University of Pennsylvania

GRADUATE PROGRAMS IN PHILOSOPHY

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS


THE DOCTORAL PROGRAM


I. COURSE AND DISTRIBUTION REQUIREMENTS

Candidates for the Ph.D. in Philosophy are required to take fifteen graded graduate courses. These fifteen courses must be completed by the end of the term in which the Preliminary Examination is taken. Twelve of the courses must be scheduled courses offered or cross-listed by the Philosophy Department. The remaining three may include independent studies, courses in other departments, and courses at other institutions participating in the Greater Philadelphia Philosophy Consortium (with the approval of the Graduate Chair). In addition to these fifteen courses, all students must complete four semesters of Phil 998, Teaching Practicum (which carries 1/2 course unit credit). Further, all students must register for the Dissertation Workshop (Phil 700) during the year in which the Preliminary Examination is taken, for one course unit of credit. Students wishing to take more than fifteen regular courses (e.g., so as to take additional courses in other departments) may do so with the approval of the Graduate Chair, and within the limits of their fellowship packages.

The twelve scheduled courses in the Philosophy Department must be chosen so as to satisfy the following additional requirements:

A student may not use one course to satisfy two different distribution requirements. Students must confirm which courses satisfy which distribution requirements with the Graduate Chair. The distribution requirements must be satisfied by the end of the student's fourth term of residence. Any petition for extension of this deadline must be submitted before the end of the fourth term.

Petitions for any other variations in the course and distribution requirements can be considered only after the completion of the first year of residence.

No course with a grade lower than B- will be counted toward the fifteen course requirement. A 3.0 gpa is the minimum required, and usually will not be sufficient for advancement toward a degree.

A total of twenty graduate course units (c.u.s) is required for the doctoral degree. The requirement of fifteen courses, plus four semesters of 998 (1/2 c.u. each), plus Phil 700 accounts for eighteen course units. The additional two course units may be used for additional course work, or taken as Independent Studies (999) during the Third Year. By rule of the Graduate Council, a minimum of twelve of the twenty required course units must be completed at the University of Pennsylvania.

A student who transfers into the Ph.D. program must take at least eight regularly scheduled graduate courses in the Philosophy Department. No decision either as to how much credit to grant a student for work elsewhere or as to what distribution requirements such work satisfies will be made until the student has been in residence for two terms and has completed two units of 600 (if offered) and five (or six) other courses.


II. ADVISING AND RECORDS

In their first six semesters of residence, students must consult with the Graduate Chair concerning course selection each term. Permission of the Graduate Chair is required to enroll in 699. Students are encouraged also to consult faculty in their prospective fields concerning the body of course work needed to prepare them for specialized study. Only the Graduate Chair may approve final course selection and certify fulfillment of the distribution requirement. Further, only the Graduate Chair may interpret deadlines for the satisfaction of subsequent requirements, extending into the dissertation stage. Individual faculty members, including the student's supervisor, cannot excuse students from deadlines for completing work that are established by the Graduate Group and conveyed by the Graduate Chair.

The Graduate Coordinator in Philosophy maintains graduate records and keeps copies of forms and documents. Inquire at the office of the Graduate Coordinator concerning routine matters of record keeping, or to obtain needed forms.


III. THE FIRST YEAR

Student must enroll in 600 (Proseminar) for each of their first two terms of residence (if offered both semesters). In addition, students must take two other scheduled courses in Philosophy the first term, and a total of four courses the second term. First-year students may not enroll in 699. First-year students may not receive Incompletes and so will receive grades for each course in which they are enrolled on the basis of the work done for the course during the term. The logic requirement must be satisfied during a student's first year of residence.


IV. ADDITIONAL COURSE WORK AND INCOMPLETES

After the first year of residence, the minimum course load for full-time students is three courses per term. In the fifth and sixth semesters, students ordinarily enroll in one course and in one unit of independent study (999) in preparation for the Preliminary Examination. The required fifteen graded courses must be completed by the end of the third year, as must the four units of 998, Teaching Practicum. Third year students are also required to enroll in Philosophy 700, Dissertation Workshop, when offered.

