The Ph.D. program in Anthropology provides students with the
theoretical and methodological knowledge to teach and undertake research in
archaeology or cultural anthropology. Students can attain both a Master's Degree
in Anthropology and a Doctorate in Anthropology. Ph.D. students can specialize in
Archaeology or in
Cultural Anthropology. Those students within the Cultural
Anthropology program can specialize in either in
"Medical Anthropology" or
"Globalization and International
Development". See further details under each program.
Applicants to the program generally have a
bachelor's degree from an accredited undergraduate program, most commonly in
anthropology or related behavioral and social sciences. We also accept students
who have completed or are in the process of completing a Masters degree from
another university. Successful applicants are expected to continue through to
the Ph.D., but must complete the requirements for the Master's Degree in
Anthropology en route.
The degree of Doctor of Philosophy is awarded
in recognition of high attainment in a special field of knowledge, as evidenced
by examination and by a dissertation presenting the results of significant and
original research. General requirements are listed below.
Residence and Course Work
The Ph.D. degree normally requires at least 60
hours of graduate work. The 60 hours may include research, reading and
dissertation courses.
A minimum of 54 semester hours of coursework
is required in both the archaeology program and the cultural anthropology
program. For archaeology students, coursework usually will include six hours (in
ANTH 5381 and 5382, or 5681) taken at the Fort Burgwin field school, preferably
during the summer after the first year of coursework at SMU. Students can
petition for credit for appropriate alternative field school or fieldwork
experience. All students are also expected to take a zero-credit teaching
seminar (6034). Archaeology students are also required to enroll in a proseminar
in archaeological ethics (6033).
After completing 54 hours of coursework,
students fulfill the 60-hour requirement by taking 6 hours of dissertation
research--ANTH 8100, 8200, 8398, 8399, 8698, 8699.
Normally, a transfer student may be granted up
to 24 hours of credit. In unusual cases, additional transfer credit may be
granted with the approval of the Graduate Dean.
Continuous registration is required of
Ph.D. students and is their responsibility. Students undertaking full time
research off campus may petition the department for a research leave of a
maximum of two years. The Department will inform the Office of Research and
Graduate Studies of all research leaves. Students who do not register for two
consecutive semesters without research leave will have to reapply for admission
to the program. Students who do not register for one semester without research
leave may petition the Graduate Dean for re-instatement of their student status.
After a student has completed the required minimum credit hours toward the Ph.D.
program, registration for research is possible without hourly credit or grades
for four additional semesters (ANTH 7000--Research, ANTH 8049--Graduate
Full-Time Status).
The minimum resident requirement is a total of 30 semester
hours completed within three years of residence at SMU. Foreign students may
need to satisfy additional residence requirements to comply with INS
regulations.
TOP
The Normal Sequence for Completing Ph.D. Requirements
- 1.Coursework, including petitions for waivers of requirements and/or hours, and
petitions for transfer credit.
- 2.Passing the MA written exam (see later instructions)
- 3.Selection of Ph.D. Qualifying Exam Committee (including an outside member)
- 4.Language exam (based on reading and translation proficiency in a language relevant to your field of study).
- 5.Removal of all grades of Incomplete.
- 6.Ph.D. Qualifying Exams (written and oral parts)
- 7.Selection of a Dissertation Committee (usually but not necessarily the same composition as the Qualifying Exam Committee).
- 8.Field research.
- 9.Dissertation writing.
- 10.Defense of dissertation.
- 11.Granting of Degree (May, Aug., Dec.).
NOTE: The MA degree is awarded to students in
the Ph.D. program after they have satisfactorily completed 36 hours of
coursework, and passed the MA general examination. A student advances to
doctoral candidacy (ABD) after completing the Ph.D. qualifying exams.
Proposal and Dissertation Defenses must be
scheduled during the academic year (between the first and last day of class in
the fall semester and the first and last day of class in the spring semester).
These dates coincide with dates outlined by the Office of the Dean of Research
and Graduate Studies and are linked to the awarding of particular degrees.
Faculty members are on ten-month contracts and thus no exams should be scheduled
during the summer months. If students for some reason need to schedule an exam
during that time or at any other time beyond the dates specified above, they
must formally petition the members of their committee. Unless all members of a
committee are able and willing to meet, the petition will be denied. Faculty
members are under no obligation to sit for exams and defenses on university
holidays or during the summer months.
TOP
Language Examination
A student may elect any language in which to
be examined, but must, however, demonstrate to the faculty that this language is
relevant to the student’s area of anthropological concern.
