Category: Regulations

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Pennsylvania Regulations

Pennsylvania. Rules for graduate degrees, 1897-98

 

The previous post provided the list of graduate courses in economics and related fields (Politics, Sociology, and Statistics) offered at the University of Pennsylvania in 1897-98. This post adds the regulations governing admission, residence requirements, degree requirements for the M.A. and Ph.D. and tuition fees (plot spoiler: annual tuition was $100).

The graduate courses of instruction were arranged in sixteen groups that together constituted the Department of Philosophy. Hence, the doctoral degrees awarded for a major subject (e.g., economics) within one of these groups was logically called “doctor of philosophy”, i.e., Ph.D.

The unit of instructional account was the “standard course” which would be a lecture course of one hour per week for one academic year” so a two hour course for one term would be credited as one standard course and a one hour course for one term would be credited as 1/2 standard course. The overwhelming majority of courses offered in the group “Economics, Politics, Sociology and Statistics” were two-hour, one-term courses.

A Master’s degree required at least twelve standard courses, i.e. twelve hours of lectures  to attend per term for two terms, the normal load for one academic year. A doctoral student was required to complete at least twenty-four standard courses, so  two-years of course work.  A doctoral student was to declare three “branches of learning” in which proficiency was to be achieved. The choice of the three branches was subject to the approval of a Group Committee. The major subject would be the principal subject selected within the particular group and two minor subjects, one of which was recommended to be taken from outside of the group, presumably from history, philosophy, ethics or psychology if one’s major was, say, economics. “In every case the minor subjects shall be so related to the major as to conduce to some recognized and approved end.”  The minimum foreign language requirement was a good reading knowledge of two European languages besides English, at least one of which had to be “a modern tongue”.

Following the presentation of a thesis “upon some topic in the line of his major subject, showing high attainment or power of original and independent research” and its approval by the Group Committee in which his major lies, the candidate for the Ph.D. had to pass “a private written examination conducted by his instructors” as well as a public oral examination covering both the major and minor subjects.

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Regulations for Graduate Degrees in the Department of Philosophy
University of Pennsylvania, 1897-98

The Department of Philosophy offers advanced instruction in the various branches of Literature and Science The instruction is intended primarily for persons who have profited by the advantages of a full college course, and who are desirous of continuing their studies upon lines more strictly defined and specialized. Others, however, may be admitted to study in the Department, under conditions hereinafter specified.

The session of 1897-98 will begin on Friday, October 1.

 

ARRANGEMENT OF COURSES.

The courses of instruction offered in this Department are arranged under the sixteen following groups:

  1. Semitic Languages.
  2. American Archaeology and Languages.
  3. Indo-European Philology.
  4. Classical Languages.
  5. Germanic Languages.
  6. Romanic Languages.
  7. English.
  8. Philosophy, Ethics, Psychology and Pedagogy.
  9. History.
  10. Economics, Politics, Sociology and Statistics.
  11. Mathematics.
  12. Astronomy.
  13. Physics.
  14. Chemistry.
  15. Botany and Zoology.
  16. Geology and Mineralogy.

All persons authorized to give instruction within a group constitute the Group Committee. To the several Group Committees are entrusted the arrangement of their respective courses, and the oversight of students taking majors within the group.

The instruction given within a group is subdivided into lecture courses, seminary courses and laboratory courses.

In stating the minimum requirements for residence and degrees a ”standard” course is used; this is a lecture course of one hour per week for one academic year. The lecture courses as actually given will be either multiples or fractional parts of this standard. The ratio of value of the several seminary and laboratory courses to the standard is variable, and will be set in each case by the Group Committee.

 

ADMISSION.

Students desiring to enter this Department must present themselves in person to the Dean.

Any person may be admitted by the Dean as a special student, not a candidate for a degree, upon the presentation of written statements from the instructors with whom he desires to work, certifying to his fitness and consenting to his admission.

Any person holding the degree of Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science from some college or university whose degrees are recognized by this University as equivalent to its own may be admitted by the Dean as a candidate for a higher degree. In such cases the applicant’s diploma must be submitted to the inspection of the Dean.

Students who are allowed to become candidates for a higher degree are termed regular students. Those who are not candidates for a degree a.e termed special students.

If the degree has been taken five or more years before the date of application, the Dean may at his discretion require of the applicant further evidence of his ability to pursue with profit his studies in the Department.

Persons who do not hold a Bachelor’s degree may, in exceptional cases, be admitted as candidates for a degree; provided they satisfy the Executive Committee of the Faculty, by examination, or in such other way as the Committee may in each case determine, that they possess not only the knowledge necessary to the profitable pursuit of the subjects they may select, but also that general cultivation and training which is the result of a properly conducted college course.

