Source: https://bulletin.fordham.edu/gsas/resources/handbook/requirements/
Timestamp: 2019-04-18 19:14:09+00:00

Document:
Candidates for graduate degrees must comply with the requirements of both the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the department or program in which they are matriculated in order to be considered in good standing. GSAS policies represent only the minimum requirements, and departments and programs may impose additional requirements and higher standards. Students should review their department or program’s website for information regarding requirements. Please visit the GSAS Graduate Programs web page for a list of the departments and programs.
Students must meet GSAS requirements, unless granted an exemption by the dean after consultation with the department chairperson or program director.
Complete satisfactorily 30 credits of coursework without a thesis.
Master’s students must maintain a “B” average (or 3.0 cumulative GPA) in master’s-level coursework (see Satisfactory Academic Performance). Please refer to GSAS Program and Degree Requirements for information on specific program requirements.
Students matriculated in doctoral programs are typically required to complete a minimum of 60 credits of graduate-level coursework as well as a dissertation. Doctoral students must maintain a “B+” average (or 3.5 cumulative GPA) in doctoral coursework.
Students admitted to a Ph.D. program with a master’s degree are required to complete a minimum of 30 additional credits within their matriculated program and will not be admitted with a GPA below a “B+” (or 3.5 cumulative GPA) in their master’s coursework.
Students in advanced certificate programs must maintain a “B” average (or 3.0 cumulative GPA) in coursework taken for the advanced certificate degree.
With authorization of the dean, up to 12 credits of graduate work completed at Fordham may be applied to fulfill the requirements of degrees granted in other departments or programs.
Students who wish to substitute courses from other institutions for specific departmental or programmatic requirements must submit a Waiver of Requirements form, available at GSAS Student Resources.
No more than 12 credits toward a degree may be taken during summer sessions, unless the student is registered for a special summer program.
Students may submit graduate work completed at other institutions during the five years prior to matriculation for partial fulfillment of course requirements, subject to the approval of the department chairperson or program director, and the dean.
To transfer credit, students must consult with the department and complete the Transfer of Advanced Credit form, available at GSAS Student Resources. This form must be submitted to the chairperson or program director for approval, accompanied by an official transcript of the intended transfer credits. Once approved, the form should be submitted to the Office of Academic Programs for approval.
Transfer credits applied to the master’s degree must reflect a grade of “B” (3.0) or higher, and transfer credits applied to the doctoral degree must reflect a grade of “B+” (3.5) or higher. No more than six transfer credits will be accepted for any degree.
Transfer credits will not be approved until students have successfully completed at least 12 credits of coursework in their matriculated program, which must reflect the GPA requirements defined above (see General Requirements) at the time of transfer. Grades from transfer credits are not included in the calculation of a student’s Fordham GPA.
Advanced credit will not exempt students from any part of their comprehensive examinations.
Students must complete the requirements for their degree, including thesis or dissertation work, in a timely and expeditious manner: that is, within five years of first matriculation for master’s students, and within eight years of first matriculation for doctoral students (see Master’s Degree and Doctoral Degree). “Direct” doctoral students (students who receive a master’s degree in curso from Fordham) have a time limit of ten years to complete their degree. The ten-year time limit also applies to students entering a Ph.D. program immediately after receiving a master’s degree from Fordham. Time limits on the completion of degree are rigorously enforced.
In addition to having an important academic purpose, the number of years to degree is monitored by the New York State Department of Education (NYSED) and other institutions concerned with graduate programs, and is often one indicator of the quality of a graduate program.
Students failing to maintain continuous enrollment (e.g. having voluntarily withdrawn from their degree program) who seek to reenroll such that they would exceed or have already exceeded the original time limits of their degree, must apply for readmission (see Readmission). As part of their application, students must present a timetable for successfully completing all renewed degree requirements, retaking expired courses, re-demonstrating language/research competency (see §7.5 Language Requirements), retaking comprehensive examinations (see §7.6 Comprehensive Examinations), and resubmitting the dissertation proposal. If permission to resume studies is granted, failure to adhere to this timetable could result in dismissal.
“Academic performance” refers to a student’s maintenance of a given cumulative grade point average (see Satisfactory Academic Performance below) and is primarily applicable to the “coursework” portion of a student’s degree program.
“Academic progress” refers to a student’s continued matriculation and timely completion of degree requirements (see Satisfactory Academic Progress below), and most often measures a student’s progress following his or her satisfactory completion of program coursework.
