Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy

Special Departmental Requirements

(See also general University Graduate School requirements.)

Admission

Graduate Record Examination scores are no longer required or accepted by the admission committee. Those who have an inadequate background in philosophy may, with the approval of their faculty advisor, enroll in P590 for supplemental work, provided that the number of gradu­ate credits so acquired does not exceed 9 credit hours. Upon admission, a graduate major in philosophy will be assigned a departmental faculty advisor who, in conjunction with the di­rector of graduate studies, will help plan the student’s program of study.

Master of Arts Degree

The M.A. degree is available to philosophy doctoral students who do not already have an M.A., and who have otherwise satisfied the requirements for the M.A., as well as to graduate students who are already enrolled in another program at Indiana University who wish to pursue an M.A. in philosophy as a complement to their research in their major department.

Course Requirements

A total of 30 credit hours, at least 20 credit hours of which must be in courses given in the philosophy department. These must include at least one course in each of four subject areas: history of philosophy, metaphys­ics and epistemology, logic, and value theory. P590 may not be used to satisfy the distribution requirement. No more than six hours in P590 may count toward the 20 hours required in philosophy. P804 and P805 do not count toward the credit hours required in philosophy.

Grades

A minimum grade of B (3.0) is required in each course that counts toward the degree.

Doctor of Philosophy Degree

Course Requirements

A total of 90 credit hours, including dissertation hours (P804 and P805), of which a minimum of 9 credit hours is required.

Grades

A student must receive a grade of B or better in any (graded) course that receives credit toward the 90 credit hours required for the Ph.D.

Foreign Language Requirement

There is no general foreign language requirement for the Ph.D. However, a student’s Qualifying Committee or Dissertation Committee may require the student to achieve proficiency in a foreign language relevant to the student’s research and may set the level of proficiency to be attained and the means of establishing that the required level has been attained. A stu­dent should consult with the director of graduate studies about whether he or she will need competence in a foreign language, and this consultation should begin in the student’s first year, to allow adequate time for the student to develop competence.

Proseminar

The proseminar is taken in the first fall semester of enrollment in the program. The proseminar is a variable topics course which requires writing a paper each week for the first 10 to 12 weeks of the term and presenting to the seminar.

Distribution Requirements

Nine units of distribution requirements are required.

For the purposes of stating these requirements, philosophy is considered as falling into four areas. Each of these areas has an Area Committee to administer the requirements in that area.

1. Metaphysics and Epistemology has four subareas: (i) metaphysics, (ii) epistemology, (iii) philosophy of language, philosophy of logic, or philosophy of mathematics, (iv) philosophy of mind and action.
2. Logic
3. History of Philosophy: Ancient, medieval, modern, recent.
4. Value Theory: Ethics, social and political philosophy, legal philosophy, aesthetics.

Each graduate student is required to concentrate in at least one area and satisfy distribution requirements in all four, though some exceptions are possible for students pursuing an interdisciplinary track (see below).  Unless stated otherwise, courses used to satisfy the distribution requirements in an area will count towards the concentration requirements for that area.

Metaphysics and Epistemology, Logic:  Students are to satisfy a disjunctive requirement regarding Metaphysics and Epistemology and Logic:

1. Metaphysics and Epistemology:  Three graduate courses.  The three should be in different subareas of Metaphysics and Epistemology, as defined above.  At least one of the three courses must be on the list of automatically approved courses.  ANDLogic:  One graduate logic course.  The student must demonstrate a thorough understanding of first-order logic.  Successful completion of P505 will be taken as demonstrating such understanding.  OR
2. Metaphysics and Epistemology:   Two graduate courses.  The two should be in different subareas of Metaphysics and Epistemology.  At least one of the two courses must be on the list of automatically approves courses.  ANDLogic:  Two graduate logic courses.  The student must demonstrate a thorough understanding of first-order logic.  Successful completion of P505 will be taken as demonstrating such understanding.