No student may use English as a foreign
language. Foreign students, who are not native speakers of English, may use
their native language to meet Departmental requirements only if that language
meets the criteria for relevance set forth above. Neither coursework taken prior
to your entry into our programs nor exams other than those listed below can be
considered as a waiver for this requirement.
Graduate students have three options in taking
a language examination:
OPTION 1. The student may elect to be examined by an examiner
from the Department of Anthropology. Examiners will be faculty members named by
the Chair, and will hold office for the length of time specified by the Chair.
An examiner may refuse to give an examination. The examination, as given within
the Department, will consist of two parts given sequentially.
A. The student will be given a passage of
approximately 1,000 words (about four double-spaced, typed pages) from one or
more articles or publications in his/her area of interest, to translate into
good English. Dictionaries or their books and reference works may be used, but
personal assistance is not allowed. This written translation will be completed
within two hours.
B. Upon passing the written translation
portion of the examination, the student will be given two passages, each of
approximately 72 words, and will be required to give an oral "sight
translation" in the presence of the examiner. The student will be given
five minutes to study each passage before beginning the translation. No aids of
any kind may be used during this portion of the examination.
In all cases, the materials used for the
language examination will be chosen by the examiner to fit with the student’s
major topical interests in the field of Anthropology, and an effort will be made
to be as specific as possible. A student may present, in advance, appropriate
material consisting of at least 200 pages. If the examiner approves, several
pages from this material totaling approximately 1000 words will be translated
during the exam. All translations must be in acceptable, fluent English, as is
common in written American usage. Within the time limits imposed, students must
translate the required passages, interpreting accurately such things as genders,
tenses, idiomatic expressions, and other such linguistic features, which may not
always have literal English equivalents, so as to furnish evidence that they are
familiar with the language they have chosen.
There is no limit to the number of attempts a
student may make at passing the language requirement; nor is a student compelled
to take the same examination option after a failed attempt. Students may retake
failed examinations at any time, subject only to the dates which may be set
forth by the Educational Testing Service, the Department of Foreign Languages at
SMU, or the work schedule of the Anthropology Department examiner.
Notification of a pass will be submitted in
writing to the Director of Graduate Studies by either the Departmental examiner
or the examiner in the Foreign Languages Department. Results of ETS exams are
normally communicated to the academic institution concerned; students should
check with the Director of Graduate Studies.
OPTION 2. The student may elect to take examinations given by
the Education Testing Service of Princeton, New Jersey. Details are available
from the Foreign Languages Department on points such as type of exam, dates and
places of administration, required fee, etc. The percentile score deemed passing
by the Department of Anthropology may be different from that accepted by other
Departments, as long as it is consistent with over all University policy.
OPTION 3. The
student may elect to be examined by the Foreign Languages Department at SMU. In
this case, one should consult both with the Director of Graduate Studies in the
Department of Anthropology, as well as with the Department of Foreign Languages,
to ascertain their exam fees. The Director of Graduate Studies in Anthropology
must approve the material submitted to the Foreign Language Department. In case
of failure, the Foreign Language Department will not reexamine before 30 days
has elapsed.
Note: The Department will consider exams taken
as part of the Fulbright Application as a substitute. Consult with the Director
of Graduate Students or the Department Chair.
TOP
Grade of Incomplete
If you have been given an
"Incomplete" and your record shows an "I" for any course
previously taken in the program, you must remove this within one year.
The Graduate School has stated, "Grades of I not removed within a calendar
year normally will be converted to F; grades of I given in a summer session must
be completed by the end of the following spring semester. The instructor
assigning the grade I stipulates to the student in writing at the time the grade
is given, the conditions under which the I may be changed." Forms are
available in the Departmental office and must be filled out before an I can be
assigned. An "I" grade is not yours to take but is given at the
prerogative of the instructor. The Department frowns on Incompletes.
The M.A. Degree
The MA degree is conferred after successful completion of 36
hours of course work (a combination of required and elective hours) taken over
four semesters and a passing grade on the General Examination (MA Examination).
Students who have previously completed a Master's degree at another university
must successfully complete a minimum of 12-18 hours of coursework, and also pass
the General Examination (MA examination) en route into the Ph.D. program. See
the particular program descriptions for more detailed discussion of both MA and
Ph.D. degree requirements.
Admission to Candidacy
To be admitted to candidacy, the student must
satisfy the language requirements, remove all incompletes, and must pass the
Ph.D. qualifying examination. Upon completion of these requirements, the
department will recommend to the Dean that the student be admitted to candidacy.
