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ADMISSION
REQUIREMENTS
The M.A. enables students to discover whether they should pursue the
Ph.D. and prepares them for admission to high quality doctoral programs
as well as for a wide variety of careers. As the only graduate
philosophy program in a public university in Louisiana, one of its
chief aims is to assist students who have not had the opportunity to
complete an undergraduate philosophy degree. The M.A. in philosophy
should help such students to develop the necessary background as well
as to determine whether to pursue doctoral level studies. The faculty,
therefore, welcomes qualified and motivated students who lack extensive
undergraduate work in philosophy.
Students who have completed at least 18 hours in philosophy, with
courses in history of philosophy, ethics and logic, are ideally
prepared for graduate work in philosophy. Incoming graduate students
who lack a strong background in philosophy will ordinarily be required
to focus first on developing the necessary basis for further studies.
This may include taking some undergraduate level courses. The
department’s Graduate Committee will decide what courses, if any,
each incoming graduate student will be required to take, taking into
account the student’s precise background and stated area(s) of
interest.
Any student who is required to take undergraduate level courses will be
informed of that when they are admitted to the program. In some cases
students will be allowed to attend the undergraduate level course, do
additional work for it (such as more reading and writing on its subject
matter), and get graduate credit for it. This will be accomplished by
having the student register for PHIL 4991: Independent Research.
GRADUATE ADVISOR
Incoming
students are automatically assigned to the Graduate Committee
Chairperson or to another member of the graduate faculty for advising.
It is the responsibility of the advisor to approve the student’s
schedule, to see that s/he follows the general guidelines of the
department, and to monitor the student’s general progress. It
should be kept in mind that the graduate faculty as a whole offers the
graduate program, and that each graduate student is free to discuss any
academic matter of concern with any member of the graduate faculty.
Serious problems should be referred to the Graduate Committee
Chairperson, a member of the Graduate Committee, or the Department
Chairperson. When a graduate student chooses a major professor (i.e.,
the thesis adviser) from the graduate faculty, the major professor will
assume the functions of the graduate advisor.
DEGREE
REQUIREMENTS
The
M.A., normally completed in two academic years, must be completed
within a maximum of three years. Exceptions to this rule will require
approval by the Graduate Committee. The work of each student will be
reviewed at the end of every semester in order to determine his/her
progress and the advisability of continuing graduate studies.
COURSE
REQUIREMENTS
There
are two avenues to the M.A. in philosophy: thesis and non-thesis.
Students who enter the M.A. program with adequate or ideal preparation
should bear in mind that writing an M.A. thesis at the end of three
semesters of course work can be just the right exercise of independent
thought and philosophical initiative to complement a period in which
their philosophical thinking has been nurtured by instructors. At
the same time, a variety of factors may combine to indicate that the
non-thesis route to the M.A. would be the better course.
The Philosophy Faculty does not require a minor in a related field; but
students who intend the M.A. degree in philosophy to be terminal and to
move to another field (for example, computer science, law, business) or
students who plan to move into some specialized area of philosophy
(such as medieval or ancient philosophy, philosophy of science) are
strongly encouraged to consider the advantage of a minor in the
relevant field outside philosophy.
THESIS OPTION
The thesis option requires 30 semester hours of graduate
work, 24 of which must be in course work and 6 of which must be in
thesis work. At least 15 of these 30 hours must be at the 7000-level or
above: three 7000-level seminars (9 hours) plus thesis research (6
hours). In each of the first three semesters of enrollment in the
program, students must take that 7000-level course which the Graduate
Committee designates the ‘M.A. Seminar.’ Exceptions to this
practice can be made only for sound academic reasons and must be
approved by the Graduate Committee. An external minor for thesis-option
students may be constructed by completing as many as 6 of the required
hours in an area outside philosophy but relevant to the student’s
philosophical work. The external minor must be approved by the Graduate
Committee.
At
the end of the first year of study, students intending to write a
thesis must submit a proposal (of no less than 1000 words) to the
Graduate Committee Chairperson, which may include recommendations for
members of the thesis committee. The entire graduate faculty will
meet to evaluate the proposal with respect to its viability (including
the likelihood of its timely completion) and to assign an appropriate
committee, if accepted. Early in the third semester the thesis
committee will meet with the student to conduct an oral discussion of a
more detailed thesis proposal, including a written sample from the
thesis. The completed thesis will be delivered to the committee
sometime near the midterm of the fourth semester and, if deemed
acceptable, will be followed by an oral defense and submitted to the
Graduate School in accord with the appropriate deadlines.