A student who has not completed all the assigned work for a course and wishes to receive a grade of "Incomplete" must request such a grade from the instructor. It is within the discretion of the instructor to grant or refuse such a request. In order to be eligible for funding in a given academic year, a student must have completed all "Incompletes" from previous semesters by August 15. Individual instructors are unable to offer extensions on this rule of the Graduate Group, and in cases in which an instructor allows an extension for the purposes of his or her course, this fact has no bearing on the Graduate Group's or Graduate Division's Incompletes Rules.

Students are reminded of the Graduate Division rule that no Incompletes from the Fall Semester may be carried past August 1, and no Incompletes from the Spring Semester may be carried past December 1, on pain of loss of fellowship funding. Note that for Spring courses, the Department's rule is more stringent than the Graduate Division Rule, and it will be enforced. For Fall courses, the Graduate Division's rule is more stringent. (Neither rule abrogates the other.) Incompletes become permanent after one year and cannot be counted toward graduation.

Graduate students who are not serving as teaching fellows are expected to complete all their course work on time. In order to be in good standing at the annual review of graduate student progress, which for pre-dissertation students takes at the end of the Spring Semester (typically before all work for that semester's courses is complete) it is necessary (but not sufficient) that: (a) a student who is receiving a non-service fellowship have no Incompletes from the first semester, and be up to date with second semester work (including finishing courses whose due dates fall before the time of the review); (b) a second-year Ph.D. student who is a TF have no more than one Incomplete from the first semester; (c) a third-year Ph.D. student who is a TF have no Incompletes from the first semester. It is in each student's interest to be able to devote the summer after the second year to preparation of and initial reading in the Prelim reading list, and to devote the entire third year to current course work, preparation for the Prelim, and composition of the Dissertation Proposal, so as to be able to commence dissertation work immediately following the third year.


V. REVIEWS AND QUALIFICATIONS EVALUATION

All students are reviewed annually. The Graduate Chair may initiate a special review of the work and status of any graduate student. As a result of a departmental review, a student may be put on probationary status for one or two semesters, or advised or required to leave the doctoral program.

An especially thorough evaluation of each student's capacity to complete the doctoral program is made during the fourth semester of residence. It will serve as the Qualifications Evaluation described in the Graduate Council Rules and Regulations, which students must pass to continue beyond the fourth semester. At the time of the review, students may if they wish submit the graded work from each course they have taken to the original instructor of the course. Each student will be provided with a written report of the department's assessment of his or her work and talent on the basis of the fourth-semester evaluation.

Students are reminded that deadlines for completion of work as specified in the Graduate Chair's annual review letter (including mid-year reviews) have the force of a rule. Individual instructors, including the student's supervisor, cannot excuse the student from such deadlines.

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VI. TEACHING REQUIREMENT AND SUPERVISION OF STUDENT TEACHING

All doctoral students must complete at least four semesters of teaching. This requirement will be met by serving as a Teaching Fellow and signing up for 1/2 c.u. of 998, Teaching Practicum, during each semester in the second and third years of study (for students in the regular Ph.D. program). Dual degree students will sign up the first and second years in which they teach, whenever these may be. The 1/2 c.u. is supervised by the teacher of the course for which the student is a TF, or another assigned supervisor (for stand-alone courses). (Instructors of Phil 998 may give letter grades or an "S" grade, at their discretion.) In addition, all students preparing for an academic career are advised to teach an independent course more than once. Only students who are making good academic progress will be eligible to teach in the Summer Session or in CGS during the academic year.

In preparation for teaching, all TFs who are teaching for the first time at Penn are required to attend a teaching workshop conducted by the College of Arts and Sciences, usually held late in August. All TFs in their first and second years of teaching are required to attend the departmental Teaching Roundtable, usually held on the last day of the College workshop.