History of Philosophy: (Three units) A unit in history can consist of any of the following: a graduate course, a written paper on a topic in one of the four historical periods (ancient, medieval, modern, and recent), a written examination on a topic in one of the four periods, or a written examination covering a broad range within the history of philosophy. At least one unit must be in ancient or medieval history and one in post-medieval history. The third “wild card” unit in history may be in any of the four historical periods. It may also be such a course as history of ethics, history of aesthetics, history of logic, etc.—provided that such course is approved by the History Area Committee. In addition to the automatically approved courses listed below, P710 can count for any of the periods, depending on its content. Students must seek approval for P710 from the History Area Committee, and the Area Committee will decide whether the course counts based on course content and the student's competence in the philosophy of the relevant period. Other courses may be counted depending on Committee approval.

Value Theory: (Two units) Two graduate level courses, at least one in ethics. At least one course should be either P540, P541, or P740. The second course should come from the list of automatically approved courses below. Students may petition to substitute for one or possibly both of the courses a course not on the list of automatically approved courses, but there is no presumption that any other courses will count. The decision whether to count any other courses will be made on the basis of what other courses the student has taken, the opportunities the student has had for taking automatically approved courses, and the student's Area of Concentration. Two courses with the same number can count toward the Distribution Requirement provided their course content is sufficiently different; students must petition for the second course to count.

Distribution requirements should normally be satisfied by the end of the student's second year, but in all cases should be satisfied by the end of the student's third year of graduate study.

Interdisciplinary Track Distribution Requirements

An interdisciplinary track is considered to be 18 credit hours in a department or program outside of philosophy of importance to the student’s area of specialty. It is usually in the area of the student’s minor. Graduate students pursuing an interdisciplinary track may request an ad hoc exemption of one or two of the above nine units of the department’s standard distribution requirements. The written request should be made to the Director of Graduate Studies before the end of the student’s second year. A good case must be made for the usefulness of the outside work being proposed, either for the student’s dissertation or for other career objectives. The specific courses being taken, as well as the distribution units to be dropped, must be described in the application. If the request is to drop two units from one area or to drop one unit from Logic under option (1) of the disjunctive requirement, the Director of Graduate Studies will seek the approval of the Area Committee before granting the request. If the student on an interdisciplinary track is given a one unit exemption in any Area, then the expectation is that the remaining unit (or units) that count toward the distribution requirements in that Area will be courses on the list of automatically approved courses. (If more than three credits of the 18 interdisciplinary track credits are from cross-listed philosophy courses, the above exemption will not be granted; if one to three credits are from such courses, then the exemption cannot be granted for more than one unit of the distribution requirements.)

Concentration Requirements

Concentration requirements in each of the four areas are defined below. Unless stated otherwise, courses used to satisfy the distribution requirements in an area will count toward the concentration requirements for that area. A student must achieve an average of A- in the courses that count towards the Concentration Requirement.

Metaphysics and Epistemology: (Four units) Four courses from at least three different sub-areas. At least two of the four courses must be on the list of automatically approved courses below. At most one course outside the philosophy department (including courses taken at an institution other than Indiana University) will count, with high standards (for clear philosophical content, M & E area centrality, rigor and breadth of reading, and written work). (The caliber of the department at another institution at which a course is taken will be an important consideration in granting petitions for approval of courses taken in other institutions.)

Logic: (Four units) Students concentrating in this area are required to do the following: (i) Take at least four courses in logic/formal areas of philosophy. (Note: P505 will not count for the requirement.) These courses must be well distributed; students are advised to consult the Logic Committee to ensure this. (ii) Show mastery of the material of P505/506. This requirement will be deemed as satisfied if a student has taken courses equivalent to P505/P506 with a grade of A- or better.

History of Philosophy: (Four units) The history units are as defined above, except that the "wild card" is not an option here. Students specializing in history must pass four regular history units, at least one in each of the four historical periods. In addition to the automatically approved courses listed below, P710 can count for any of the periods, depending on its content. Students must seek approval for P710 from the History Area Committee, and the Area Committee will decide whether the course counts based on course content and the student's competence in the philosophy of the relevant period. Other courses may be counted depending on Committee approval.

Value Theory: (Four units) Four courses. At least one course should be P540, P541, or P740. At least one course should be in aesthetics, political philosophy, or philosophy of law. Students must take two or more courses in a single sub-area known as "the field of emphasis," and no more than one course in the field of emphasis may be taken outside the philosophy department. Students may petition to substitute a course not on the list of automatically approved courses below, but there is no presumption that any other courses will count.