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Program Requirements and Regulations

Program Requirement

Depending on which of the two plans they choose, candidates must complete either 30 or 36 semester hours in courses numbered 6000 or above for which graduate credit is accepted by the department.  These courses must include 18 semester hours in regular graduate seminars in the department.  Courses taken outside the department will count toward the required hours only with the approval of the director of graduate studies.  An arrangement exists with Rice University’s Philosophy Department that allows students in our program to take graduate level courses they offer.  These courses qualify as being taken in our department, but they do not qualify as seminars.


Plan I (Thesis Option)

Candidates choosing this plan must complete a thesis, and the 6 hours of thesis courses will count as part of the 30 hours required for the degree. At least 24 of the required 30 hours must be taken in the Department of Philosophy.  Students taking the thesis option must have an A- average in philosophy courses their first year of graduate study in the program.


Plan II (Non-thesis Option)

Candidates must complete 36 semester hours of approved courses, of which 30 hours must be taken in the Department of Philosophy. In addition, candidates must submit to the director of graduate studies, by the middle of their final semester, a copy of the seminar paper they judge to be best. The paper should be revised and corrected in light of further consultation with the professor in the seminar.