Instructors of courses in which TFs grade or teach recitation sections will supervise the grading of student work, advising the TFs about commenting on papers as well as on grading standards. The instructor will meet with the TFs on a weekly or biweekly basis to discuss matters pertaining to both pedagogy and course content, and will visit each student's section early in the semester (by the fifth week), with follow up visits as necessary. The instructor will review the results of this visitation with the TF, offering advice as needed. The Graduate Chair will oversee fulfillment of this requirement.

Each graduate student teaching an independent course will be assigned a faculty supervisor for that course (one faculty member may be assigned to all students teaching Freshman seminar-style courses that semester, or all Phil 009s). The faculty supervisor will have the following duties: discuss and approve the design of the course and syllabus with the student; discuss appropriateness of assignments; visit one or more classes, and give appropriate advice on the conduct of the classes; review final grades; and submit a written comment on the student's teaching effectiveness for the student's file. The department Chair supervises this program. The Graduate Chair will have the task of informing graduate students teaching independent courses for the first time about graduate students still in residence who have previously taught the course concerned.

Students should expect to receive their teaching evaluation forms and summaries of student comments in a timely manner. For the Fall Semester, they should receive this material by the middle of the Spring Semester. For the Spring Semester, they should receive it prior to the end of the summer. The Department Chair oversees compilation of teaching evaluation materials. Students who do not receive their evaluation forms and summaries in a timely manner should notify the Department Chair.


VII. PHILOSOPHICAL COMMUNITY

Graduate training extends beyond courses, exams, and dissertation work. Students should begin to participate in the broader philosophical community. The colloquium series exposes students to the range of current work in philosophy, and students are expected to attend colloquia. Other local activities include participating in departmental workshops, joining reading groups, and attending Philadelphia area events.

More generally, students should join the APA, keep up with relevant journals (several of which offer special rates to student subscribers), and consider submitting papers to conferences and journals. Students should keep in mind that not all conferences are of equal value as credentials or as venues for presenting work. In general, refereed, special-topic conferences are to be recommended. Before accepting an invitation to participate in a conference, students should seek advice from their advisor. Similarly, not all journals are equally valued as venues for publication, and students should seek advice before submitting a paper for publication.

The GDAS and the Department provide limited travel subventions for giving papers at conferences (for the SAS form, inquire to the office of the Graduate Coordinator in Philosophy; for Departmental funds, inquire to the Graduate Chair). Students who are teaching or taking courses should, in general, not expect approval of applications to fund travel that requires them to miss their own courses or their recitation sections.

More advanced students are expected to mentor younger students. To this end, and in order to promote full participation in the philosophical community of the Department, Ph.D. students are required to remain in residence in the program from the time they begin the program until they complete their degrees. (Students may petition the Department for exceptions.)


VIII. THE LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT

By the end of the third year students must demonstrate reading competence in one of the following languages: French, German, Greek, or Latin. (Students may petition the department to substitute another language.) Competence is defined as the level normally attained after two years of college-level instruction in the language; it is measured by an examination administered at Penn while the student is in the graduate program. The examination may be administered by the Department (usually in the first week of classes in September) or at the end of an approved Penn Language course. Students working in fields that require knowledge of more than one language may be directed to attain competence in those languages. Such students are encouraged to consult with the Graduate Chair and the faculty working in their prospective fields during their first year of residence in the doctoral program.

The Graduate Division sponsors free summer language courses in French and German. The Department has limited tuition credits for other summer language instruction at Penn (inquire to the Graduate Chair). Students should consult with the Graduate Chair concerning funds that may be available to support summer language instruction away from Penn.