Students already registered as candidates for a degree in other Departments of the University are allowed to pursue courses in this Department, and regular students of this Department are allowed to pursue courses in other Departments by the concurrent action of the respective Deans.

After admission, each student will be furnished with a matriculation card; no student who cannot show his matriculation card will be allowed to take any course. These cards are good only for the year in which they are issued, and must be renewed from year to year. For such renewal, personal application must be made at the office.

 

RESIDENCE.

All candidates for higher degrees are required to spend at least one year in residence at this University. To be construed in residence at this University, a student must pursue not less than six standard lecture courses or their equivalent, simultaneously. Work done at other universities may be accepted by the several Group Committees in lieu of a part of the work required for a degree.

When only one year is spent in residence at this University, it must be the last year of the student’s course.

 

DEGREES.

The degrees conferred in the Faculty of Philosophy are Doctor of Philosophy, (Ph.D.), Master of Arts, (A.M.), and Master of Science, (M.S.).

The right to recommend a candidate to the Board of Trustees for a higher degree is vested in a Board of Examiners, consisting of the Dean and three members of the Faculty, representing those branches of study in which the candidate has been working. Before a student can offer himself for examination, he must present to the Dean suitable written certificates from the Group Committees under whose supervision his work has been prosecuted, setting forth that he has not only complied with all conditions prescribed by the rules, but is also in the judgment of those committees fitted by his ability and attainments to receive the degree in question. No student can acquire a right to such recommendation merely by attending lectures, passing examinations, or by compliance with any prescribed conditions whatever. The requirements for degrees hereinafter specified must therefore be regarded as minimum requirements only, and it remains within the power of any Group Committee to refuse to grant any student a recommendation for the higher degree. All degrees are conferred at the annual commencement in June.

 

THE MASTER’S DEGREE.

Only those who have received the degree of Bachelor of Arts can proceed to that of Master of Arts.

Only those who have received the degree of Bachelor of Science can proceed to that of Master of Science.

The work for the Master’s Degree will occupy the student’s undivided time for at least one academic year. The candidate will be required to elect, with the consent of the Dean, not less than twelve standard courses or their equivalent, and to pursue them to the satisfaction of the committees offering them. He must then pass a private written examination under the direction of his instructors, and a public oral examination in the presence of the Board of Examiners, and of such members of the Faculty as desire to attend.

 

THE DOCTOR’S DEGREE.

The degree of Doctor of Philosophy is conferred solely in recognition of marked ability and high attainments in some definite branch of learning.

The degree will in no case be granted before the expiration of two years after the date of the candidate’s baccalaureate degree, nor upon a candidate who has not completed twenty-four standard courses or their equivalent. A student of ability, who has already had a good undergraduate course and pursues in graduate work the same topics to which he devoted special attention as an undergraduate, will usually be able to attain his degree in three years; but students whose college training has been in any respect defective, or who cannot devote their undivided attention to the work, will require a longer period of time.

The candidate for the Doctor’s degree must, upon entering the Department, elect the group within which he intends to do the greater part of his work, and will then pass under the jurisdiction of the committee in charge of that group. He must designate, with the consent of the committee, three branches of learning in which he desires to become proficient. One of these, which shall be known as his principal or major subject, shall lie within the group; although the Group Committee may direct him to courses given in other groups, and may allow them to be accounted part of the major work. The other two shall be known as his subordinate or minor subjects. It is recommended that at least one minor be taken outside the group in which his major lies. In every case the minor subjects shall be so related to the major as to conduce to some recognized and approved end.

Every candidate for the Doctor’s degree must possess a good reading knowledge of those languages which are judged by the committee in charge of the major essential to the prosecution of his major work.

Under no circumstances may a candidate present himself for his degree before he can show a good reading knowledge of two European languages besides English, one of which must be a modern tongue.

He must also present a thesis upon some topic in the line of his major subject, showing high attainment or power of original and independent research. This thesis must be presented and approved by the Group Committee in which his major lies before he can be admitted to the examinations.

The thesis must be typewritten or printed, unless upon recommendation of the committee in charge the Dean authorize the acceptance of a written thesis. The committee may require the thesis to be printed before recommending the candidate for the degree. If the thesis is written or typewritten, one copy must be deposited in the Library of the University before the student can be recommended for his degree; if printed, fifty copies must be deposited.

The candidate for the Doctor’s degree must pass a private written examination conducted by his instructors, and a public oral examination. The final examination is conducted by the Board of Examiners as hereinbefore provided, representing the candidate’s major and two minor subjects respectively, in the presence of such members of the Faculty as may desire to attend.

 

FEES.

For regular students the tuition fee is one hundred (100.00) dollars per annum. The graduation fee is twenty-five (25.00) dollars.

