Brief Description of the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam:

The Ph.D. Qualifying Exam is a written exam that explores general linguistic topics in depth and demands the sophisticated level of reasoning expected of Ph.D. candidates. The exam is prepared by a special committee of the linguistics faculty, and questions may be solicited from the faculty at large. Successful completion of the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam is part of the process for earning doctoral candidacy status in the Program. The exam is normally offered once each year in January.

Who?

Only students who are newly admitted or readmitted to the Ph.D. program may be eligible to take this exam. The following are qualifications on this.
• Students must have completed the requisite coursework: Ling. 600, 610, and 620.
• Students must apply for doctoral candidacy status via the Application for Doctoral Candidacy Status form. Application criteria include (1) a satisfactory G.P.A. in the program, (2) evidence of research potential (through M.A. thesis work, conference presentations, or publications), (3) an acceptable plan of study/research, and (4) other indications of potential for success in the doctoral program. The Application for Doctoral Candidacy Status must be made by the time students have completed 18 hours of coursework.
• Students with an M.A. from our Program can take it in their first year of admission to the Ph.D. program, if they qualify for candidacy status.
• Students admitted to the Ph.D. program with an M.A. from elsewhere can only take the Qualifying Exam after completing the requisite core courses (LING 600, 610, 620).  But full-time students must take the exam after completion of their third semester if they are new to the Program.
• Any exceptions to these requirements must be approved by the Linguistics Program Graduate Director.

Objective of the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam

The main objective of the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam is to ensure that the student is adequately prepared to write a dissertation to complete the Ph.D. degree requirements. Being prepared means the following: Examinees must be able to analyze and synthesize information they obtained from coursework and research; examinees must demonstrate specialized knowledge of the core areas of linguistics offered in this program (e.g., syntax, phonology), and of their primary field of specialization in the program; and examinees must demonstrate adequate background preparation for their proposed dissertation topic (including knowledge of the relevant literature, undertanding of research methods, etc.).

Format of the Qualifying Exam:

The Qualifying Exam consists of three written exams which usually take place over two days. Students are tested in three areas: syntax, phonology and their chosen special field. The Exam Committee prepares approximately two to three questions in each area. Students have two hours per question to write an answer, making the exam a total of six hours in length.

The Program allows for the exemption of any or all of the exams in phonology, syntax or the special field, dependent upon receipt of grade of “A” in the relevant introductory courses, which provides evidence of appropriate mastery of the content.

An additional component to the exam procedure (beginning January 2007) is the submission of a paper ("QP") that would provide evidence to the exam committee of analytical, research, and writing skills and capacity and potential for further successful doctoral work.

The Qualifying Paper:

 

A new component to the examination process is the submission of a paper that provides evidence to the qualifying examination committee of analytical, research, and writing skills and capacity/potential for further successful doctoral work.

 

The general/qualifying paper submitted must provide evidence of excellent to superior ability to make and support relevant linguistic claims, and demonstrate that the student is qualified to continue study toward a PhD in her or his concentration. The paper must present an analysis of some linguistic problem and must not be co-authored. Examples of papers that may be appropriate for submission include sections of an MA thesis or enhanced seminar paper, or term paper from a linguistics course, revised as necessary.

 

The Qualifying Paper will be evaluated on:

 

·          how clearly it presents and motivates the research problem it addresses

·          how well it reviews prior literature

·          how well it motivates its methods and analytical framework

·          how well it supports its claims

 

Notes:
The Qualifying Paper should be no longer than 30 double-spaced (12 pt Times) pages, may or may not be in the applicant’s special field, and is not meant to be a totally new paper developed exclusively for this requirement.

The applicant’s Qualifying Paper will be evaluated by the qualifying exam committee, though the paper will be made available to all core faculty members for review and comment. Members of the committee will rate the Qualifying Paper as Acceptable, Marginal or Unacceptable.

The results of the evaluation of the Qualifying Paper will be forwarded to the Admissions Committee along with the results of the Qualifying Exam, and the materials of the Application for Candidacy. The Admission Committee will make a recommendation to the Graduate Director regarding admission to candidacy, and the Graduate Director will then make a recommendation to the Graduate School.

Timetable for the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam:

After 12-18 credit hours of coursework in the Ph.D. program:
• All students interested in being considered for candidacy in the Ph.D. program should complete the Application for Doctoral Candidacy Status form obtainable from the Web or the Program secretary. This form is normally submitted to the Program secretary by November 1 of the student's third, regular semester.
• The Program's faculty will review applications, and report back to applicants by December 1. Students whose applications are successful will be expected to take the examination at the beginning of the following semester. Students whose applications are not successful may still take the qualifying exam, but they will need to reapply for candidacy status before they can be considered for Candidacy. Reapplications would need to successfully address such weaknesses as are pointed out in the initial application review before the Program will recommend their admission to candidacy.
• Eligible students are encouraged to form study groups to prepare for the exams.

More Detailed Information on the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam:

Design of the Qualifying Exam Committee:

The Ph.D. Qualifying Exam Committee is made up of faculty members representing different areas of linguistic study. The committee may also solicit questions from other members of the Linguistics Program faculty to ensure appropriate questions are designed for the examinees.

Format of the Qualifying Exam:

The Qualifying Exam consists of three written, in-class exams which usually take place over two days. Students are tested in three areas: syntax, phonology and their own chosen special field. The Exam Committee prepares approximately two to three questions in each area. Students have two hours per question to write an answer, making the exam a total of six hours in length.

Content of the Exam:

The exam may cover the core areas of syntax, phonology, and general linguistics, as well as the student's chosen area of specialization, such as SLA/TEFL, historical, sociolinguistics. The Qualifying Exam Committee determines exactly which areas will be covered in a particular year. The content is based on the core, introductory courses, Ling. 600, 610, and 620 and the introductory courses in the areas of specialization (e.g., SLA/TEFL: Ling. 790).
• Students should be aware that if the core courses for their program are not taken within the same two-year cycle as they take the qualifying, their information may be dated. In such cases, they are strongly advised to sign up for Independent Study credit (1-3 hours) and sit in on these courses to review material before taking the exams.

 

Scheduling of the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam:

The exam is normally given annually in January.

Evaluation of the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam:

The Qualifying Exam is evaluated by the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam Committee or their designee in the case that a particular exam is out of the committee members' areas of expertise. Evaluation proceeds as follows. Each committee member assigns a numerical value (based on scale given below) to each section of a student's exam. The numbers assigned for each section of a student's exam are averaged, yielding an averaged grade for each section of an individual exam. Then an overall average for the exam is obtained by averaging the scores for each section of the exam.

Grading scale

• To be considered for candidacy, a student:

1. Must earn an overall grade average of 1.60 or higher on the exam.
2. May not earn an averaged grade lower than .80 on any section of the exam.

• If the overall grade is between .80 - 1.59, the Exam Committee may allow a student to retake a failed question.
• If the the overall grade is lower than .80, a student may take the exam one additional time (usually the next year). A second failure leads to dismissal from the doctoral program. Students who do not already have an M.A. in Linguistics from USC may be eligible to complete an M.A. after satisfactorily completing the requisite courses and writing a thesis. Students who wish to do this must state their intentions to the Program Director.
• The Chair of the Exam Committee notifies the Linguistic Program Director in writing of the final outcome for all students taking the exam.