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Doctoral Degree Programs
The University of South Carolina offers the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in many disciplines. The University also offers other doctoral degrees, such as the Doctor of Education, the Doctor of Musical Arts, the Doctor of Nursing Practice, the Doctor of Physical Therapy, and the Doctor of Public Health. Students enrolled in doctoral programs are required to follow the academic policies of The Graduate School. Academic programs may have additional or exceptional requirements.
A complete listing of doctoral degree programs at the University of South Carolina is available:
Doctor of Philosophy
The Doctor of Philosophy degree is oriented toward research that will increase knowledge and make contributions to the advancement of the student’s discipline. Study for a specified time and accumulation of graduate credit hours are not by themselves sufficient to earn the Ph.D. The student must demonstrate scholarly distinction and the ability to advance knowledge through independent research by achieving admission to candidacy and writing a dissertation.
The doctoral degree requires a minimum of 60 graduate credit hours, including 12-30 hours of dissertation preparation (899), beyond the baccalaureate degree or a minimum of 30 graduate hours, including 12-30 hours of dissertation preparation (899), beyond the Master’s degree. A student may use no more than 30 hours combined of thesis preparation (799) and dissertation preparation (899) on the doctoral program of study. Doctoral degree students must complete at least half of the hours on the Program of Study (D-POS) in courses numbered 700 or higher. A dissertation of original research is required for most doctoral programs. A period of residency, a foreign language or research methods proficiency, a comprehensive examination, and a dissertation defense or examination are also required. The specific curriculum for the doctoral degree varies with the discipline and some programs require additional credit hours. Students enrolled in a doctoral program have eight years from the first term of enrollment in which to complete the degree. Students must be enrolled for at least 1 credit during the term of graduation.
Information about specific requirements in a doctoral degree program is available from the faculty contact person or the graduate director of the respective doctoral program. Contact information for programs is available: http://gradschool.sc.edu/graduate_programs.asp.
Other Doctoral Degrees
The general requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree apply to all doctoral programs offered by the University, except for adjustment in those requirements as approved by the Graduate Council and the dean of The Graduate School. Information about specific requirements in a doctoral degree program is available from the faculty contact person or the graduate director of the respective doctoral program. Contact information for programs is available: http://gradschool.sc.edu/graduate_programs.asp.
Concurrent Enrollment
Concurrent enrollment is when a student is admitted to and enrolled in two graduate programs at the same time. The University offers several formally approved Graduate Dual Degree Programs . Students wishing to concurrently enroll in two degree programs not formally approved as dual degree programs may do so with special permission of the graduate program and the dean of The Graduate School.
Course Enrollment Load
A graduate student may enroll for a term load not to exceed 15 graduate hours. Some programs limit their students to a 9 or 12 hour maximum term course load. A student with a term course load of 9 or more hours during a fall or spring term is classified as full-time for academic purposes. The maximum course load in each of the two summer sessions is 6 hours. May session enrollment is part of the 6-hour limit for Summer 1 term. A student must be enrolled for at least 1 credit during any semester in which dissertation progress is made and such University resources as the library, computer facilities, or faculty time are used.
Special Enrollment (Z-status or GA-underenrolled)
The dean of The Graduate School, under certain circumstances, may certify that a student’s full time enrollment is less than the normal requirement of 9 hours for graduate students or 6 hours for students serving as graduate assistants. Students seeking an exception to minimum enrollment requirements should submit a written request to the dean of The Graduate School with acceptable justification from the student’s academic advisor or the graduate director of the academic program. International students must also submit the approved Exemption from Full-time Enrollment form from International Programs for Students.
For a student whose need for under-enrollment results from an internship, practicum, or field experience required by the graduate program, a justification indicating the term requested and the nature of the experience should be submitted to the dean of the Graduate School by the student’s academic advisor or the program’s graduate director.