For special students a fee is charged according to the number of courses taken The fee for a course is found by multiplying ten dollars by the number of hours of instruction offered per week throughout the year, and adding five dollars to this product. If several courses be taken with the same instructor, this five dollars is added only once. Fees are payable to the Registrar in two instalments, on November 1 and February 1, strictly in advance.

 

Source:  Catalogue of the University of Pennsylvania. Fasciculus of the Department of Philosophy. Announcements for Session 1897-98, pp. 17-21.

 

Image Source:  University Library (built 1890, Furness, Evans & Co., architect; now Anne and Jerome Fisher Fine Arts Library), interior, reading room, 1898. University of Pennsylvania Digital Image Collection.

 

Categories
Columbia Regulations

Columbia. Requirements for M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in economics, 1946-47

 

The following excerpts from the 1946-47 Announcement of Courses for the Faculty of Political Science at Columbia University provide a clear outline of the requirements and the sequence of thirteen steps an economics Ph.D. candidate needed to take to be successful in the quest for a doctoral degree. The rules and regulations are organized like a set of Matryoshka (nesting) dolls:  from a common set of requirements for the three faculties of Political Science, Philosophy and Pure Science, through those rules and regulations common for the departments within the Faculty of Political Science, to those specific to the Department of Economics. For 1946-47 I only have the last two dolls (now), but they are the two most relevant for understanding the structure within which graduate education in economics at Columbia was being conducted.

Favorite quote:

General Undergraduate Preparation. Since graduate study in economics necessarily entails a high degree of concentration in this field, a student planning to enter graduate work is advised not to specialize narrowly in economics during his undergraduate study. Basic training in economics and a knowledge of its general literature and methods are desirable, but for the purposes of more advanced work on the graduate level, there is a greater advantage in the study of history, philosophy, modern languages, and mathematics than in narrowly specialized courses in economics taken as undergraduates.

The previous post includes a 1946 memo regarding the conduct of the oral doctoral examinations.

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REQUIREMENTS FOR ADMISSION AND FOR DEGREES

The general academic requirements for admission as a regular graduate student and the requirements for the degrees of Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy are stated in the Graduate Announcement of the Faculties of Political Science, Philosophy, and Pure Science. That Announcement should be consulted by every applicant for admission under those Faculties.

[…]

ADMISSION AND REGISTRATION
[THE FACULTY OF POLITICAL SCIENCE]

REQUIREMENTS

The requirements for admission as a graduate student to work toward an advanced degree in any one of the departments under the Faculty of Political Science are: (a) a Bachelor’s degree in arts, letters, philosophy, or science from an institution approved by Columbia University; (b) a thorough preparation for graduate study as evidenced by a good undergraduate record and a better than average performance on the Graduate Record Examination.

A prospective applicant who does not have a Bachelor’s degree, but who believes that he has had equivalent preparation, may present his credentials to the Director of University Admissions for evaluation.

PROCEDURE

Application and Records. An application blank may be obtained from the Office of University Admissions.

Every applicant must fill out the blank and file it with the Director of University Admissions, and must arrange with each of the colleges or universities he has previously attended to send to the Director full official transcripts of his academic record.

Graduate Record Examination. Before being permitted to register for courses to be credited toward an advanced degree in any of the departments of the Faculty of Political Science, each applicant for admission must file a report of his performance in the Graduate Record Examination. This examination is administered annually in a number of colleges and universities and at other centers throughout the United States. For information regarding time and place of the examination, the prospective applicant should consult the dean of his college or the Graduate Record Office, 337 West 59thStreet, New York 19, N.Y. This requirement is effective for students applying for admission to begin residence subsequent to September 1946.

Students will be admitted to study under the Faculty of Political Science in September 1946 without having taken the Graduate Record Examination, subject to the understanding that the requirement will be met immediately after registration. The Office of University Admissions will arrange one or more dates for the administration of the examination and will notify all students required to take it.

Students for whom English is not the mother tongue will be admitted on the basis of their school and university credentials. They are asked, but not required, to take the Graduate Record Examination as a matter of record.

Permit to Register. After the application and credentials have been examined and the English requirement satisfied, the applicant, if accepted, will be given a permit to register. This permit will grant admission as (1) a regular graduate student, (2) a probationary graduate student, or (3) an unclassified graduate student. (For explanation of these terms, see the Graduate Announcement, pages 14-15.)

 

REQUIREMENTS FOR ADVANCED DEGREES

For a general statement of the regulations of the Faculties of Political Science, Philosophy, and Pure Science consult the Graduate announcement, obtainable from the Secretary of the University.

