Ph.D Degree Program

Credit hour requirements
The Graduate College requires 90 semester hours of graduate credit with at least 45 of these hours completed at UNL. The requirement of 90 semester hours is satisfied by credit hours earned in graduate courses and seminars (at least 54) and an appropriate number of hours (at least 20) in doctoral dissertation hours (Phil 999).

Grade requirement
Only graduate courses passed with a grade of B or better count in fulfillment of course requirements. Grades of B+ or higher are required in courses counting for core requirements and research seminar requirements.

Language or Research Tool Requirement
There is no general language or research tool requirement. However, a student's Supervisory Committee may require either reading ability in a foreign language or study in other departments if it determines that such ability or study is central to the student's dissertation research.

CORE REQUIREMENTS

Purpose
The core requirements insure that students possess a broad understanding of the central areas of philosophy and of the history of philosophy. Core courses are basic rather than comprehensive, and should be taken early in a student s career. We encourage graduate students admitted to the program without deficiencies to take the 800-level pro-seminar in their first year of graduate study if it is offered.

Requirements
To receive a Ph.D., students must demonstrate competence in each of the core areas. This is usually done by passing a core course in each area with at least a B+. Alternatively, an examination may be taken.

Courses taken to satisfy core requirements are normally completed in the semester in which they are taken. A student who takes a course to satisfy a core requirement but does not receive a grade of at least B+ may request a grade of incomplete . This request will be granted if the incomplete replaces a grade of B in the course, and otherwise only at the option of the instructor. Students will normally remove an incomplete in a core course by retaking the course the next time it is offered.

Core areas and courses

• Epistemology
  • 809: Theory of Knowledge
  • 817: Philosophy of Science
• Metaphysics
  • 818: Metaphysics
  • 805: Philosophy of Language
• Value Theory
  • 823: Advanced Ethics
• Logic
  • 811: Formal Logic I
• History of Ancient Philosophy
  • 850: Ancient Philosophy
• History of Modern Philosophy
  • 860: Modern Philosophy
  • 871: Kant

In any two-year period, the Department offers Phil 809, 811, 818, and 823, one per semester. Phil 850 and 860 are taught in alternate years. Phil 805, 814 and 871 are usually taught every other year.

Examination periods
Core examinations may be taken either between the fall and spring semesters, immediately after the spring semester, or immediately before the fall semester.

Research seminar Requirements

Purpose
The research seminar requirements aim at providing students with the skills needed for carrying out research in the main areas of philosophy. In general, students will take about half of their graduate courses at the research seminar (900) level.

Course requirements
Students must pass with a grade of B+ or better at least one research seminar (i.e. course at the 900 level) in each of these three areas:

• epistemology/metaphysics
• value theory
• history of philosophy.

The instructor of the seminar determines which area it falls in. Because the content of seminars changes, the area can change. But graduate seminars usually fall in these areas:

• epistemology/metaphysics: 903, 905, 913, 914, 915, 917, 923, 957
• value theory: 920, 921, 925
• history of philosophy: 950, 951, 952, 960, 971.

Area paper requirements

Students must submit and have a departmental area committee approve one paper in each of these three areas:

• epistemology/metaphysics
• value theory
• history of philosophy.

The last paper is the advancement-to-candidacy paper, and is in the area of the student's dissertation. The first two papers are usually in the other areas. The Graduate Committee may, in special circumstances, allow students to submit two papers in the same area (for example, because the student's dissertation area has changed since he/she submitted the first two area papers).

Area paper criteria

Basic criteria

• Clear statement of thesis.
• Precision in formulations.
• Clear logical structure to paper as a whole.
• Accurate representation of other philosophers' positions.
• Arguments which have some prima facie plausibility (e.g., that are not obviously invalid or unsound).
• Relevance of points made to the issues under discussion.
• Writing that satisfies a good literary standard with respect to clarity, brevity, concreteness, editing etc.
• Mastery of scholarly conventions for citations and references

Advanced criteria

• Scholarship: Does the paper indicate that the student knows how to search the literature for relevant works and integrate these into his or her argument structure?
• Originality: There are different kinds and degrees of originality one might look for in a philosophy paper. At a minimum, the paper should provide evidence that the student can think through the question being addressed on his/her own. In other words, for the paper to be acceptable, the student must make some sort of contribution to the discussion of the topic. Possible contributions include providing a novel and illuminating formulation of the issue or of a position, bringing together points or considerations in a novel and illuminating way, providing novel criticisms of a position, formulating a novel position, providing a novel argument for a position, or looking at an issue or discussion from a novel and illuminating perspective.

NOTE: Typically, every paper should give evidence of some degree of both scholarship and originality. However, if either the scholarship or the originality is particularly impressive, weakness on the other desideratum might be excused.

Addition for History Area Paper
The History area paper must be centrally concerned with interpreting some text or author, explaining the arguments or theories clearly and precisely. It should exhibit the argument or theory as plausible, or argue that it can't be represented as plausible. (The latter will rarely be true.) It may, but need not, then consider whether the argument or theory is in fact good or true. Considering secondary literature will not always be possible. But we strongly encourage you to use secondary literature when possible, since it can give you insight into the language and philosophical and other background of the author, which may otherwise be obtainable only through years of study.