Students nearing completion of a doctoral degree requiring a dissertation may be granted special enrollment status and certified as half-time or full-time if the student has completed course work required for the degree except dissertation preparation (899). Eligibility requires verification by the student’s academic advisor or program graduate director that:
- All course work on the program of study has been completed except for dissertation preparation (899);
- The student is working on the dissertation full- or at least half-time; and
- The student is not employed more than half-time excluding graduate assistantships.
Students who request exemption from full-time enrollment for financial aid purposes must submit the Special Academic Enrollment Release form (F 6.2) available from the Office of Financial Aid.
Right to an Advisor
Every graduate student admitted to a degree program is entitled to an advisor. The academic program graduate director is the default academic advisor for graduate students until another academic advisor is assigned or an advisory committee is formed. Students are urged to consult with an advisor prior to enrollment. Doctoral students should have an Advisory Committee appointed by the program by the end of the first term of enrollment.
Doctoral Program Committees
Each doctoral student will have three academic committees during the course of doctoral study, the Advisory Committee, the Written and Oral Comprehensive Examination Committee, and the Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Committee. Each of the three committees has an assigned function and must conform to policies of The Graduate School on doctoral committee membership. Membership on doctoral committees, excluding the outside member, is limited to regular members of the graduate faculty and those who hold special term appointments with approval to serve as a regular member of a doctoral committee. Each doctoral committee must have no more than one outside member. The three committees may or may not have the same members.
As defined in The Faculty Manual, regular members of the graduate faculty on the Columbia campus shall include the president; provost; dean of The Graduate School; associate dean of The Graduate School; and chairs of academic departments offering degrees conferred by The Graduate School. Faculty members holding the Ph.D. or other terminal degree in their respective field of study are considered to become regular members of the graduate faculty upon appointment to a tenured or tenure-track position at the University’s Columbia campus.
Faculty members and scholars not otherwise eligible for regular membership on the graduate faculty may be appointed to term appointments. Term appointments are appropriate for USC faculty in the School of Law and the School of Medicine, emeriti USC professors, clinical faculty, research professors, faculty members at other institutions (including other campuses of the USC system), and others holding an appropriate terminal degree or other credentials. Persons with term appointments to the graduate faculty may serve on, but may not chair, doctoral committees.
Note: Major points that should be noted with regard to committee membership:
- A majority of the committee composition must be regular members of the Graduate School faculty.
- A doctoral committee member whose Graduate School faculty eligibility expires (e.g., emeritus faculty) while a student is still pursuing the degree may continue to serve until the student completes the program or the committee is dissolved.
To continue to serve in the capacity as chair or regular member is a special exception. This request (with a valid academic justification) must have the endorsements of the academic program faculty, chair of the department, graduate director, and academic dean. Once these approvals are affirmed, the petition is presented to the dean of The Graduate School for final approval. Otherwise, a change in the committee composition must be presented to the dean of The Graduate School replacing the now ineligible member.
The outside member may be a regular member of the graduate faculty in another department/program at USC, a faculty member from another institution, or a qualified professional from the private or governmental sectors. The outside member is nominated by the academic unit to the dean of The Graduate School. Approval is based on the nominee’s qualifications provided on a resume or curriculum vitae and relevance to the student’s major field or research as explained in the justification submitted by the graduate director of the program with the nomination. Outside members do not need to have term appointments to serve on the committee.
The Advisory Committee is appointed by the program by the end of the first term of enrollment and should include two or three faculty from the student’s academic program. This purpose of the Advisory Committee is to provide initial advisement of the student, guide academic planning and research efforts, and construct the program of study to file with The Graduate School. Often the Advisory Committee also oversees the qualifying examination. The graduate director of the program notifies the dean of The Graduate School when the student has passed the qualifying examination, has been fully admitted to the doctoral program, has an approved doctoral program of study on file, and has been nominated to doctoral candidacy by the program. The Advisory Committee roster does not need to be submitted to the dean of The Graduate School for approval.