Attention of students under this Faculty is directed particularly to the paragraph on page 15 of that Announcement to the effect that, while no time limit is set for the period of candidacy for the degree of Master of Arts or Doctor of Philosophy, a student must satisfy the requirements that are in effect at the time of the award of the degree.

 

REQUIREMENTS OF THE FACULTY OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

MASTER OF ARTS

  1. Preliminary Training.The prospective candidate must have received a Bachelor’s degree from Columbia University or from some other approved university or college, or have had an education equivalent to that represented by such a degree, and must have been accepted as a regular graduate student by the Director of University Admissions.
  2. Residence. Every candidate for the degree must register for and attend courses at this University aggregating not less than thirty points distributed over a period of not less than one academic year or its equivalent.
  3. Courses. From the courses for which he has registered to satisfy the residence requirements, the candidate must complete with a satisfactory passing grade courses aggregating not less than twenty-one points, of which at least fifteen must be selected from those offered by departments in this faculty under the heading “General Courses.”
  4. Essay. The candidate must present a satisfactory essay prepared under the direction of some member of this faculty.
  5. Departmental Requirements. Special departmental requirements appear [in] this Announcement. Departmental requirements are in addition to, not a substitute for, the faculty requirements.

 

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

  1. General. The degree will be conferred upon students who satisfy the requirements as to preliminary training, residence, languages, matriculation as a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, subjects, and dissertation.
  2. Preliminary Training. The requirement is the same as for the Master of Arts candidate.
  3. Residence. The prospective candidate must have pursued graduate studies for at least two academic years, one of which must have been spent at this University while registered under this Faculty, and the other of which, if not spent here, at an institution accepted as offering courses of similar standard. A year’s residence at this University is defined as registration for and attendance upon courses aggregating not less than thirty points distributed over a period of not less than one academic year or its equivalent. Those desiring credit for graduate work completed elsewhere should send to the Director of University Admissions as soon as possible a request for the evaluation of such graduate work.
  4. Language. The prospective candidate must have demonstrated his ability to express himself in correct English and to read at least two languages beside his mother tongue; and he must be able to read such additional languages as may, within the discretion of the Executive Officer of the appropriate department, be deemed essential for the prosecution of his studies.
  5. Matriculation. Upon the completion of not less than one year of graduate residence, after satisfying the department concerned that he is proficient in such languages as it prescribes for a candidate, and that he is prepared to undertake research under its direction, the prospective candidate will be recommended by the department to the Dean for matriculation as a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
  6. Fields. The candidate must have familiarized himself with one field of primary interest and one field of secondary interest. The major and minor fields need not be under the same department.
    1. Field of primary interest. The field shall be chosen from the following list:

Ancient history
Medieval history
Modern history of western continental Europe
Modern history of eastern Europe
History of Great Britain and the British Empire
American history
Latin American history
East Asiatic history
History of European thought
Jewish history
Political and social philosophy
American political institutions (including constitutional law)
Foreign political institutions
Public administration (including constitutional and administrative law)
International law and relations
Roman law
Comparative jurisprudence
Economics (including economic theory, economic history, and statistics)
Public and private finance
Social economic problems
Sociology
Anthropology

    1. Field of secondary interest. The field of secondary interest may be either an adaptation of one of the subjects in the foregoing list or a special combination of studies selected with a view to the student’s peculiar interests and needs. Such a combination may involve work in more than one department in the Faculty, or work in more than one faculty, or may be wholly under some other faculty of the university. In any case, the choice of the field of secondary interest must be approved by the Executive Officer of the department in charge of the primary field, subject to review by the Committee on Instruction of the Faculty.
      The candidate’s competence in the chosen fields of primary and secondary interest is tested by an oral examination, which is scheduled by the Dean on recommendation of the department concerned. This examination is normally taken toward the end of the second year of graduate study. It must be passed before the student is admitted to the defense of the dissertation. To be examined in any given academic year the student must apply for examination prior to April 1.
  1. Dissertation. The main test of the candidate’s qualifications is the production of a dissertation that will demonstrate his capacity to contribute to the advancement of learning within the field of his selection. This dissertation must give evidence of the candidate’s ability to present in good literary form the results of original researches upon some topic approved by the department concerned. It may be completed either during the period of residence or in absentia. In advance of its being presented before the Faculty for defense, it must be approved by the professor in charge and by the Executive Officer of the department concerned. Such approval, however, is not to be construed as acceptance by the Faculty.
  2. Final Examination. Upon the recommendation of the department concerned the Dean will admit a candidate for the degree to final examination and will appoint a committee to examine him. The department will recommend a candidate for final examination if he has pursued graduate studies for not less than two academic years, at least one of them while a student under this Faculty, if he has satisfied such preliminary examinations or requirements as the Faculty and the department concerned may specify, and if he has prepared a dissertation, embodying the results of his researches, which has been certified by the department as being in form for defense. For the defense, the dissertation may be in galley proof or typescript. If in galley proof, eight copies must be available to examiners at least ten days prior to the examination; if in typescript, five copies must be available three weeks prior to the examination. After its successful defense, the Dean will issue to the candidate a certificate stating that all requirements for the degree except the deposit of printed copies of the dissertation have been met.
  3. Printing Requirement. After the examining committee has approved the dissertation and certified that the candidate has passed the final examination, the candidate shall deliver to the University Libraries seventy-five copies of his dissertation, printed in a form acceptable to the Faculty, before the degree will be conferred. In exceptional cases and as a temporary substitute, the Dean will accept a satisfactory guarantee of such delivery before a specified date, and the degree will then be conferred. (For fuller statement, see the Graduate Announcement, page 19.) The Faculty also requires that printed copies of the dissertation, not to exceed forty-five in number, be delivered to the office of the department concerned for distribution to members of the Faculty.
    In the printing of the dissertation certain options are allowed: (a) It may be printed from type and published in book form; (b) it may be published as an article or series of articles in a scholarly journal; (c) with the permission of the Executive Officer of the department concerned, it may be reproduced by an offset process approved by the Dean.
  4. Departmental Requirements. Special departmental requirements appear on succeeding pages of this Announcement. Departmental requirements are in addition to, not a substitute for, the faculty requirements.

