Doctoral Degree

Admission Students are admitted for the fall quarter of each academic year only. The basic requirement for admission into the Ph.D. Program is a bachelor's degree or its equivalent from an accredited institution with a major in any subject field.

Admission to the graduate program is based on the following criteria:

• 1. Prior academic performance, especially in

undergraduate or graduate classes in Ethnic Studies or related fields.

• 2. Performance on the GRE.

• 3. Letters of recommendation from three per-

sons familiar with an applicant’s potential for achieving academic excellence; at least two of the letters must be from professors in the applicant’s major subject.

• 4. The extent to which an applicant’s areas of

interest coincide with teaching and research emphases in the department.

• 5. Quality of the writing sample submitted.

Applicants to the graduate program are required to submit a copy of a professional paper or term paper with their application to meet the writing sample requirement. This paper should not exceed 15-double spaced pages.

• 6. Completed application and materials

required from Graduate Division.

Applicants who lack adequate undergraduate preparation in Ethnic Studies must make up such deficiencies before work can be credited toward the graduate program. A detailed statement of degree requirements and procedures for the graduate degree is available on the Ethnic Studies website at www.ethnicstudies.ucr.edu. General Graduate Division university requirements are on the Graduate Division website at www.graduatedivision.ucr.edu and in the Graduate Studies section of this catalog.

Coursework All students, including those who have a master’s degree at the time of admis- sion, must complete the basic core curriculum.

Course Requirements The core Ethnic Studies graduate curriculum consists of two theory courses (ETST 200 and 201) and one method- ology course (ETST 203). Where appropriate, students are encouraged to take an additional course in methodology (quantitative or qualita- tive), in addition to ETST 203. Students are also required to enroll in and attend the Ethnic Studies Colloquium during each quarter of the first two years of graduate work.

Students with extensive graduate training in a core course area at another graduate school may petition the Graduate Affairs Committee to be examined by a special faculty committee for possible exemption from that core requirement. 278 / Programs and Courses

During the second year students will begin to select courses that are relevant to one or more of the following areas of specialization:

Area I: Theories of Race and Power

Area II: Cultural Politics and Production

Area III: The State, Law, and Social Transformation

Students are also encouraged to supplement regular curricular offerings by initiating individ- ual or small-group reading courses with appro- priate Ethnic Studies faculty (ETST 290’s etc.) or with affiliated faculty in other CHASS depart- ments.

First-year core requirements:

ETST 200 (Fall) History of Ideas in Ethnic Studies

ETST 201 (Winter) Contemporary Theories in Ethnic Studies

ETST 203 (Spring) Methodologies in Ethnic Studies

ETST 289 (Fall, Winter, Spring) Departmental Colloquium

Second-year core requirements:

ETST 289 (Fall, Winter, Spring) Departmental Colloquium

Period of Specialization Students are expected to pick an area or areas of specialization. They are expected to consult with faculty who consti- tute the membership of each standing special- ization committee. Under faculty guidance, a student is expected to undertake a program of graduate seminars, directed reading courses, and research experiences in preparation for examination in one or more of the three areas of specialization.

Research and Teaching Requirements A stu- dent’s program must include at least one aca- demic quarter of supervised research through enrollment in ETST 297 and/or by working as a research assistant. The equivalent of at least one academic quarter of college classroom teaching is also required of all students.

Grades A student must complete courses in the core curriculum and the specialization areas with a grade of “B” or better in each course.

Written and Qualifying Examinations

Qualifying Examination 1 - Written

Graduate students will be required to success- fully complete a written examination by the end of the winter quarter of the second year. The exam will test the student’s knowledge of the methodological and theoretical foundations of the field of Ethnic Studies and will cover mate- rial from the required core courses as well as more specialized courses in the student’s area(s) of specialization. A three-person stand- ing faculty committee evaluates the Qualifying Examination 1. On the basis of a favorable rec- ommendation from this faculty committee, the faculty votes to recommend the awarding of the M.A. degree in Ethnic Studies. If the M.A. is awarded, or if the student already has an M.A. in Ethnic Studies, the faculty then votes on whether the student should continue in the Ph.D. program.

Qualifying Examination 2 - Oral

Students will be required to complete an oral exam by the end of the winter quarter of their third year. In preparation for this examination, students will be required to complete three written field statements that pertain to theoreti- cal, methodological, and substantive foci relat- ed to preparation of the dissertation. The com- pletion of these field statements is followed by an oral defense.

As an integral part of the Qualifying Ph.D. Examination, the Ph.D. candidate shall also prepare a written prospectus outlining the topic, thesis, methods, resources, and timeline for completion of the dissertation. This should be turned in no later than the Fall quarter of their fourth year.

Foreign Language Requirement There is no for- mal language requirement. However, in certain research areas a language requirement may be required if it is deemed that the language is germane to the student's research. In those cases where foreign language is required, com- petency can be established either by present- ing evidence of satisfactory completion of the UCR Language Placement Exam, or by means of a translation test administered by the Graduate Affairs Committee.

Dissertation and Final Oral Examination Doctoral candidates who have advanced to candidacy will research and write a dissertation under the direction of a Dissertation Committee. The dis- sertation should focus on a specific aspect of the candidate’s field of study and must con- form to the format prescribed by the Graduate Council. An oral defense of the dissertation may be required, at the discretion of the Dissertation Committee.

Normative time to degree: The normative time for completion of the Ph.D. degree is six years.