The Written and Oral Comprehensive Examination Committee administers the oral and written portions of the comprehensive examination. The committee for the comprehensive examination must include no fewer than four members, at least one of whom must be from outside the student’s program. The roster of the Written and Oral Comprehensive Examination Committee is submitted to the dean of The Graduate School for approval on the Doctoral Committee Appointment Request (G-DCA) form. The graduate director of the program provides written notification to the dean of The Graduate School that the student has passed the comprehensive examination.
The Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Committee directs the research and preparation of the student’s dissertation, examines the student on the content of the dissertation, directs the student to complete documents required for graduation, and signs forms required for graduation. The Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Committee requires no fewer than four members, at least one of whom must be from outside the student’s program. The chair of the Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Committee must be a regular member of the graduate faculty. The roster of the Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Committee is submitted to the dean of The Graduate School for approval on the Doctoral Committee Appointment Request (G-DCA) form. The Dissertation Signature and Approval (G-DSF) form is signed by all members of the Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Committee and sent to the graduate director of the program for signature.
Doctoral Program of Study
Every doctoral degree student must file a doctoral program of study (D-POS) in The Graduate School for approval by the dean of The Graduate School. A program of study is a list of courses that satisfy degree requirements and is one of the degree audit documents. It allows the student and the advisor to engage in early planning of course work, explore research interests, and discuss requirements for progress toward degree; facilitates subsequent advisement; and protects the student in the event of unexpected curriculum or faculty changes. The doctoral student must file a completed Program of Study (D-POS) form within the first 24 months of course work, but earlier if possible. The D-POS must be signed by the chair of the student’s Advisory Committee, the graduate director of the program, and the dean of The Graduate School. If necessary, an approved program of study can be modified with a Request for Program Adjustment form.
All doctoral candidates are required to successfully complete a minimum of 12 hours of dissertation preparation (899), but up to 30 hours of dissertation preparation (899) or 30 hours of a combination of dissertation (899) and thesis (799) preparation are allowed on a doctoral program of study.
Concurrent and Dual Enrollment Programs of Study
For dual degree and concurrent degree enrollment, students are required to submit an individual program of study for each degree program. With approval of the program and the dean of The Graduate School, students concurrently enrolled may use no more than 9 credit hours that are common to all programs of study. Programs may permit fewer than 9 shared hours.
Transfer Credit
A limited amount of course work may be transferred from another institution for credit toward a doctoral degree. The exact number of transfer hours varies by program, but may not constitute more than 50 percent of the hours listed on a program of study, not including dissertation preparation (899) or the equivalent.
The transfer course work must be relevant to the program and have course content and a level of instruction equivalent to that offered by the University’s own graduate programs. Approval for acceptance of transfer credit to a student’s program of study must be approved and justified by the student’s academic program and submitted to the dean of The Graduate School for final approval on the Request for Transfer of Academic Credit (G-RTC) form. Only credits with grades of B or better may be transferred from another institution into a doctoral degree program. Course work transferred for credit toward a doctoral degree must be from an accredited institution and must be no more than eight years old at the time of graduation. Transfer credit will not be posted to a student’s official academic transcript until the term of graduation.
Transient Enrollment Privilege
A USC graduate student in a doctoral program seeking transient enrollment privilege at another institution should complete and submit the Special Enrollment Request (AS-30) form available on the Office of the University Registrar’s Web site to dean of The Graduate School for approval. Before enrolling in graduate courses at another institution, permission to enroll should be obtained from the chair of the doctoral student’s Advisory Committee and the program graduate director to ensure that the credits from the other institution will be approved for inclusion in the student’s USC program of study.
Revalidation of Out-of-Date Courses
Students enrolled in a doctoral program at the University of South Carolina may, with permission of the academic program, request revalidation of USC graduate courses over eight years old for inclusion on the doctoral program of study. Each academic unit will determine whether a course is appropriate for revalidation. The Permit for Revalidation Examination (PRE) form must be completed and submitted to the dean of the Graduate School for approval prior to revalidation. Proof of payment of required fees must be submitted with the Permit for Revalidation Examination form. Complete revalidation instructions available: http://gradschool.sc.edu/DocLibrary/documents/pre.pdf.
