Philosophy

Overview

Requirements for the Philosophy degree at the Catholic University of America:

• Candidates must complete, in residence, two semesters of full-time study (or the equivalent). A minimum of eight three-credit graduate courses is required. Students may not repeat a graduate philosophy course in order to raise their grade.
• M.A. or Ph.L. degree candidates must complete all degree requirements within three years after admission to the program.
• Candidates must present a thesis, the title of which is to be submitted for approval by the faculty
• In order to hold the M.A. Oral Examination (see below), the thesis must first be approved by the director and the reader, and the final manuscript of the thesis must be deposited with the Office of the Dean of Graduate Studies. Those hoping to be counted among May graduates should be aware that the School of Philosophy's deadline for deposit of the thesis is one week prior to the final date for depositing theses and dissertations identified on the University's Academic Calendar.
• Detailed instructions about the preparation of the final copy and other procedures may be obtained from the Office of the Dean of Graduate Studies.
• Six credits are awarded for the thesis upon the completion of all other requirements for the degree.
• A written translation examination, administered by the School of Philosophy, in which the candidate demonstrates basic reading competence in either French, German, Greek, or Latin.
• An oral examination, of one hour, before four members of the faculty. The oral examination must take place before the end of the second semester after the semester in which the student completes required course work.
• Students are permitted to do doctoral course work before all requirements for the M.A. are completed, but such coursework neither entails admission to the Ph.D. program, nor itself constitutes an argument for admission to the Ph.D. program.

Language Requirements

For the master's degree or licentiate, a reading knowledge of French, German, Latin, or Greek is required. All language requirements must be fulfilled one year prior to the time of the presentation of the candidate's degree.In order to demonstrate reading knowledge in the requisite language, the student must pass a translation examination administered by the School of Philosophy. 

Students with no prior knowledge of French or German are advised to take the reading competency course in the language (GER 500 or FREN 500) offered every semester by the Department of Modern Languages before attempting the School of Philosophy examination.