IX. THE PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION

During the third year of residence, students in the regular Ph.D. program must prepare for and take the Preliminary Examination in the field of a prospective dissertation. The primary purpose of this examination will be to demonstrate the student's readiness to write a dissertation in his/her chosen field, but the examination will also count in the overall evaluation of a student's philosophical ability and competence as a condition for admission to Ph.D. candidacy. Students prepare for the exam in both the Fall and Spring Semesters, and may take two units of independent study 999. For this work, a supervisor will be assigned by the Graduate Chair after appropriate consultation with the student and with faculty members during the fourth-semester review. Two additional members of the Preliminary Examination committee will be named no later than the start of the Fall Semester. By October 1 the student, supervisor, and committee members must agree upon a reading list and a two-page statement describing the field of study, including the area of emphasis for the dissertation, which will be the basis for the year's work and the examination; a copy of the reading list and statement must be filed with the Graduate Chair. Students should arrange for regular meetings with their supervisor, meeting at least three or four times per semester. In the initial meetings, student and supervisor should work out a program of reading, conversation, and writing that encourages the student to formulate a focused set of questions to guide his or her reading and reflection.

During the course of work in the Fall Semester, student and supervisor should discuss the prospective dissertation topic. Students should present their initial ideas for a dissertation topic at the Dissertation Workshop, usually in November or December. Using this presentation as a basis, each third-year student must submit to the Graduate Chair a five-page dissertation proposal by the beginning of the first week of classes in January, suitable for consideration for subsequent submission in the SAS Dissertation Research Fellowship competition. (Such Fellowships provide support for dissertation work during the following Summer.)

The examination will be given over Spring Break during the sixth semester of residence. For regular Ph.D. students the examination will be administered by a committee of three members of the standing faculty of the Graduate Group in Philosophy. The committee will prepare the examination, requiring answers of from three to five questions, based on the reading list on file with the Graduate Chair; a copy of the examination must also be filed with the Graduate Chair when given to the student. The student will then have ten days (Friday noon to Monday noon) to prepare written answers totaling approximately 5,000 words. An oral examination will follow no sooner than forty-eight hours after the submission of the written examination. The oral examination will probe the student's knowledge of the field as a whole as well as scrutinizing the written essays. Near the end of the examination, students will discuss the five-page dissertation proposal with the examination committee and receive initial queries and responses from them. For the convenience of committee members, students should provide a copy of the proposal when submitting the written prelim answers.

For students in the J.D.-Ph.D. program, the exam will be given in the week after Spring Semester classes end. Questions for the written portion of the exam will be given at noon on the last day of classes in the Spring Semester, and students will hand in their answers ten days later; the oral exam will be scheduled as soon as possible after that.

After evaluating the student's performance on both the written and oral portions of the Preliminary Examination, the examining committee will recommend for or against admission to candidacy at a meeting of the Graduate Group. The Graduate Group must determine whether the student's performance in all prior work in the program as well as on the examination has demonstrated sufficient ability and potential in philosophy as well as knowledge in the chosen field to justify admission to candidacy; completion of all required course work with an average grade of B or better as well as a satisfactory performance on the Preliminary Examination are necessary but not sufficient conditions for such admission. On the basis of its evaluation, the Graduate Group may vote to admit the student to Ph.D. candidacy, require re-examination and/or further course work, or remove the student from the Ph.D. program. No student who has not completed the fifteen required course units will be admitted to candidacy; and no student who has not been admitted to candidacy prior to the commencement of the fourth year of residence will be in good standing. The Graduate Group will inform the student in writing of the results of these deliberations.

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X. TEN-PAGE DISSERTATION PROPOSAL AND DISSERTATION SUPERVISOR

After successful completion of the Preliminary Examination, students will prepare a ten-page description of their proposed dissertation project, including a tentative schedule of work for the summer and fall. This must be submitted to the prospective Dissertation Supervisor by the end of classes in the Spring Semester. It should include a concrete statement of the problems to be addressed by the dissertation and some description of the relevant philosophical literature. The Dissertation Supervisor, who must be a member of the Standing Faculty in the Graduate Group in Philosophy, will be assigned at a meeting shortly thereafter, when the student is admitted to candidacy. Student and supervisor should meet and agree on work to be completed by the beginning of the Fall Semester.

