Graduate Degrees
The objective of the graduate program in philosophy is to equip suitably prepared and talented students to function effectively as teachers, thinkers and writers on philosophical topics in the Western tradition. The program provides for a wide range of studies within philosophy, but emphasizes the history of philosophy, both classical and modern, along with the traditional core disciplines: ethics, epistemology, metaphysics and logic. Because philosophy is as much a special manner of intellectual activity as it is a special subject matter, the graduate student is expected not only to master major works in the historical and contemporary literature of philosophical thought, but also to develop the ability to engage in the ongoing process of philosophical research and dialogue.
Admission Requirements
An applicant for admission normally has an undergraduate major in philosophy, but programs may be arranged for promising students who do not. At least three letters of recommendation from the student's undergraduate teachers should be sent to the chair, graduate admissions, of the school. All applicants are required to take the verbal and quantitative General Tests of the Graduate Record Examinations.
Degree Requirements
These degrees are awarded under the jurisdiction of the Graduate School. Refer to the Graduate School section of this catalogue for general regulations. All courses applied toward the degrees must be courses accepted by the Graduate School.
Master of Arts in Philosophy
A student may obtain an M.A. in philosophy by fulfilling the following requirements: a minimum of 24 units in philosophy, at least 16 of which must be at the 500 level, including: (a) PHIL 500; (b) PHIL 450; (c) one 400- or 500-level course in ethics or social/political philosophy or aesthetics or philosophy of law; (d) one 400- or 500-level course in metaphysics or epistemology or philosophy of language or philosophy of science or philosophy of mind; (e) one 400- or 500-level course in the history of ancient or early modern philosophy, (f) passage of the second year review which shall include a research paper based on a completed seminar paper, and (g) completion of a publishable research paper.
Master of Arts, Philosophy/Juris Doctor
Students must complete 24 units in the School of Philosophy and 66 units in the Law Center.
First Year: Required Law Center curriculum.
Second and Third Years: The School of Philosophy prefers that students take at least one philosophy course each semester. During the four semesters, students must take at least 16 units at the 500 level, including PHIL 500; PHIL 450; one 400- or 500-level course in ethics or social/political philosophy or aesthetics or philosophy of law; one 400- or 500-level course in metaphysics or epistemology or philosophy of language or philosophy of science or philosophy of mind; one 400- or 500-level course in the history of ancient or early modern philosophy; pass the second year review; and complete a publishable research paper. Students must also complete 36 additional law units.
Doctor of Philosophy in Philosophy
Course Requirements
The minimum number of course credits required for the Ph.D. is 60 units (15 courses, four units each). No more than eight of these units may be earned in 794 Doctoral Dissertation. Each student must pass PHIL 450 with a grade of B or better and must pass PHIL 500 with a grade of B+ or better. Both PHIL 450 and 500 must be satisfactorily completed by the end of the second year.
The student may take up to four of the 15 courses in a field of study related to philosophy. The Ph.D. dissertation may be written in any area of philosophy for which adequate supervision is available from within the university. In addition to areas already mentioned, dissertation research is possible in linguistic analysis, phenomenology, existentialism, pragmatism, structuralism, philosophy of religion, philosophy of language, social and political philosophy, logic, philosophy of law and the philosophy of science. Finally, all Ph.D. students are required to show evidence of practical or editorial training, or their equivalent.
Foreign Language/Research Tool Requirement
A foreign language examination, specified by the school, in French, German, Latin or Greek is required. (For certain research programs, a student's guidance committee may require a second language, if appropriate.) Students are encouraged to take the language examination(s) as early as possible, since the aim of the language requirement is to enable students to use the language(s) in their studies. The examination(s) must be passed before the qualifying examination is attempted.
