PHD Program Information
PhD students whose master’s degree was earned at another institution are reviewed for PhD Candidacy after they have completed at least eight Fletcher courses, presented their master’s thesis, and completed Fletcher’s foreign language proficiency exam. To be granted PhD Candidacy, students must have Fletcher grades averaging at least 3.6.
Once they are granted PhD Candidacy, PhD students generally take an average of just over five years to complete the degree, but the exact time varies according to the scope of each candidate’s research, the amount of time devoted to PhD studies, and the time needed to write the dissertation.
Graduation Requirements:
- Coursework
- MALD-to-PhD candidates: Pass 20 courses (including the 16 required for the MALD) and complete three Fields of Study.
- Candidates with other master’s degrees: Pass 12 courses and complete three Fields of Study. Students will be reviewed for PhD Candidacy after completion of eight courses.) Nine of the 12 must be Fletcher courses, while three can be pursued through cross-registration at another institution.
- Complete the PhD breadth requirement by completing at least two courses in two of the three divisions and at least one course from the remaining division. MALD recipients have already completed the breadth requirement.
- Fulfill the foreign language requirement .
- Submit a master’s thesis for evaluation by a Fletcher faculty member. For MALD degree holders, this is the MALD thesis. For other students, this could be a master’s thesis written prior to enrollment at Fletcher.
- After completion of eight courses with a grade point average of 3.6 or higher, be admitted to PhD candidacy by a vote of the PhD Admissions Committee. (MALD recipients are granted PhD Candidacy when they are admitted to the PhD program.)
- Pass a three-hour written comprehensive examination in each of three fields of study, plus a one-hour oral examination that will focus on issues raised in the written examinations, and will integrate the three fields of study. The comprehensive examinations test proficiency in the literature of the field.
- Successfully propose, research, and write a dissertation. The completed dissertation should bear evidence of independent research and should constitute a substantial contribution to the subject.
- Pass a public oral defense of the dissertation. This defense will be given after the dissertation has been accepted by the director and readers, and will cover the specific subject and general field of the dissertation.