Students work closely with the supervisor, who serves as their academic advisor and primary academic mentor. At the same time, each student's progress remains subject to review by the Graduate Group, and each student must meet requirements for good progress and degree completion as determined by the Graduate Group, Graduate Division, and Graduate Council.

Students are free to change supervisors at any time with the consent of the Graduate Chair; but even in such cases the schedule of progress described below must still be satisfied.

In a case in which a student's proposed dissertation topic does not lie in the area tested in the student's Preliminary Examination, an additional Preliminary Examination shall not ordinarily be scheduled; however, the Dissertation Supervisor must be satisfied of the student's knowledge of the area of the proposed dissertation. But the Graduate Group will retain the right to impose an additional Preliminary Examination, especially (though not necessarily nor necessarily only) in cases in which exceptional delay has intervened between the original examination and the proposed presentation of the dissertation--for instance, if a student is being re-admitted to the graduate program after an absence. Students in this position should be sure to consult with the Graduate Chair before requesting the official appointment of a Dissertation Supervisor.


XI. DISSERTATION COMMITTEE, DISSERTATION PROGRESS, AND FELLOWSHIPS

Early in the Fall Semester following the completion of the Preliminary Examination, students and their supervisors should review progress and agree upon a schedule for further work, taking into account Graduate Group deadlines for making good progress. By a deadline well prior to the department's review meeting in early December, students must submit a draft of at least one chapter (or the equivalent) of their dissertations to their supervisor and to prospective dissertation committee members. At the time they submit this writing, students must arrange a meeting with the supervisor and prospective committee to discuss the written work in light of the ten-page dissertation proposal and their evolving plans for the dissertation. This meeting must take place prior to the review meeting in December. At that meeting, the Graduate Chair will impanel a Dissertation Committee consisting of the supervisor and at least two other members, at least one of whom must also be a member of the Graduate Group. At this meeting, the Graduate Group will determine the eligibility of students for teaching during the following summer. Students who are not making good progress will not be assigned teaching.

By a deadline well in advance of the department's review meeting in April or early May, students must submit to their committee a second substantial piece of work (another chapter or equivalent). The same requirement obtains for each semester of the fifth year. Students who receive summer support may be expected or required to submit additional chapter equivalent pieces of writing on a schedule that will be individually determined.

Satisfaction of these requirements is necessary in order to maintain good standing in the doctoral program.

If students have not completed all requirements for the Ph.D. (including deposit of the dissertation) within four years from the semester in which they pass the Preliminary Examination, they must submit to their full dissertation committee (i.e. the supervisor and two readers) a copy of all written work they have completed on the dissertation. The committee members will evaluate this material and report to the whole Graduate Group, recommending that one of the following actions be taken: (a) the student is required to retake the Preliminary Examination (if the committee believes there is a question about the continued currency of the student's research, or if the committee believes the written work provides insufficient evidence of progress toward completion of an adequate doctoral dissertation); (b) other conditions are imposed on the student's dissertation research, such as the committee believes will ensure the currency and timely completion of the student's work toward the Ph.D.; (c) the student is dismissed from the program for failure to make adequate progress toward the Ph.D. For students in joint programs (such as the M.D.-Ph.D. or J.D.-Ph.D.) who do not take the Preliminary Examination in the third year of full-time study after matriculation into the doctoral program, this review shall take place if students have not completed all requirements within three years after the semester in which they pass the Preliminary Examination.

Students who wish to be nominated for an SAS Dissertation Research Fellowship, or for any non-teaching research or dissertation fellowship funded or supported by the Department, must be in good standing and must submit to the Graduate Chair, by the beginning of classes in the Spring Semester, a five-page thesis proposal in the format required for nomination for an SAS Dissertation Research Fellowship or an SAS Dissertation Completion Fellowship.