Note: Coursework taken at other institutions may not be revalidated.
Independent Study
The purpose of an independent study is to allow the student to pursue an area of academic interest not adequately covered by the regular course structure. Therefore, an independent study course cannot be used to fulfill a core requirement.
Prior to enrolling in an independent study course, a student must complete a graduate Independent Study Contract form (G-ISC). The approval of the course instructor, the chair of the student’s doctoral Advisory Committee, and the graduate director of the academic program is required. Students send an approved copy of the G-ISC to the Office of the University Registrar before registering for the course.
Note: Not more than 9 hours of independent study may be used on a doctoral program of study.
Professional Development Course Work
Professional development course work is designated on the academic record by a professional development designator. A maximum of 6 hours of professional development graduate course work may be included on a doctoral program of study. The academic program and the dean of The Graduate School must approve the inclusion of professional development graduate course work on a program of study.
Reduced Tuition Course Work
Course work taken with reduced tuition (usually a contract course) is designated on the academic record by a reduced tuition designation. A maximum of 6 hours of reduced tuition rate course work may be included on a doctoral program of study. The academic program and the dean of The Graduate School must approve the inclusion of reduced tuition graduate course work on a program of study.
Admission to Doctoral Candidacy for Doctor of Philosophy and Other Doctoral Degrees
Upon nomination from the doctoral program, the dean of The Graduate School considers students for admission to doctoral candidacy only after the student is fully admitted to the doctoral degree program by the academic unit, passes the qualifying examination, and submits an approved doctoral program of study to the dean of The Graduate School. No student is admitted to candidacy by the dean of The Graduate School until after completion of all three conditions and written nomination is received from the academic program. The Graduate School will notify the student and the graduate director of the student’s program when the student has been admitted to candidacy.
Note: Admission to candidacy must be granted at least one full academic year before the awarding of the degree.
Residency Requirement
The intent of a residency requirement is to ensure that doctoral students benefit from and contribute to the full spectrum of educational and professional opportunities provided by the graduate faculty of a research university. When establishing residency, the student should interact with faculty and peers by regularly attending courses, conferences, and seminars and using the library, library services, and other resources that support excellence in graduate education.
After admission to the doctoral program, the doctoral residency requirement is satisfied with 18 hours of course work taken in 3 consecutive major semesters. Enrollment in a summer term is not required to maintain continuity, but credits earned during summer terms (including May Session) will count toward the 18 hours required for residency. Dissertation preparation (899) may not be used to satisfy the residency requirement.
Each graduate program may establish residency requirements that exceed these minimum standards. In doing so, the program may exclude certain courses and credit hours from meeting the residency requirement. The student’s advisory committee certifies on the doctoral program of study (D-POS) form the term dates and the courses that satisfy the student’s residency requirement.
Foreign Language and/or Research Methods Requirement
Language and research methods requirements for the doctoral degree vary from program to program. Satisfying the requirement may entail one or more of the following: successful completion of an intensive reading course in a language approved by The Graduate School (e.g., SPAN 615), successful completion of a course at the intermediate level of language proficiency within eight years previous of the award of the degree, or a passing grade on a language reading proficiency examination administered by the USC Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures (DLLC). Students should contact DLLC for language course and testing information. Programs which directly involve language study may have additional language requirements.
Students have three opportunities to pass the language course or satisfy the reading proficiency examination. The Graduate School must be notified by the graduate director of the student’s academic program of successful completion of the language requirement.
In some programs a student is allowed to substitute competency in computer science, statistics, or another research method or competency for a reading knowledge of a foreign language. The requirement may be satisfied by the appropriate course work or examination. Permission for substitution must be approved by the dean of The Graduate School. As with successful completion of the language requirement, The Graduate School must also be notified of a student’s successful completion of a substitution for the language requirement.