The recommendation will be made within five months of the qualifying
examination. Supporting documents will include the student’s degree plan and
the qualifying examination report (ORGS Form 1).
Time Limits
Ordinarily a student registered for full-time
study should take the Ph.D. qualifying examination at the time specified in each
degree program. Students should consult the Graduate Bulletin for further
information on time limits.
The doctoral dissertation should be submitted
and accepted within five years, after the student has been admitted to
candidacy. An extension of one year can be granted by the Dean. After this time,
the students will be dropped from candidacy and can be readmitted only by
passing a second qualifying examination, except under special circumstances. In
such cases, new time limits will be set by the student’s committee with the
approval of the Dean.
Time spent on research leaves will not be
counted as part of the time limit. If a student must take an unavoidable leave
of absence for medical or family reasons, leaves may be granted without
affecting time limits. The decision to grant such a leave of absence will be
made by the department and approved by the Graduate Dean. In the case of
part-time students, time limit requirements will be interpreted appropriately to
allow for their part-time status.
Ordinarily, credit is not allowed for graduate
courses (including transfers) that are more than six years old from the time of
the qualifying examination. Should the time limits be exceeded, a department may
petition the Dean to revalidate the credits. Approval is granted only in cases
of exceptional merit.
Dissertation
A candidate for the doctoral degree must
present an acceptable dissertation within the major field of study. It must
demonstrate that the candidate has technical competence in the field and has
done research of an independent character. It must add to and modify what was
previously known, or present a significant interpretation of the subject based
on original investigation.
The candidate is required by the department to
present the prospectus for the dissertation to a faculty committee. When this
committee accepts the candidate’s dissertation plan, the Dissertation Adviser
will transmit a Dissertation Topic Report (ORGS Form 2) to the Office of
Research and Graduate Studies for inclusion in the candidate’s file.
Dissertation Defense
The defense is an examination administered by
the student’s Dissertation Committee. The examination is on the student’s
dissertation and related material. The Dissertation Committee shall consist of
(1) the mentor, who will serve as chair; (2) at least two other full-time
members of the candidate’s major department; (3) and at least one external
reviewer who is either a faculty member outside the candidate’s department or,
with the approval of the department chair and the Graduate Dean, a scholar not
associated with the university. If an external reviewer is not an SMU faculty
member, a copy of that reviewer’s vita must be submitted to the Graduate Dean
when the Director of Graduate Studies formalizes the Dissertation Committee. For
all candidates, the major adviser (or designate) must be a full-time member of
the department. Faculty members with joint appointments (excluding courtesy
appointments) are considered internal members of the department only and may not
serve as outside members of the committee. The Dissertation Committee is
appointed by the department chair or the director of graduate studies with the
approval of the Dean, well before the dissertation defense. Faculty members in
the Division of Sociology can be considered as external reviewers.
The examination is open to the public, and
will be conducted by the committee and by any other members of the faculty who
care to attend as non-voting members. The chair of the examining committee will
set a date, hour, and place for the examination which is agreeable to the
committee members and the candidate, with notification at least three days in
advance. Notice of the dissertation defense should be distributed to all
department faculty, the Dean of the College and the Graduate Dean. A unanimous
vote of the committee is necessary for approval of the examination. Students who
fail the examination may be given a second examination, at a time to be
determined by the committee, but not later than one year after the initial
examination. Those who fail the examination the second time are thereby
disqualified for a degree. The examination report will be forwarded to the Dean
for certification of the candidate for graduation (ORGS Form 3).
Preparing Dissertation for Submission
The basic requirements for preparing the
dissertation are outlined in the Thesis/Dissertation Guide, copies of
which are available in the Office of Research and Graduate Studies.
The dissertation must be completed to the
satisfaction of the student’s dissertation adviser and Dissertation Committee,
and the Office of Research and Graduate Studies. Deadlines for the submission of
dissertations are outlined at the beginning of each semester. Upon successful
completion of the dissertation defense, an original half-title page must be
signed by the Dissertation Committee. Both microfilming and copyrighting are
optional. Students are responsible for all fees, including those for binding,
microfilming, and copyrighting. Students should consult with the Director of
Graduate Studies concerning the minimum number of copies of the Dissertation
that are required.
In submitting a dissertation, the student
grants permission to the Director of Libraries at SMU to make copies at the
Director’s discretion, upon the request of individuals or institutions.
TOP
