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Oct 03, 2024
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American University Catalog 2024-2025
Political Science (PhD)
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Admission to the Program
Applicants are considered and admitted for the fall semester only. All applicants must submit scores from the verbal and quantitative sections of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). The normal minimum for consideration is a grade point average of 3.20 (on a 4.00 scale) in all previous academic work. Applicants are admitted for full-time study only. Degree Requirements
- 36 credit hours of approved graduate work, exclusive of /
- Minimum 3.20 cumulative GPA is required to remain in good standing and to earn the degree
- Qualifier Paper: Research paper approved by committee of three faculty members, usually completed by end of second year. Failure to complete the qualifier in a timely way may result in students being designated as not in good standing. Please see the program handbook for further information
- Comprehensive Examination in Major Field: Students, following completion of relevant coursework, must pass a written comprehensive examination in American politics, comparative politics, or political methodology taken in the summer and/or fall after second year
- Comprehensive Examination in Secondary Field
- Students with Major Field of American Politics or Comparative Politics must pass a secondary field comprehensive examination from another Department of Government field or, with written approval from the program director and following 6 credit hours of approved coursework, other field from a doctoral degree granting unit of AU
- Students with Major field of Political Methodology must pass a secondary field comprehensive examination in American Politics or Comparative Politics
- Qualifier paper and comprehensive exams must be successfully completed by the end of the third year to remain in the program
- Dissertation Prospectus: Please see the program handbook for further information
- Students may choose a dissertation research project within one of the three major areas. It is the responsibility of the student to secure the agreement of a tenured Government department faculty member to serve as the chair of the dissertation committee, and to secure the service of at least two additional committee members that meet all regulation and department requirements
- Students defend the prospectus in the third year and must be completed by the end of the third year to maintain funding
- Advancement to candidacy is accomplished by successfully defending the dissertation prospectus. Students are now eligible to register for GOVT-899 Doctoral Dissertation (9)
- Dissertation completion: Please see the program handbook for further information
- Oral defense before dissertation committee and other interested faculty and students follows committee approval of written dissertation. After hearing the candidate’s defense, the committee decides whether the dissertation is sufficiently well developed and defended to serve as the culmination of the student’s doctoral career
- The dissertation must consist of high quality, original research directly relevant to the student’s doctoral program. A dissertation proposal may be rejected if the topic does not fall within political science, the research design is inadequate, the methodology is inappropriate, or no tenured member in the Department of Government is qualified or available to supervise the project
- If the candidate fails to maintain satisfactory progress toward completion of the dissertation, then his or her candidacy may be terminated
Proseminars (6 credit hours)
Methodology (12 credit hours)
Additional Methodology
Complete 6 credit hours from the following, or other approved methodology courses, including graduate-level world language courses: Major Field (12 credit hours)
Complete one of the following major fields: Note: Non-GOVT courses must be approved by Doctoral Director. Major Field: American Politics
Major Field: Comparative Politics
Major Field: Political Methodology
Political Methodology (6 credit hours)
- 6 credit hours from approved methods courses in addition to standard methodology requirement
Electives
- 6 credit hours from courses selected in consultation with the doctoral advisor and director
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