The Institute of Philosophic Studies

About the Institute of Philosophic Studies

The Institute of Philosophic Studies offers a program leading to the Ph.D. degree. The Institute has as its purpose the renewal of the tradition of philosophic discourse and the recovery of the Christian intellectual tradition. The students’ course of study includes a set of core courses established by the Institute and an area of concentration, which students develop in consultation with a faculty adviser. The areas of concentration currently offered are in literature, philosophy and politics.

The Ph.D. degree, under the general rules and procedures of the Braniff Graduate School, requires the successful completion of 66 credit hours of course work in the Institute, any independent study the faculty deems advisable for a given candidate, an acceptable performance on a qualifying and comprehensive examination, reading mastery in two foreign languages and a dissertation of substance and originality. A full description of all policies, procedures and requirements is found in the Institute of Philosophic Studies Handbook.

General Information

Admission Requirements

Applicants must possess a bachelor’s degree. They should have an undergraduate major or equivalent evidence of suitable background for entering the proposed field. Applications and all supporting documentation for the doctoral IPS program must be received by February 15. Applications are accepted for the fall semester only. The completed application file includes the application form, two letters of recommendation, a statement of purpose, an intellectual autobiography, a sample of academic writing, official transcripts of previous college work and GRE General Test scores not more than five years previous to the date of the application. Decisions regarding admission are made by the committee of IPS directors, who draw a composite assessment of the applicant from the submitted materials and evaluate the file against the pool of competing applicants in view of the limited number of positions available.

Degrees

In accord with the unified character of the program, the Institute grants only one doctoral degree. However, the transcript will indicate the area of concentration for each student. En route to the doctorate, students may apply for the Institute of Philosophic Studies Master of Arts degree after the qualifying examination.

Residence

Three academic years of full-time course work beyond the bachelor’s degree are normally required. Students are strongly encouraged to spend at least one continuous academic year on campus as full-time graduate students. Institute scholarships generally require full-time enrollment.

Transfer of Credit

Some credit from earlier graduate work may be transferred after students have successfully passed the qualifying examination. Credits are transferable from accredited institutions and must have been taken within the six years prior to acceptance in the program. Courses are transferable only if strictly equivalent to Institute courses. Students should submit syllabi of all courses they wish to transfer. No more than nine hours may be transferred. Upon recommendation of the concentration director, transfer credit must be approved by the Graduate Dean.

Language

Proficiency in two languages, Greek or Latin and (usually) French or German, must be demonstrated by all candidates. The IPS Handbook describes the three ways of satisfying the requirement.

Qualifying Examination

Students must take the Qualifying Examination after the first three semesters of full time course work. The IPS Handbook describes the examination and the times it is administered. The performance on the examination must satisfy the examining committee that the student is capable of continuing doctoral studies.

Comprehensive Examination

Students normally take the Comprehensive Examination in the semester following completion of all course work. The examination is based upon a Core Reading List and a Concentration Reading List. Students must demonstrate to the examining committee that they have a comprehensive grasp of the issues and texts covered in their core and concentration course of studies. The IPS Handbook describes the examination and the times it is administered. Reading lists are published in the handbook.

Dissertation

Dissertations of suitable quality and magnitude shall be submitted by all candidates. After they are completed and approved, a defense of the dissertation, open to the graduate faculty, must be made by the candidates. Information concerning the formal requirements for preparation and filing of dissertations is in “After Comprehensives,” a handbook provided by the Braniff Graduate Office. Dissertation credit is in addition to course credit.

Time Limit

Unless otherwise approved, requirements for the Ph.D. degree must be met within ten years from the time students begin course work in the program or they will be deemed to have withdrawn from it.

Courses of the Institute

Students take 21 credit hours in the Institute’s core curriculum and 45 credit hours in their area of concentration, nine of which may be in a related discipline (with the approval of the concentration director).

The Institute core courses are meant to provide students with a solid foundation in the Western tradition — poetic, philosophic and theological. These courses will concentrate on significant texts of this tradition, including such authors, for example, as Homer and Vergil; Plato and Aristotle; Augustine and Aquinas; Dante and Milton; Hobbes and Rousseau; Hegel, Nietzsche and Dostoevski. A seventh required core course will have as its principal text the Bible.

The area of concentration allows students to read in a discipline in which they expect to teach and write. The specific requirements for individual students are worked out in consultation with the faculty adviser and with the approval of the IPS Director. The description of each of the areas of concentration presently offered in the Institute is given below.

Courses designated as "core courses" are listed in the particular semester schedule with the prefix IPS (Institute of Philosophic Studies). Those in the area of concentration carry the appropriate departmental designation.

Core Curriculum course information

Areas of Concentration

Literature

Philosophy

Politics