 

[…]

DEPARTMENTAL REQUIREMENTS
DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS

As soon as possible after deciding upon economics as the subject of primary interest for the degree of Master of Arts or Doctor of Philosophy, the prospective candidate should report through the secretary of the Department of Economics, in Fayerweather Hall, to the Executive Officer of the Department or his representative to receive fuller instructions.

General Undergraduate Preparation. Since graduate study in economics necessarily entails a high degree of concentration in this field, a student planning to enter graduate work is advised not to specialize narrowly in economics during his undergraduate study. Basic training in economics and a knowledge of its general literature and methods are desirable, but for the purposes of more advanced work on the graduate level, there is a greater advantage in the study of history, philosophy, modern languages, and mathematics than in narrowly specialized courses in economics taken as undergraduates.

Mathematical Preparation. The use of mathematics, including higher mathematics, has become important in several branches of economics and statistics. Much of the recent important literature of general economics is written in a language not easily understood without some knowledge of the differential and integral calculus. A student planning to work for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in economics will therefore find it advantageous to acquire familiarity with the calculus and with higher algebra before beginning graduate studies in economics.

 

Master of Arts

General Requirements. In addition to fulfilling the general faculty requirements the student must include graduate courses in economics aggregating not less than fifteen points among the courses aggregating not less than twenty-one points in which he is required to receive examination credit before being recommended for the degree.

Essay. The candidate must select his essay subject, submit it to the appropriate professor within two months after registration as a candidate for the degree, and list this subject in the office of the secretary of the Department.

The selection of a subject of importance within the field of his interests must be made by the student himself, and the ability to make a proper choice will normally be regarded as an essential qualification for the degree. The completed essay must be submitted for approval not later than four weeksbefore the date on which copies of the approved essay are to be filed with the Registrar (see Academic Calendar, pages 77-78). Under no circumstances should the candidate proceed beyond the preparation of his detailed program of investigation and the completion of a preliminary chapter or section without submitting his work to his adviser. In the approval of an essay attention will be paid to excellence of presentation and to expression in correct English as well as to specific content and ability to use original material.

 

Doctor of Philosophy

Prospective Candidacy.  As soon as possible after the beginning of his graduate residence the student shall notify the Executive Officer of the Department of Economics of his intention to become a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Economics. A choice of subjects will be made in consultation with the Executive Officer or his representative.  A written examination, intended for students who have thus indicated their intentions, will be given near the end of each session. This examination must be taken before the student may register for more than thirty points of course credit for graduate work. (Students given credit for fifteen or more points for graduate courses completed at other institutions must take the examination before registering for more than forty-five points of course credit, including points credited from another university.) Upon passing this examination a student is classed as a prospective candidate. Prospective candidates are eligible to register for all courses designed for candidates for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Economics, for which they have specific prerequisites.

Students taking the examination for prospective candidacy will be required to indicate the field or fields of their research interests.

The Department may deny registration privileges to students who have completed graduate courses aggregating thirty or more points of course credit and who fail to pass the examination for prospective candidacy.

The examination for prospective candidacy will not be required of students who receive credit for 30 or more points of graduate course work completed before June 30, 1946, and who present themselves for oral examination on subjects prior to June 30, 1948.