NON-THESIS
OPTION
The non-thesis option requires 36 hours of course work. To complete the
degree in two years, the non-thesis student must take four 7000-level
philosophy seminars plus two additional 7000-level courses. In each of
the four semesters of enrollment in the program, students must take
that 7000-level course which the Graduate Committee designates the
‘M.A. Seminar.’ Exceptions to this practice can be made
only for sound academic reasons and must be approved by the Graduate
Committee. Non-Thesis students may take as many as 12 hours outside the
department to constitute an external graduate minor. The external minor
must be approved by the Graduate Committee.
For
non-thesis students, an oral examination will be conducted in their
final semester based on work that they have accomplished in the
program. At the beginning of the fourth semester, the student
will submit three substantial papers that have been written for three
different professors in three different professors while in the
program. These papers should give evidence not only of the depth but of
the breadth of the student’s understanding of core areas in
philosophy. A three-person committee, chosen by the graduate faculty in
philosophy, will conduct the final oral exam in accord with the
appropriate deadlines of the Graduate School.
LANGUAGE
REQUIREMENTS
Normally a reading knowledge of at least one foreign language (French,
German, Latin, Greek) is required of candidates for the M.A. in
philosophy. Thesis topics which require research in a foreign language
will not be approved without demonstrated fluency in that language. In
accordance with the policy of the Graduate School, the Philosophy
Faculty will occasionally accept competence with respect to some
“Special research tool,” such as a computer language,
statistics, or a logical system. Such special research tools must be
demonstrably relevant to the pursuit of some project or possible
projects in philosophy. Students who anticipate fulfilling the
requirement in this way should consult with the Graduate Committee
early in the planning of their graduate program.
The Foreign Language Requirement may be satisfied in one of the three following ways:
(1) completion of a graduate reading course in the language with a grade of ‘B’ or
better;
(2) passing an examination administered by the faculty (translating
a philosophical text in the language)
(3) passing a national language test.
GRADES
The grade requirements of the Philosophy M.A. are those of the Graduate
School. Each student should carefully read, mark, and inwardly digest
the grade requirements and regulations of the Graduate School as given
in the Graduate School section of the LSU General Catalog.
ASSISTANTSHIPS
Graduate students who are granted assistantships will be notified in
writing as soon as possible after decisions on admissions and financial
awards are made. Appointments are ordinarily made on a yearly basis and
are renewable, though a student should not expect to hold an
assistantship for more than four semesters. Assistantships will be
granted and renewed on the basis of performance in course work and in
carrying out the duties of an assistant. Graduate assistants in
Philosophy do not have sole instructional responsibility for classes.
Their role is to assist the professor or professors to which they are
assigned. Typically, the graduate assistant will hold regular office
hours for student consultations and have the primary responsibility for
grading examinations and essays. S/he may also be asked by the
professor to undertake other responsibilities with respect to the
class, such as conduct review sessions or give an occasional
lecture. Faculty are expected to supervise the work of graduate
assistants, especially their grading, and to consider the
assistant’s work a part of graduate training in philosophy.
Full-time assistants are expected to work (on average) no more than
twenty hours per week in fulfilling the responsibilities of the
assistantship. Should the assigned workload require more than an
average of twenty hours per week, the assistant should inform the
supervising faculty member. Or the assistant may inform the Graduate
Committe Chairperson or any member of the Graduate Committee.
Each
faculty member assisted by a graduate assistant must complete an
evaluation of their performance, using the approved evaluation form,
for each graduate assistant in each semester of assistance. The faculty
member must hold a meeting with the graduate assistant in which s/he
presents the evaluation and discusses it with the assistant. The
assistant must sign the evaluation as an indication that the evaluation
was made and the meeting conducted. Should the assistant wish to take
formal exception to the supervising faculty member’s evaluation,
s/he may prepare a written statement addressed to the Chairperson for
Graduate Studies or to the department chair.
APPLICATIONS
Applications must be made to the Graduate School, to which transcripts
must be sent (not to the department). Letters of
Recommendation (usually three) as well as a writing sample (if the
student chooses to submit one) may be sent directly to the department
(although not by email). The department does not provide forms
for letters of recommendation but expects them to be submitted on the
letterhead of the recommender and either sent directly by them or
submitted by the applicant in an envelope that is signed on the
seal. Those students applying for a graduate assistantship should
see that their application is completed by February 15.
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