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XII. THE DISSERTATION WORKSHOP

All dissertation students must attend the Dissertation Workshop (or other forum designated by the Department) weekly and make at least one presentation per year of dissertation work in progress. This requirement continues until the student graduates.

The Dissertation Workshop may also provide a venue for discussing issues pertaining to professionalization, conference submissions, and publication. It is the usual venue for presenting practice job talks.


XIII. PRELINARY DISSERTATION EXAMINATION & FINAL DISSERTATION DEFENSE

When a student has achieved a substantial, continuous draft of the dissertation it shall be subject to a Preliminary Dissertation Examination by the entire committee. The Dissertation Supervisor shall determine when a student's dissertation work has reached this stage, and will notify the other committee members and the Graduate Chair. The Graduate Chair will then appoint a Departmental Representative, who will chair the examination. During the examination, the committee will discuss needed revisions or changes with the student, and each member will provide written advice regarding such revisions or changes. It is recommended that this examination have occurred in the spring or early fall prior to the student's seeking academic employment.

When the student has completed a draft of the entire thesis, it must be submitted to the dissertation committee for evaluation. When the committee receives a draft to be considered for Final Examination and Defense, it may take up to four weeks to certify to the Graduate Chair that the thesis is ready for defense (or not). Upon receipt of this certification, the Graduate Chair will appoint an additional member of the Graduate Group as the Departmental Representative at the examination (who need not be the same as the representative at the preliminary dissertation examination) and will schedule the examination. At this time the student must deposit a copy of the draft to be examined in the department lounge. At least two weeks must elapse between the appointment of the departmental representative and deposit of the draft and the occurrence of the examination. No final thesis examinations will be scheduled between the end of the Academic Year and the start of the Fall Semester.

The final oral examination, which constitutes the "dissertation examination" specified by the Graduate Council, will be chaired by the Departmental Representative. It will consist of a presentation of the contents of the dissertation, followed by an oral examination. Any member of the Graduate Group may participate in the examination, but only members of the dissertation committee and the departmental representative may vote to accept or reject the dissertation. Except when the committee is voting, the examination will be open to the public.

A majority vote of the examination committee determines whether the student passes the examination. (The result of this vote is recorded on form 150.) The dissertation itself may be accepted unconditionally or accepted subject to revision; failure may be unconditional or revision and reexamination of the dissertation may be permitted. The Dissertation Supervisor (or other member agreed upon by the examination committee) will inform the Graduate Group Chair when the Graduate Division may be notified that the dissertation is accepted, or not (forms 152 and 153). Each student is responsible for depositing the dissertation with the Graduate Division, in accordance with the requirements of the Graduate Council.

Each graduate student must apply to the Graduate Division for graduation with the Ph.D. degree at the start of the semester in which the final examination and dissertation deposit are anticipated. Students are reminded that the Graduate Division requires continuous registration through the semester of graduation.

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XIV. PREPARATION FOR SEEKING EMPLOYMENT

During the course of their studies, students should be cognizant of their aspirations beyond graduation. In addition to engaging the wider philosophical community as described above, they should consider the competencies they wish to present to prospective employers, including their areas of specialization and areas of competence. They should seek to build a body of course work, prelim work, research, and teaching experience to support their claims to these competencies.

The department will normally appoint placement officers to advise students in their search for an academic position. After consulting with their supervisors, students should inform the placement officers of their intention to enter the academic job market by the end of the Spring Semester prior to their anticipated search. These officers usually will arrange mock interviews, and they may coordinate practice job talks. Students should seek advice from their supervisor and committee in preparing a dossier paper. Students should also assemble a teaching dossier.

Letters of recommendation are a key component in the employment process. Over the course of their doctoral studies, students should seek to form intellectual relationships with several faculty members. Letter writers for a job candidate will typically be drawn from, but are not limited to, the student's Prelim and Dissertation Committees. It is not unusual to have four, five, or even more letters in a placement file.