Languages. The prospective candidate must satisfy the Department of Economics that he can read two modern languages besides his native tongue. The combination of French and German is preferred, but Spanish, Italian, or Russian and another language may be selected with the written permission of the Executive Officer of the Department in cases where it is of particular value to the student’s scholarly interests. The student must pass the test in at least one of the languages before registering at Columbia for courses that will bring the sum total of his graduate credit (for work done at Columbia or elsewhere) to more than thirty points. (Thus a student who already has thirty or more points of graduate credit for work done at another university must pass at least one of the language tests before his initial registration at Columbia for work leading to the doctorate.) The other language test must be passed before he may register for more than forty-five points of course credit (including points credited from another university). The examinations in languages will be held on the following dates: Monday, September 23, 1946 from 2 to 4; Thursday, January 30, 1947, from 2 to 4; Friday, May 2, 1947, from 10 to 12. Students are required to register with the secretary of the Department of Economics at least one week prior to the date of the examination their intention to take such an examination. In case of emergency, and by special permission of the Executive Officer of the Department, an examination in languages may be given at other times.

Matriculation. Upon recommendation of the Department’s matriculation committee a prospective candidate who has completed not less than one year of graduate residence, has met Departmental language requirements, and has satisfied the Department that he is prepared to undertake research under its direction, will be recommended by the Executive Officer of the Department to the Dean for matriculation. Matriculation constitutes formal admission to candidacy for the degree.

Examination on Subjects. The candidate who has fulfilled the preliminary requirements for this degree may make application, through the Executive Officer of the Department, to the Dean for examination in subjects. Such application may be made at any time, but must be made before April 1 in the academic year in which the examination is to be held. The applicant will be notified by the Dean of the date of his examination. This examination is oral and is conducted by a committee of the Faculty appointed by the Dean. By it the applicant will be expected to demonstrate an adequate knowledge of the subjects selected for this examination and of the literature pertaining thereto.

At the time the candidate applies for his examination on subjects he shall submit a memorandum outlining his dissertation project in some detail, analyzing it with respect to source material and the research techniques required for its successful prosecution, and setting forth his plan for carrying the project forward. This memorandum must be approved by the candidate’s adviser and by the Executive Officer of the Department or a committee designated by him before the candidate may be admitted to the oral examination.

The examination on subjects will be focused in part on the area of the candidate’s research interests and the candidate’s research project.

Every candidate for the doctorate must give satisfactory evidence of his grasp of six of the subjects listed below. Three of these subjects must be economic theory, economic history, and statistics. Four of the subjects listed below (among which must be included the three subjects specified in the preceding sentence) are considered to constitute the student’s field of primary interest. The procedure for meeting this requirement is as follows:

  1. The candidate must offer himself for oral examination in four of the subjects listed below. The examination will be on subjects, not on courses.
  2. Before making formal application for this oral examination on subjects, the candidate must satisfy the appropriate professors of economics in the Faculty of Political Science that he has done work which is adequate both in scope and in quality in two subjects (also chosen from those listed below) other than the four to be offered in the candidate’s oral examination. This requirement may be met in any manner satisfactory to the professors concerned—by taking courses, by formal or informal examination, or in other ways. When the requirement has been met, the candidate must secure written certification to this effect from the professors concerned. Arrangements for certification will be made with the Executive Officer of the Department.

The subjects are as follows:

1. Accounting 13. Money and banking
2. Business cycles 14. Prices
3. Corporation and investment finance 15. Public finance
4. Economic geography 16. Public utilities (including transportation)
5. Economic history (required) 17. Socialism and types of national economic organization
6. Economic theory (required) 18. Statistics (required)
7. Industrial organization and control 19. Any other subject approved by the Executive Officer of the Department. Such an optional subject must be included among the four presented for the oral examination.
8. Insurance
9. International trade
10. Labor problems and industrial relations
11. Marketing
12. Mathematical economics

It is the policy of the Department of Economics to encourage students to devote part of their effort to studies outside the Department. The student’s field of secondary interest, to the extent of the equivalent of two of his six subjects, may fall in one of the departments under the Faculty of Political Science, in Philosophy, Psychology, or in another discipline dealing with matters germane to the student’s scholarly interests.

Economic Theory. The candidate will be expected to show acquaintance with the ways in which economic theorists have conceived and treated broader issues, as well as ability to apply economic theory to problems that interest him. The Executive Officer of the Department should be consulted before making a choice of emphasis in preparation for examination.

Dissertation. Investigations and researches for the dissertation may be pursued either in connection with the work of some research course or under the direction and supervision of some member of the Faculty of Political Science independently of any course. Students working on dissertations must keep their advisers informed of the status of their work.