With approval of the academic program and the dean of The Graduate School, English may be accepted as a foreign language for students whose native language is not English and such students should submit the Certification of English as a Foreign Language (G-CIE) form. In cases where it is relevant to a student’s research, American Sign Language may be used to satisfy the language requirement.
The student should make arrangements to complete the foreign language and/or research methods requirements at the earliest opportunity. Certification of foreign language and/or research methods competency for doctoral students remains valid for eight years, after which it must be revalidated.
Written and Oral Comprehensive Examination
Candidates must pass a written and oral comprehensive examination conducted by the student’s academic program under the direction of the Written and Oral Comprehensive Examination Committee. This Committee must be comprised of no fewer than four members, at least one of whom must be from outside the candidate’s major department. Normally, the comprehensive examination is given after the candidate has completed all course work on the program of study except for courses in which the student may be currently registered. The comprehensive examination may not be given less than 60 days before the student receives the degree.
Note: Certification of the comprehensive examination for doctoral students remains valid for five years from the academic term taken, after which it must be revalidated.
Dissertation
Students enrolled in a doctoral degree program are required to submit an approved dissertation to satisfy part of the requirements for the degree. The dissertation is the ultimate requirement of the doctoral program and becomes a permanent record of the student’s independent research or creative effort. The best academic tradition and professional practice require The Graduate School to preserve and share graduate student work with other scholars. To do that successfully means maintaining high standards concerning the form and appearance of the dissertation. The dissertation is based on original research and is completed under the direction of the Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Committee. Dissertation formatting and organization guidelines are available on the website of The Graduate School. No later than five years after passing the comprehensive examination, the student must present a dissertation that has been approved by the student’s Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Committee.
Courses numbered 899 in all departments are restricted to dissertation preparation. All doctoral candidates are required to successfully complete a minimum of 12 hours of dissertation preparation (899), but up to 30 hours of dissertation preparation (899) or 30 hours of a combination of dissertation (899) and thesis (799) preparation are allowed on a doctoral program of study. Any student who uses University facilities or confers with faculty on dissertation work in any semester must be officially enrolled for at least one hour of dissertation preparation (899) credit.
On the student’s academic transcript completion or satisfactory progress in dissertation preparation will be indicated by the grade of T; unsatisfactory progress in dissertation preparation will be indicated by the grade of U. These grades will not be used to calculate the student’s grade point average. Programs may establish policies regarding progress to degree and eligibility for continued enrollment that are more stringent than the policies of The Graduate School.
Dissertation Submission
The dissertation is submitted to The Graduate School through the electronic thesis and dissertation (ETD) submission process. The preliminary dissertation document will need to be submitted electronically to The Graduate School for a format check not later than five weeks before graduation through the ProQuest/UMI ETD portal in PDF format. Submission instructions are available: http://gradschool.sc.edu/thesisdissertation/dissertation-submission.htm. The Graduate School coordinator for the academic program will respond with any needed corrections. At least 20 days prior to graduation, the candidate must submit the final revision of the dissertation through the ETD process. Students will receive notification of receipt of the final dissertation submission from The Graduate School program coordinator.
The dissertation must be reproduced by ProQuest/UMI for archival purposes as per the laws of the State of South Carolina. The dissertation abstract will be published in the dissertation database. Additional information on publication and copyright options is available on the website of The Graduate School. Students using previously published articles as dissertation content must submit a copyright release from the publisher of the articles.
No paper copies of the dissertation are required by the Graduate School. If the academic program requires students to submit a bound copy of the dissertation, the department and student are responsible for obtaining the copy. The website of The Graduate School provides several options for dissertation binding.
Dissertation Defense
A dissertation must be successfully defended before the Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Committee. The dissertation defense should be no fewer than 30 days before the date of graduation.
Please consult the graduate director of the academic program for departmental, school, or college specific defense requirements, including scheduling procedures. The Graduate School requires that the dissertation defense be publicly announced. The Dissertation Defense Announcement (G-DDA) form must be submitted at least 14 days prior to the defense.