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Summary of the Doctoral Program

Schedule:

First Year:    600 (two semesters, if offered), 6 (or 5) more regular courses in philosophy, including logic unless competency demonstrated by examination.

Second Year:    3 courses each semester. Distribution requirements in epistemology and metaphysics, value theory, and history completed by end of fourth term. Teaching. Fourth-semester review.

Third Year:    1 course plus 1 or 2 999s first and second semesters. Preparation for and attempt at Preliminary Examination, second semester; submission of SAS Dissertation Proposal and Ten-Page Dissertation Proposal; appointment of Dissertation Supervisor. Fulfillment of language requirement. Enrollment and attendance in Dissertation Workshop. Teaching.

Fourth Year:    Dissertation work. Submission of one chapter-length piece of writing each semester. Appointment of Dissertation Committee. Participation in and presentation to Dissertation Workshop.

Fifth Year:    Participation in and presentation to Dissertation Workshop. Submission of one chapter-length piece of writing each semester. Completion of Dissertation work.


Total Course Requirements:

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THE J.D.-Ph.D. PROGRAM

The Graduate Council of the Faculties at the University of Pennsylvania has approved a J.D./Ph.D. Program in Law and Philosophy. The program allows students to earn two degrees: the J.D. and the Ph.D. in philosophy. Students must meet all the requirements for these respective degrees as set out by the Law School, the Philosophy Department, and the Graduate Division of Arts and Sciences (as approved by the Graduate Council of the Faculties). In practice, this means fulfilling the normal requirements for each degree, with certain cases of double-counting of courses. The program of study, taking into account the merging of the requirements for the two degrees, is summarized in this table.

A financial aid package is available, which provides the normal graduate stipend (including health insurance, if not otherwise covered) for five years, and tuition support for six years (including a forgivable loan for law tuition). Students admitted to the program receive a letter setting out the aid package in some detail.

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THE M.D.-Ph.D. PROGRAM

The Medical School, in cooperation with the various Ph.D. programs of the University, operates an M.D.-Ph.D. known as the Medical Scientist Training Program. Students admitted to this program work out an approved course of study allowing them to fulfill the requirements for both the M.D. and Ph.D. degrees. M.D.-Ph.D. students seeking the Ph.D. in philosophy have typically begun their studies with two years of course work in philosophy.

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THE MASTER'S DEGREE

The M.A. degree requires the completion of eight regularly scheduled graduate courses in philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania. No independent studies or transfer credits may be counted toward this requirement. No course with a grade lower than B- will count; a 3.0 gpa in the eight courses is a necessary but not sufficient condition for the degree. M.A. candidates must also satisfy the following requirements: 1) the logic requirement for the Ph.D.; 2) a distribution requirement consisting of one course in metaphysics and/or epistemology, one course in the history of philosophy, and one course in value theory; and 3) a research requirement, satisfied either by preparing a thesis which is approved by two members of the standing faculty or by completing a course of research character, as directed by the Graduate Group, and including the submission of at least one substantial scholarly paper containing original research and receiving a grade of B or better. Continuing or terminating students may apply to the Graduate Division to graduate with the degree of M.A. at any time upon or in anticipation of the completion of these requirements; the Graduate Division requires continuous registration through the semester in which the degree is awarded.

Students who are specifically admitted for the M.A. degree rather than into the Ph.D. program are not eligible to take philosophy 600.

THE J.D.-M.A. PROGRAM

Students who have been admitted to the Law School may apply for admission as an M.A. degree candidate in philosophy (usually, application is made during the first year of Law School, prior to the Dec. 15 application deadline). The requirements are as given above. By approval of the Graduate Council of the Faculties, one Law course (as approved by the Philosophy Graduate Group) may be double-counted toward the eight courses required for the M.A. degree in philosophy; the Law School may allow four courses from outside the School to be counted toward the J.D.

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Last Modified 2007.05.3