Final Examination: Defense of the Dissertation. At least one month in advance of the time at which he wishes to present himself for the defense of his dissertation, but not later than April 1 in any academic year, the candidate must make application therefor to the Dean, who will thereafter notify him of the date of the final examination. This examination is an oral examination conducted by a committee of the Faculty appointed by the Dean. By it the candidate will be held to a defense of his dissertation in respect of its content, the sources upon which it is based, the interpretations that are made, the conclusions that are drawn, as well as in respect of the candidate’s acquaintance with the literature and available sources of information upon subjects that are cognate to the subject of his dissertation.

The dissertation topic and plans for the prosecution of the study leading to the dissertation will be reviewed at the time of the candidate’s examination on subjects. It is desirable that a substantial start be made on the dissertation while the student is still in residence. If a candidate works on his dissertation in absentia an annual written report of progress will be required.

In summary, the following are the steps to be taken by a student seeking the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Economics:

  1. Submit to the Office of Admissions an application for admission to the graduate Department of Economics. Arrange to have transcripts of all previous academic records sent to the Office of Admissions by the institutions concerned.
  2. Notify the Executive Officer of the Department of intention to become a candidate for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
  3. Make a preliminary choice of subjects in consultation with the Executive Officer or his representative.
  4. Register with the secretary of the Department for examination for prospective candidacy. This examination must be taken before the student may register for more than thirty points of course credit for graduate work, but see fourth paragraph of “Prospective Candidacy” ([see] above). Students taking the examination are required to indicate the field or fields of their research interests.
  5. Apply for test in one foreign language. The test in one language must be passed before the student may register for more than thirty points of course credit for graduate work. (Language tests may be taken at any of the scheduled dates after admission to graduate status.)
  6. Apply for test in second foreign language. The second language test must be passed before the student may register for mort than forty-five points of course credit for graduate work.
  7. Apply through the secretary of the Department to the Matriculation Committee of the Department for Matriculation (i.e. formal admission to candidacy for the doctoral degree).
  8. Arrange with professors concerned for certification examinations on two of the six subjects offered. Certification examinations may be taken at any time, on consultation with the professor in charge, after admission to graduate status.
  9. Apply to the Executive Officer for permission to take examination on subjects. This application must be made before April 1 in the academic year in which the examination is to be held. At the time of application, the candidate must submit to the Executive Officer a memorandum outlining his dissertation project. This memorandum must previously have been approved by the candidate’s adviser and by the Executive Officer or a committee named by him.
  10. Submit dissertation to the professor in charge and to the Executive Officer of the Department. Obtain the Department’s assurance that the dissertation is in form for defense, and the Department’s recommendation to the Dean that the candidate is prepared for final examination.
  11. Apply to the Dean of the Graduate Faculties for admission to final examination for the Doctorate (defense of dissertation).
  12. Deliver seventy-five copies of the printed dissertation to the University Libraries.
  13. Arrange with the secretary of the Department for distribution of copies of the printed dissertation, not to exceed forty-five in number, to members of the Faculty of Political Science.

 

Source:   Columbia University Bulletin of Information, Forty-sixth Series, No. 37 (August 10, 1946). History, Economics, Public Law, Sociology, and Anthropology. Courses Offered by the Faculty of Political Science for the Winter and Spring Sessions, 1946-1947, pp. 2, 13-16, 19-23.

Image Source:  Columbia University graduation. New York, NY The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. “”. The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1940 – 1979.

Categories
Columbia Regulations

Columbia. Memo on Doctoral Exams in the Faculty of Political Science, 1946

 

The subject of oral examinations has come up in earlier posts:  Columbia 1932-3, Columbia 1967, and Harvard 1958. This post takes us to the immediate post-WWII years.

For visitors to this page who are unfamiliar with the divisional organization of Columbia University earlier: the department of economics was located within the faculty of political science that also included departments of history, public law and government, sociology, and anthropology — a disciplinary spectrum similar to that of Harvard’s Division of History, Government, and Economics.

____________________

FACULTY OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

23 April 1946

MEMORANDUM on the Conduct of Doctoral Examinations

TO:     Members of the Faculty of Political Science

Following are a few suggestions, occasioned by comments of members of the Faculty relative to our oral examinations for the doctorate, both on subjects and in defense of the dissertation. They are distributed to call attention of members of examining committees to procedures previously agreed upon but sometimes forgotten or overlooked.

