics II or Qualitative Research Methods.

In addition, students must register for the following:

PS 9998 Dissertation Proposal Preparation (3 semester hours). Students must register for either the fall or spring semesters. The course is offered every spring under the guidance of the graduate chair. The purpose of this course is to launch students on writing their dissertation proposals and prepare them for writing the dissertation. Regardless of whichever semester the student registers, students are required to do the following:
1) Under the guidance of their advisor (or if different from the advisor, the faculty member most likely to supervise their dissertation) and graduate chair, students should begin exploring possible dissertation topics and reading in particular areas that are relevant for whichever topics are being explored.
2) Attend approximately 10 seminar meetings in the spring semester under the supervision of the Graduate Chair. At these sessions, the Graduate Chair will present information relevant to the development and preparation of dissertation proposals and chapters. Students will be required to make presentations that address problems encountered in the proposal and dissertation writing process and strategies for overcoming them. Students who already have taken PS9998 are invited back to attend and participate in subsequent seminars and report on their progress and share their experiences with the students enrolled in the course.
PS 9999 Dissertation Preparation and Submission (taken while students are writing their dissertation. Students usually register for 1 semester hour of PS9999 for every semester they are writing the dissertation). Students must register for PS9999 while writing dissertations to remain in good standing in the program unless they file for a leave of absence.

Foreign Language and Advanced Quantitative Methods Work:

For students planning to do Ph.D. dissertation research that requires, in the judgment of their dissertation committee, foreign language proficiency, students must satisfy a proficiency exam offered by the relevant foreign language department. Students whose dissertations necessitate the use of advanced quantitative or survey research methods, may be required by their dissertation chair and Graduate Chair to demonstrate proficiency in these methods by receiving grades of B or better in two advanced graduate courses in research methods. Students should consult with their advisor and the Graduate Chair when choosing the appropriate courses.

Transfer Students:

Granting a Temple Ph.D. certifies that students transferring into the program with an M.A. from another institution have a background in Political Science comparable to our Temple M.A.s. To grant this certification, students holding an M.A. from another institution will be required to pass Ph.D. qualifying exams in two of the major fields (American Politics, Comparative Politics, International Relations or Political Theory) at a level that, in the judgment of their examiners and the department's graduate committee, evidences sufficient ability and preparation that they can be expected to complete the Ph.D. successfully.

Transfer students with coursework comparable to our Temple M.A. may take these exams as early as the end of their first semester in the Ph.D. program. It is strongly recommended that transfer students take at least one course at Temple in each of the two fields before taking the exams. Students must take the exams no later than the fourth term of their Ph.D. program. The Graduate Chair will only admit students with an M.A. from another institution whom they are confident can readily pass these qualifying exams. As many of our Ph.D.s receive tenure‑track jobs at colleges that require teaching in more than one field, it is in our transfer students’ best interest to certify that they have strong backgrounds in both of our graduate programs' broad fields in Political Science.

The Ph.D. curriculum requires that students acquire a common core of knowledge in Political Science, political philosophy, and research methods. To that end, students must take the required M.A. courses (or their transfer equivalent at another M.A. institution) and three other required Ph.D. courses:

PS 8000 Research Design (M.A. level)
PS 8001 Political Statistics I (M.A. level)
PS 8601 Teaching Methods (1 semester hour)
PS 8002 Qualitative Research Methods (Ph.D. level) and/or
PS 8003 Political Statistics II (MA or Ph.D. level)

Students transferring into the Ph.D. with M.A.s in Political Science or a related Social Science from other institutions who have not taken closely equivalent courses to PS 8101-Core Seminar in American Politics, PS 8201-Core Seminar in Comparative Politics, PS 8301-Core Seminar in International Relations and/or PS 8401 Core Seminar in Political Theory are strongly advised to take these seminars before sitting their Ph.D. qualifying exams (a.k.a MA coprehensive exams). After completing these qualifying exams, Ph.D. candidates will take an additional three elective courses at the Ph.D. level in their major field. Ideally, these courses should be related to their prospective Ph.D. dissertation research area. Course work outside the department may well be relevant to the candidates' preparation for the comprehensive exam; such courses should be chosen with the advice of the student's advisor. Students are encouraged to take more than the three required elective courses, if they so desire, in preparation for their Ph.D. comprehensive exam.

Directed Study and Research:

Requires approval of the Graduate Chair. Students may not take more than two courses (6 semester hours) of Directed Study and Research, PS 9083, 9183, 9283, 9384 for credit toward the Ph.D. Students are not permitted to take required courses as Directed Study and Research. Students are not permitted to take as Directed Study any course that is offered in the same semester as the Directed Reading and are discouraged from taking as Directed Study courses that are offered regularly.

Undergraduate Courses for Graduate Credit:

Requires approval of the Graduate Chair. Except under extraordinary circumstances, students may not take more than one course (3 semester hours) at the undergraduate level. The course must be numbered above the introductory level. Students may not take such a course if space exists in a graduate course offered in the same semester that would help to fulfill a remaining requirement. Students enrolled in undergraduate courses must complete the course with a grade of B or better and they must complete requirements in the course that go beyond what is expected of undergraduate students enrolled in the course.