In order to be eligible for funding, a student must meet both GSAS academic performance and academic progress standards as well as U.S. Department of Education Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) criteria, which identify strict guidelines to assess student eligibility for assistance. Conversely, a student who fails to meet GSAS satisfactory academic performance and/or progress goals will in most cases fail to qualify for federal loans.
Students who do not meet the standards for satisfactory academic performance and/or satisfactory academic progress are automatically placed on academic probation without notice. If the deficiency is not corrected, the dean, in consultation with the department chairperson or program director, may dismiss the student from the University.
Minimum satisfactory academic performance is defined as having a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 (“B” average) in a master’s program and of at least 3.5 (“B+” average) in a doctoral program, as well as enrollment in the full time equivalent of coursework (see Full Time Status of Certification and Appendix D). Students failing to complete the full time equivalent of coursework may also fail to meet the conditions for satisfactory academic progress (see Satisfactory Academic Progress below).
Any student receiving GSAS funding or tuition scholarships must also maintain a cumulative 3.5 (“B+” average) as a minimal requirement for continuation of aid.
Students who fall below the required grade point average may not take comprehensive examinations without the dean’s permission (see §7.6 Comprehensive Examinations).
Note also that administrative “F” grades (see §6.2 Incomplete Coursework) are computed as “F” grades (0.0) for the purpose of determining the cumulative grade point average.
Minimum satisfactory academic progress is defined as completing at least one requirement pertaining to either comprehensive examinations or a dissertation/thesis per year, following the semester in which coursework is completed (see §5.3 Registration Procedures and Special Categories, §7.7 Master’s Degree, and §7.8 Doctoral Degree).
For master’s students, requirements include the comprehensive examination and the thesis or capstone in certain departments (see §7.7 Master’s Degree).
For doctoral students, requirements include the comprehensive examination, the dissertation proposal, dissertation chapters, and the dissertation defense (see §7.8 Doctoral Degree).
Departments or programs may impose interim requirements for satisfactory academic progress at any time. Markers of unsatisfactory progress may include an excessive number of withdrawals, incompletes, semesters on maintenance, leaves of absence, or other delays in meeting the requirements for the degree.
Students who do not make satisfactory academic progress toward a degree may be dropped from the rolls of the university, even if they continue to meet satisfactory academic performance requirements and/or have not exhausted their time limit toward the degree.
Students who do not complete at least one requirement each year are automatically placed on academic probation without notice. Such students must fulfill the requirement and file, within one semester of being put on academic probation, a mandatory timetable for completing all remaining requirements. The timetable must include at least one deadline per semester (e.g. “complete chapters 1 to 3 of the dissertation in the 2013 fall semester”). If the requirement remains unfulfilled by the end of the semester, or if subsequent timetable deadlines are not met, the dean, in consultation with the department chairperson or program director, may dismiss the student from the University.
Doctoral students who have not secured approval of their dissertation proposal at least five semesters before the expiration of their time limit are automatically placed on academic probation without notice. Such students must secure approval of the dissertation proposal and a timetable for completion of the dissertation within one semester of being put on probation. If either the proposal or timetable are not approved by the end of the semester, the dean, in consultation with the department chairperson or program director, may dismiss the student from the University.
An individual student’s requirements for academic progress may be affected by the time remaining until the student reaches the time limit for degree completion (see §7.3 Time Limit on Completion of Degree).
Students should consult their departments or programs regarding language and/or skills requirements and how these are to be met.
Master’s students are often required to possess a reading knowledge of either French or German. Other languages may be substituted with the permission of the department chairperson or program director, and the dean, if appropriate to the student’s field of scholarship.
Doctoral students are typically required to possess a reading knowledge of two modern languages (usually French and German, or other languages appropriate to the student’s field of scholarship). At the discretion of the department or program and with the approval of the dean, a student may be allowed to substitute necessary research skills, such as computer programming or statistics, for a second language. In some cases, more than two languages may be required, if deemed necessary for the student’s research.
Individual departments or programs determine what constitutes satisfaction of the language requirement, though in most instances this may be accomplished either by passing a graduate “Language for Reading” course with a final grade of “B” or higher, or by passing one of the language examinations offered by the Department of Modern Languages with a grade of “B” or higher (refer to individual departments for details). Such exams are usually administered the week before the beginning of the fall and spring semesters, and are roughly equivalent in difficulty to the final examinations of graduate “Language for Reading” courses.
Students who wish to take language exams should schedule an appointment by contacting the modern languages department at least two weeks before the beginning of either the fall or spring semester. Completed exams will be corrected within two weeks, and departments or programs will be notified of students’ grades.