There are three levels of evaluation in the Ph.D. program prior to the dissertation:
Distribution Requirement
There is a distribution requirement of six courses at the 500-level, including PHIL 500. Of the six, at least two are to be from the category of metaphysics and epistemology, one from ethics and one from the history of philosophy. Each of the six courses must be in one of these three categories and cannot be a 590 course. The courses in the systematic area will be taught in the tradition of Anglo-American analytic philosophy. For courses straddling two areas (for example, history of ancient philosophy and metaphysics; history of modern philosophy and ethics), instructors will indicate on the syllabus which requirement the course will satisfy. Courses dealing with subject matter within more than one of the four areas listed may be used to satisfy any of the areas encompassed by the course although no single course may be used to satisfy two requirements at once. PHIL 500 will count as one course satisfying the distribution requirement, to be specified by the instructor at the beginning of the course. All distribution requirements must be completed by the end of the second year.
Screening Procedure
Students in the Ph.D. program must pass a screening procedure before undertaking their 25th unit (seventh course) of graduate credit. This will be based on a review of the student's work to date, and will take into account not only information acquired but also those intellectual qualities and capacities which are essential for good work in philosophy: the capacity to think and write on philosophical issues with clarity, consistency and thoroughness; the ability to understand in detail what is involved in the meaning and justification of philosophical claims or positions; the ability to recognize and to draw out fine conceptual distinctions and to perceive their logical relationships; and strong intellectual curiosity and independence of thought.
Second Year Review
In the spring of the second year, students will submit two essentially unrevised papers from distribution courses (from different fields) to the relevant field committees. However, the papers will not be evaluated in terms of their compliance or otherwise with the distribution requirement but rather in terms of their overall philosophical worth. The review of those papers and general review of the total record will constitute the second year evaluation. It is understood that the standards used in this evaluation will be higher than those typical of seminars. The faculty reserve the right to require revision of one or both papers, with appropriate time limits; they may also require an oral or written examination in case the evidence submitted should prove insufficient for a proper evaluation of the student.
Qualifying Examination
This examination consists of a written prospectus of the proposed dissertation and an in-depth oral examination on the form and subject matter of the proposed dissertation. All faculty members may inspect the prospectus and be present at the oral, but evaluation of the qualifying examination is the responsibility of the student's guidance committee. The examination is not passed if two or more members of the guidance committee find it unsatisfactory.
The qualifying examination is not offered in the summer. Those who intend to take this examination must meet all the conditions specified in the section on general requirements for the Ph.D. The qualifying examination must be satisfactorily completed in the spring of the third year or, in exceptional cases, the fall of the fourth year.
Doctoral Dissertation
When the student passes the qualifying examination, a dissertation committee, replacing the guidance committee, is appointed by the director of the school in consultation with the student and the philosophy faculty. This new committee and the candidate will then agree upon how the dissertation is to be developed and written. The dissertation must be an original contribution to some well-defined area in philosophy, and must give evidence of ability to do respectable, large-scale research, thinking, and writing in the field. The school requires the defense oral when the research and writing of the dissertation is substantially complete. Attendance at this oral examination is open to all members of the university faculty, but the examination is conducted and evaluated by the candidate's dissertation committee. The faculty normally works with the dissertations only in the fall and spring semesters, and the student should plan accordingly.
Graduate Advisement
In addition to the departmental graduate advisor, who has the formal role in graduate advising, each student will be matched with a personal advisor, who will share responsibility with the graduate advisor for monitoring a student's progress semester by semester. The graduate advisor is available to counsel any graduate student on all aspects of the graduate program. A student's personal advisor will consult informally with the student semester by semester on how to interpret his or her grades and especially the written reports provided by the instructor for each course in which the student is enrolled, discuss informally the student's selection of courses each semester, and generally keep track of the student's progress in the program. At the appropriate time, the student will consult his or her advisor concerning the appointment of a faculty committee for guidance and supervision. In the case of those in the Ph.D. program, an official guidance committee will be appointed at the time the student passes the screening examination. The Ph.D. guidance committee will meet with the student soon after its appointment, and at least once each academic year thereafter.
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Produced by the USC Division of Student Affairs, Office of University Publications, May 1, 1995
Joye Day
day@mizar.usc.edu