Graduate Division

General Requirements for Doctoral Degrees  

Time Limits 

D.M. students must complete all course work (including those courses transferred from other schools, but not including those on the master’s degree) and begin qualifying examinations within a period of seven calendar years from the date of matriculation in the doctoral program.

Ph.D. and D.M.E. students have 10 calendar years, including the master’s degree.

Students who do not complete their course work within the prescribed time limit must be readmitted to the major field (through interview, submission of documents, or audition, as appropriate to the major), meet current requirements, and make any other curricular changes required by the director of graduate studies and the major field department. If a student is readmitted to the major, the term of readmission is three years. If the student has not completed course work by that time, he or she must once again meet the terms for readmission described previously.

In addition, any doctoral course taken more than 10 calendar years earlier must be revalidated according to the procedures of the department offering the course. D.M. and D.M.E. students must receive permission to revalidate courses from the director of graduate studies. Ph.D. students must receive permission to revalidate courses from the director of graduate studies and from the dean of the University Graduate School.

Proficiencies (music history, music theory, keyboard, performance, language reading, language grammar, language diction,  musical styles) more than 10 years old must be revalidated. Proficiencies must also be revalidated for students beginning a second degree more than 10 years after beginning a first.

Qualifying Examinations

All qualifying examinations, written and oral, must be completed within one calendar year.

After Qualifying Examinations

D.M., D.M.E., and Ph.D. students must complete the degree within seven years after passing the qualifying examinations. After that time, students must be reinstated to candidacy. To be reinstated to candidacy, D.M. and D.M.E. students must:

  1. obtain the permission of the department chairperson and the director of graduate studies,
  2. fulfill any new departmental requirements in effect at the time of the application for reinstatement,
  3. pass any qualifying examinations that may be required in the major and minor fields by the student’s advisory committee and the director of graduate studies.

If reinstatement is granted, it is valid for a period of three years. Revalidation of course work is not required.

Ph.D. students follow the reinstatement procedure outlined in the bulletin of the University Graduate School.

Interruption of Study

Doctoral students who, prior to completion of the qualifying examinations, have interrupted their degree pursuits for a period of five years or more must meet current requirements for the degree, and make any other curricular changes required by the major field advisor and the director of graduate studies.

These time limits are suspended for students in active military service for the duration of that active service.

Academic Bulletins

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Previous Bulletins

Students are ordinarily subject to the curricular requirements outlined in the Bulletin in effect at the start of their current degree. See below for links to previous Bulletins.