Language requirements must be fulfilled before GSAS will certify comprehensive examination results. Students are encouraged to fulfill language and other skill requirements as early as possible, for use in coursework and research.
Language requirements satisfied at other institutions are typically not accepted in fulfillment of GSAS language requirements.
Applications for all comprehensive examinations must be approved in writing by the chairperson or program director two weeks prior to the examination date. In order to qualify for comprehensive examinations, students must be in good academic standing (see §7.4 GSAS Standards for Satisfactory Academic Performance and Satisfactory Academic Progress; Federal Satisfactory Academic Progress [SAP]) with a GPA at or above the minimum requirement for the degree (3.0 for master’s students, 3.5 for doctoral students). Additionally, students must have completed their language requirements and must have completed or be in the process of completing required coursework for their degree program before comprehensive exams will be certified. If a student takes a comprehensive examination without meeting these prerequisites, the results will not be certified by the dean or posted to the student’s official record.
If a student fails the master’s or doctoral comprehensive examination, the failure is not posted to the student’s final transcript, and the student may be permitted to take a second examination the following semester (or later) with the recommendation of the department chairperson or program director and the approval of the dean.
If a student fails to pass the comprehensive examination a second time, s/he is not permitted to retake the examination. The failure is posted to the student’s final transcript, and s/he will be dismissed from the program.
Details for retaking comprehensive examinations, in whole or in part, should be discussed with the department chairperson or program director. Candidates taking comprehensive examinations for the second time pay the fee listed in the GSAS fee schedule.
All requirements for the master’s degree must be completed within five years of the first semester of matriculation in the GSAS. Time limit requirements apply to both full and part time students.
At the end of their third year, the dean’s office typically will inform students that they are approaching the five-year time limit and of the nature of the extension policy. At the beginning of their fifth year, the dean’s office typically will inform students that they have only one year remaining.
Students who plan to seek an extension to the five-year time limit must apply before the conclusion of their fifth academic year. Such a request must be directed in writing through the department chairperson or program director, and must receive the written approval of the dean. Requests for extensions must include a timetable, approved by the chairperson or director for the completion of degree requirements. Failure to adhere to the timetable or to meet other conditions may result in dismissal.
Re-demonstrate language competency if more than three years have elapsed since the original completion of their language requirement.
Demonstrate the currency of their knowledge for any courses taken prior to the request for extension, and departments may require that they retake certain courses.
Retake and pass comprehensive examinations in the department or program’s current format if more than three years have elapsed since any portion of the comprehensive examination was originally passed.
Meet any additional requirements imposed by the dean after consultation with the department chairperson or program director, and must maintain continuous enrollment (see §5.1 Continuous Enrollment Policy) until all requirements are completed.
If a student chooses or is required to complete a master’s thesis, s/he must enroll for six credits of thesis research as prescribed by the program (see §5.3.1 Registration Process for Master’s Students).
A master’s thesis committee must consist, at minimum, of a thesis director (mentor) and one reader. Committee members are specified, along with the thesis topic, on the Thesis Title Approval form (see GSAS Student Resources), which is submitted to GSAS by the department chairperson or program director. The department chairperson or program director is responsible for ensuring that the committee is professionally appropriate.
An oral defense of the master’s thesis is not required by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, but may be a program requirement. If this is a program requirement, the student must be physically present at the defense, and may not participate by any means of distance communication (e.g. Skype, videoconferencing, teleconferencing, telephone).
The master's thesis should be uploaded to ProQuest/UMI using the following link: http://www.etdadmin.com/fordham.
The uploaded thesis should be in its final version, including any changes required by the committee and in the proper format as indicated in Appendix E. All other requirements for the master's degree must be completed before the thesis is uploaded to ProQuest/UMI.
For style requirements, formatting, and the materials required for the completion of the master’s thesis, see Appendix E.
Some departments require master’s research papers, projects, or internships. The approval forms for these projects are submitted to GSAS as part of the last requirement for the degree. Students in these departments should consult their departments about requirements for these projects.
After all other degree requirements have been met, students must upload the master’s thesis to ProQuest/UMI and submit all final thesis paperwork by the deadline listed in the GSAS Academic Calendar, generally the Friday before the last day of classes for May graduation, and two weeks before the August and February graduations. Exceptions to this date will be granted only under unusual circumstances outside of the student’s control and must be requested by the student’s mentor. Theses will not be accepted when the University is officially closed.
Final thesis paperwork containing signatures must be submitted to adgsas@fordham.edu by the deadline listed.
Once the thesis and paperwork have been reviewed, students will be informed that they have been cleared for graduation.
one Thesis Prepared under my Direction sheet, signed by the mentor and readers.