The Dissertation: Once students successfully complete their course work, they are expected to begin work on the dissertation. A doctoral dissertation should demonstrate that the candidate can conduct scholarly research with a high level of professional competence. The dissertation should constitute a distinctive contribution to knowledge in Political Science. Normally, it should outline theoretical knowledge in some field of Political Science, propose a question or hypothesis that is linked to the theory, and provide empirical data to illuminate the theoretical issues in a convincing manner.

In consultation with the Graduate Chair, the candidate will secure a principal dissertation advisor. This person must be a member of the Political Science Graduate Faculty and specialize in the area of the dissertation topic. Preferably in the term immediately after the Ph.D. comprehensive, and no more than two terms thereafter, the candidate will take the Dissertation Proposal Preparation Course (PS9998) with the graduate chair and under the supervision of their advisor. (See the description for this course above.)

In consultation with the dissertation advisor, the student will assemble a Dissertation Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee is to be composed of at least three Temple graduate faculty, at least two of whom have their primary presidential appointment in Political Science. The composition of the Dissertation Advisory Committee must be formally approved by the Graduate Chair. A student wishing to pursue a dissertation on a topic that requires supplementing the expertise of the department's faculty may have to seek a committee member from another department. The student has the burden of convincing the Graduate Chair that a committee with adequate expertise can be established with faculty willing to serve.

Students are required to submit a preliminary proposal not to exceed five double-spaced pages. The preliminary proposal should address the following issues: 1) the question(s) to be examined; and 2) a justification for why those questions warrant a major study. Students are expected to show why these questions are or should be important to political scientists as well as to citizens. Only after the dissertation committee is satisfied that the student has written a persuasive preliminary proposal will the student be permitted to write a longer proposal, if the committee believes a longer proposal is warranted.

Successful completion of the Dissertation Proposal Preparation course will culminate in the defense of the dissertation prospectus before the Dissertation Advisory Committee. The dissertation prospectus (consisting of a research design and literature review) should be defended and accepted by the full membership of the committee within two semesters after the completion of the PhD coursework. No student will be awarded financial assistance who has not successfully defended a prospectus within a year of the completion of their PhD coursework.. Students who fail to submit an approved dissertation proposal within two years of completing their PhD coursework are subject to dismissal from the program. An approved proposal is a contract between the student and the Dissertation Advisory Committee. After approval, any significant theoretical or methodological change in the substantive direction of the project must be approved by the committee.

Once the prospectus is successfully defended, the student is advanced to candidacy. The Dissertation Advisory Committee must confer at least once a year with the student to review progress and provide advice. Students should take the initiative to schedule these exchanges and should ensure that written faculty comments on the exchange be placed in their graduate file.

The Graduate School requires that students working on a dissertation register for PS 9999—Dissertation Preparation and Submission—in order to maintain status as an active graduate student.

Dissertators must submit final drafts of dissertations in an approved style and format. Students should use the required format in dissertation proposals in order to avoid significant reformatting at the end. This can be found in the Dissertation and Thesis Handbook on the Graduate School’s website http://www.temple.edu/grad/ .

After the principal dissertation advisor and the committee have reviewed the completed dissertation draft, a fourth reader from outside the department who has not been involved with the dissertation previously must be selected by the dissertation committee chair and the Graduate Chair (students may suggest a reader). This reader must be a graduate faculty member from another department at Temple or from another university who has the qualifications necessary to act as a fair judge of the dissertation's scholarly merit. This reader should receive a completed draft of the dissertation one month before the anticipated dissertation defense date. Readers who are from outside of Temple University must submit a curriculm vita and be approved by the Graduate School at least 2 weeks prior to the oral defense. Once a majority of the dissertation committee has judged (in writing) that the dissertation is ready to be defended, a defense date can be scheduled. A defense is open to the university community and to the student's family; others who wish to attend must obtain the written permission of the student and the examining committee. The defense must be announced publicly at least ten working days in advance. Notice must be sent to all faculty members in the department and to the Graduate School. The public announcement of the defense should include an abstract of the dissertation.

The defense must be chaired by a member of the committee other than the Dissertation Advisor. Passing the examination requires a vote of approval by more than half of the full membership of the Doctoral Dissertation Examining Committee. If a dissertation is approved but revisions are required, the revisions must be submitted to the Graduate School in final form within 30 days of the defense. Otherwise, the defense is nullified and a new oral defense must be scheduled

The oral defense should demonstrate that:
the dissertation is commensurate with the standards for original research in Political Science;
the ethics and standards governing Political Science research have been followed;
the candidate has mastered the research and appropriate methodology; and
the candidate has an understanding of the relationship of this work to the broader field in which it is lodged.

After the final draft of the dissertation has been approved by the dissertation chair, it must be submitted in three copies: two copies to the Graduate School (5h floor Carnell Hall) and the third copy to the department's graduate secretary. All completed dissertations must be approved by the Dean of the Graduate School.