When the defense has been approved by the Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Committee, the signatures of the committee members must be obtained on the Dissertation Signature and Approval (G-DSF) form. The electronic submission of the dissertation will not have title page signatures; this is to prevent theft and unauthorized use of signatures that otherwise might occur. The graduate director of the academic program will also be asked to sign the G-DSF form to affirm that the dissertation follows The Chicago Manual of Style or another style manual endorsed by the program.
In addition, the student must complete the Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED) available on the website of The Graduate School. The G-DSF with signatures and the SED must be delivered to The Graduate School program coordinator who oversees the degree program. The G-DSF is to be submitted to the program coordinator in an envelope marked “Confidential.” The student may hand-deliver the completed SED and G-DSF to The Graduate School program coordinator or may send it through the mail.
The G-DSF and SED must be received by the final submission deadline in order for the student to be cleared for graduation.
Application for Graduation and Degree Audit
All students enrolled in a doctoral degree program must file the application for degree/graduation available on the website of the Office of the University Registrar with The Graduate School within the first 15 class days of the fall or spring semester in which the degree is to be awarded, or within the first 10 class days of Summer Session I if the degree is to be awarded at the end of the summer (even if the student does not plan to take courses until the second summer session). Although some departments do not require students to provide the academic program with copies of the application for graduation, The Graduate School recommends that students do provide a copy to the academic program to facilitate assessment of degree requirements. Applicants are encouraged to consult with the academic program to confirm that all requirements for graduation have been met.
Applications for graduation submitted after the announced filing deadline will be accepted if supported by a letter from the graduate director of the student’s program and accompanied by a late fee of $25, which increases by $25 every thirty days after the deadline. Deadlines are posted for each term on the official academic calendar of the University found on the website of the Office of the University Registrar. Any late application that lacks the supporting letter or late fee will be processed for the following term.
The Graduate School forwards the Application for Graduation form to the Office of the University Registrar to start the degree audit process. In VIP, students should view their Graduation Degree Application to confirm the accuracy of the information submitted and to correct any errors so the diploma is printed correctly. It is also important to inspect the VIP graduation degree application information to determine if there are any holds that will prevent issue of an official transcript or mailing of the diploma. At the end of the semester, the degree program and The Graduate School both assess for degree audit whether all requirements have been completed, and then forward a recommendation to the Registrar to approve or disapprove award of the degree.
At the time of graduation, the student’s cumulative gradepoint average (GPA) must be at least 3.00. Additionally, the student’s average on all grades recorded on the program of study for courses numbered 700 or above must be at least 3.00 and all courses listed on the program of study must be at least 3.00.
Degree Conferral
Upon confirmation of a clear degree audit, the degree will be posted by the Office of the University Registrar to the student’s official academic record. The degree award is posted to the student’s transcript within 6 weeks after the commencement ceremony. Degree candidates may wish to check periodically the Academics tab of VIP, Record of Academic Work for Advisement Only section, to see if the degree is posted. Diplomas will be mailed to the address recorded on the application for graduation via first class mail to U.S. addresses and via registered airmail to international addresses. Graduates may expect to receive the diploma within three months after the commencement exercises.
Note: Degrees cannot be awarded retroactively.
To pursue further graduate study after completion of a graduate degree, a student must submit a new application to The Graduate School.
Academic Regalia
Attendance at graduation ceremonies is optional. Academic regalia worn for the graduation ceremony is sold by the University Bookstore in the Russell House located on Greene Street in Columbia. To place an order for academic regalia to wear for graduation, please telephone the University Bookstore at 803-777-4160 or visit the website at http://sc.bkstore.com. You may also order academic regalia from the Bookstore via a downloadable form available; http://sc.bncollege.com/wcsstore/sc/images/ContentPhotos/Grad_gear_fax_form.pdf. The completed form may be hand-carried or faxed to the University Bookstore at 803-777-4018.
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