(If oral defense is required by the department): the Report on Oral Defense form, signed by the adviser, readers, and one examiner.
All requirements for the doctoral degree must be completed within eight years of the first semester of matriculation in GSAS for those students who enter with a master’s degree from another institution, or within ten years of the first semester of matriculation for those students who are direct doctoral students (students who receive a master’s degree in curso from Fordham) or who complete a master’s degree from Fordham and then continue directly into a doctoral program. Time limit requirements apply to both full and part time students.
Completion of the appropriate number of graduate credits (see §7.1 General Requirements).
A language and/or research skills requirement (see §7.5 Language Requirements).
Comprehensive examination (see §7.6 Comprehensive Examinations).
Presentation of the dissertation to the dean (see §7.8.5 Presentation of the Dissertation to the Dean).
Students who plan to seek an extension to the doctoral time limit must apply before the conclusion of their final academic year. Such a request must be directed in writing through the department chairperson or program director; must be approved by the dissertation mentor, readers, and the department chairperson; and must receive the written approval of the dean. An extension to the time limit for degree completion will be granted only if, in the dean’s judgment, there is sufficient evidence that the degree will be completed expeditiously and that the dissertation will be of high merit.
Students must meet any additional requirements imposed by the dean after consultation with the department chairperson or program director, and must maintain continuous enrollment (see §5.1 Continuous Enrollment Policy) until all requirements are complete. Failure to adhere to the timetable or to meet other conditions may result in disenrollment. Students may petition to have one or more of these requirements adapted to their particular situation, but approval of such a petition is not guaranteed.
To many scholars, the dissertation is the distinguishing characteristic of the Ph.D. degree, and the quality of the dissertations is a primary hallmark of the quality of a doctoral program. The doctoral dissertation is expected to make a substantial original contribution to knowledge in its field. The dissertation must be a rigorous and sustained piece of research work whose objective is also to demonstrate that the candidate has gained a mastery that qualifies him or her to be admitted to the community of scholars in the discipline.
For style requirements, formatting, and the materials required for the completion of the dissertation, see Appendix F.
ProQuest/UMI for electronic publishing. The record is then available through the Walsh Library's online database collection. In some cases, a bound copy is delivered to the student's department for inclusion in the department library.
After completing doctoral comprehensive examinations, it is, at all times, the responsibility of the student to establish and maintain a satisfactory relationship with a faculty mentor approved by the chairperson and the dean while preparing a dissertation. Continuation in the doctoral program is contingent upon the approved mentor’s availability and agreement to the dissertation topic.
The membership of a student’s dissertation committee must consist of at least a mentor and two readers, each of whom must a full time faculty member in the student’s department or program at Fordham. Members of the committee are specified, along with the dissertation topic, on the Dissertation Title Approval form (available at GSAS Student Resources), which is submitted to the dean’s office by the department chairperson or program director. The department chairperson or program director is responsible for ensuring that the committee is professionally appropriate.
Upon the dean’s approval of a student’s dissertation title and committee, a copy of the Dissertation Title Approval form is sent to the student. For any changes made to the dissertation title or committee membership, a Revised Dissertation Title Approval form (available at GSAS Student Resources) must be prepared by the department chairperson or program director, and sent to the dean’s office for approval. Failure to submit revisions to the dissertation title or committee may result in a delay in graduation.
Students sometimes have the opportunity to present or publish their scholarly work or ideas from the dissertation before the dissertation is successfully defended and presented to the dean. Upon consultation with their mentors, students are encouraged to take advantage of these opportunities.
Acceptance of part of the dissertation for presentation or publication does not obligate the dissertation committee, the oral examiners, the dean or Fordham University to accept the dissertation as fulfilling the degree requirements.
Doctoral students must defend orally their completed dissertation before an examination committee consisting of the dissertation committee (normally, the dissertation mentor and two readers), and at least one additional examiner, according to departmental procedures. The department or program chairperson is responsible for ensuring that the examination committee is professionally appropriate, and the dean reserves the right to appoint a representative.
Public notification of the examination, including time, place, and examiners must be sent to the dean’s office at least two weeks in advance.
The physical presence of the student at the defense is required: candidates may not defend the dissertation by teleconferencing, Skype, phone, or any other means of distance communication. The physical presence of the dissertation mentor is, likewise, required. Readers and examiners are expected to appear in person at the defense and to sign the Report on Oral Defense form there, unless excused according to the procedure below. Exceptions to physical presence and signature policy are approved for a reader only in cases such as those of illness or prolonged absence from the University, and require the recommendation of the department and the written permission of the dean. One examiner may participate by distance methods but only if such participation provides expertise that cannot be otherwise obtained. In all, at least three defense committee members, in addition to the candidate, have to be physically present at the exam and no more than one person (reader or examiner) may participate by distance methods. The physical presence of all committee members at the defense remains the objective GSAS strives toward.
Students should note that the presentation of the dissertation to the dean, not the oral examination, is the last requirement to be satisfied for receiving the degree. Thus, degree completion will not be certified until after the presentation of the dissertation.
After the oral defense, students must submit the dissertation paperwork, complete the dean’s exit survey, complete the SED survey, and upload their dissertation to UMI Proquest by the deadline listed on the GSAS Academic Calendar, generally the Friday before the last day of classes for May graduation, or two weeks before the August and February graduations. Exceptions to this date will be granted under only unusual circumstances outside the student’s control and must be requested by the student’s mentor. Dissertations will not be accepted when the University is officially closed.
Dissertations and paperwork will be reviewed in absentia. However, students are invited to meet the dean during the designated time block, when the dean will be available to answer questions, discuss materials and extend congratulations. Students who are unable to meet with the dean in person during the designated time blocks may request a phone call during the time block.
One Dissertation Prepared under the Direction sheet, signed by the mentor and readers..
The Report on Written Dissertation form, signed by the mentor and readers.
The Report on Oral Defense form, signed by the mentor, readers and up to two examiners.
The Survey of Earned Doctorates online survey, available here. After submission, the student and GSAS will receive an e-mail confirm.
Proof of online submission of dissertation at UMI ETD administrator, located here.
All requirements for advanced certificates must be completed within three years of the first semester of matriculation in the GSAS. Time limit requirements apply to both full and part time students.
The M.Phil. degree is considered a second or senior master’s degree and is usually awarded to Ph.D. candidates who have completed the required coursework, language and research skills requirements, and comprehensive examinations, but who have not yet defended a doctoral dissertation.
Students are eligible to receive an M.Phil. under such circumstances in some, but not all, GSAS departments. Most students regard this degree as a step on the way to the Ph.D. Occasionally, it marks the point at which a student reconsiders matriculation in the program, in which case a student may choose earn the M.Phil. and withdraw from GSAS.
In some cases, students may be advised by the department chairperson or program director, in consultation with other faculty, not to continue beyond the M.Phil. if the student’s performance has been marginal or if evidence suggests that s/he will have particular difficulty completing a successful dissertation. Some departments also allow a so-called Low Pass option on the comprehensive exam, which allows the student to receive the M.Phil. degree that does not qualify him or her to progress on to the dissertation stage.
Students who have completed all degree requirements in accordance with the guidelines outlined herein and in accordance with their department/program requirements will receive degrees conferred by the University.
Degrees are conferred in February, May, and August on students who have completed their degree requirements in the fall, spring, or summer semesters, respectively.
To graduate, students must complete and submit an Online Application for Graduation via the my.Fordham.edu University portal by the date indicated on the GSAS Academic Calendar. Failure to submit the Online Application for Graduation by the deadline will result in the degree not being awarded in the desired semester, as will failure to complete requirements pending at the time of application for graduation.
Students who miss the deadline for application or fail to complete pending requirements must continue to register and be registered in the semester directly preceding conferral of the degree, according to the continuous enrollment policy (see §5.1 Continuous Enrollment Policy). Students who receive degrees in August must be registered for the summer session immediately preceding the conferral of their degrees. If a student is not registered for coursework in the summer session, the appropriate registration to use is “Requirement Prep in Summer” (see §5.1 Continuous Enrollment Policy).
Commencement ceremonies are held each May, and include the University commencement followed by diploma ceremonies for each school. During the GSAS diploma ceremony, diplomas are distributed to both master’s and doctoral degree candidates, and doctoral degree recipients undergo a traditional hooding ceremony as well.
Students who receive their degrees at any time during the preceding academic year are invited to participate. Students who have submitted the Online Application for Graduation on time will receive information at their Fordham e-mail account (see §2.1 Fordham Email) about commencement and about obtaining the proper commencement apparel. Master’s candidates who are completing the final requirements of their degree in August may request to walk in May prior to their August graduation date. The request must be made to both the department and GSAS by the deadline for May graduation, which can be found on the GSAS academic calendar.

References: §7
 §7
 §7
 §6
 §5
 §7
 §7
 §7
 §7
 §7
 §7
 §5
 §5
 §7
 §7
 §7
 §7
 §5
 §5
 §5
 §2