  1. That our system of departmental representatives at examinations is breaking down furnishes the subject of most frequent comment. This was understandable during the war when the staff was depleted and overworked; and provision of representatives for all examinations by the smaller departments is always a difficult problem. But the Committee feel that the principle is a good one and should be maintained. It makes for the equalization of standards in examination throughout the Faculty and serves as a constant reminder that examining committees, more particularly for the defense of the dissertation, are committees of the Faculty. Since the Faculty has for long been too large for all members to attend all examinations, the system of departmental representatives affords the means of maintaining faculty solidarity in the examination.
  2. There is further question relative to examining committees keeping within the allotted time. This is particularly important during the crowded period in late April and May, when examinations are frequently scheduled with no interval between. Lack of promptness in ending the examination causes confusion and irritation and detracts materially from the dignity of the examination. Obviously if the examination is concluded promptly on the hour, the committee must have some time to decide on the performance of the candidate, with the result that the next committee is kept waiting during the deliberation. This matter has been discussed with Miss Neare of the Dean’s office. She will do her utmost to allow at least one-half hour between each examination. If the schedule becomes so crowded that this is impossible, some other locale for the examination will be sought.
    It should be noted that this arrangement may involve: (a) the commencing of some examinations on the half hour, and (b) the necessity of bearing in mind that some examinations will probably be scheduled in a room other than 304 Fayerweather.
  3. Your committee would like to call attention of all chairmen of examining committees to the desirability of rigid adherence to the faculty agreement that 15 minutes at the end of every examination should be reserved for questions by departmental representatives, or more general questions by any member of the committee. At the same time we should like to point out that this rule has validity only if departmental representatives accept the responsibility of posing questions.
  4. The examining committee for defense of the dissertation is a committee of the Faculty charged to act for that body in the matter of certifying candidates for the doctorate. Occasionally when a question relative to the dissertation, or some unusual circumstance in the examination, has arisen reference has been made to the Committee on Instruction. It is the feeling of this committee that the decision of the examining committee should be final and that in all cases involving an unusual decision full and accurate record should be made of such decision, either on the reporting blank or on a sheet attached thereto.

Respectfully submitted,

James C. Bonbright
Austin P. Evans, Chairman
Philip C. Jessup
Robert K. Merton

APE:v

 

Source:  Columbia University Archives.  Minutes of the Faculty of Political Science, 1940-1949.

Image Source: Fayerweather Hall from Columbia University Department of History website

Categories
Harvard Regulations

Harvard. Report on Graduate Economics Instruction, 1945

 

One interesting take-away is that the size of the graduate economics student body is discussed, given the faculty size, rather than the reverse. Also of interest is the proposal for a distinction to be made between a terminal Ph.D. exam failure and a failure meriting a second chance.

__________________

REPORT ON GRADUATE INSTRUCTION
December 10, 1945

TO: Professor H.H. Burbank
FROM: The Ad Hoc Committee on Graduate Instruction

This committee was asked to consider the following three questions: (1) How can the increased burden of Ph.D. examinations best be met? (2) Should any limit be set to the number of graduate students in economics and, if so, what should be the limit? (3) How can inadequate graduate students be most effectively eliminated? After a consideration of these questions, the ad hoc committee wishes to make the following recommendations:

I. Ph.D. Examinations.

The committee is of the opinion that the total number of general and special examinations scheduled and to be scheduled for this academic year does not present a serious problem. The examinations already scheduled number thirty-nine and the total number, to the end of the year, may reach sixty. If equally distributed this would mean ten to twelve examinations for each officer between now and June. The burden of the examinations however is unequally distributed among the officers of the Department, and certain of the recommendations which follow are designed to lessen this inequality.

If the number of graduate students doubles, or increases to anything like that figure, the examination burden will become serious, and our recommendations are chiefly directed toward this contingency. We recommend that the Department give consideration to the following possibilities:

  1. Officers of the Department who are lightly burdened with examinations may in most cases be asked to examine in certain fields outside those in which they are now giving instruction.
  2. Since the examination load is now concentrated in the months of January and May, students should be encouraged to stand for examination in less crowded periods.
  3. Instructors should be asked to share the burden of examining as soon as they receive their doctor’s degree.
  4. In exceptional cases (but only in such cases) one examiner can be made responsible for two fields; for example, the same examiner could, in certain cases, be made responsible for money and banking and business cycles. In others, the examination in theory and international trade could be given by on man. If and when this expedient is followed, the officer examining in two fields should vote on these two fields. All three examiners should be responsible for a judgment on the examination as a whole.
  5. As the examining burden becomes heavier, two fields rather than one (but not including theory) might be written off and the examination shortened to an hour and a half.
  6. The last two measures are suggested as temporary expedients only—not as permanent policies.

The committee discussed the possibility of substitution written examinations and although a definitive view was not reached, the consensus of opinion was against the written examination on these grounds:

(1) Students are required to take extensive written course examinations and as far as their capabilities to satisfy such requirements are concerned they are already adequately tested. The oral examination constitutes a different and important kind of test.

(2) If the written general examinations were adequate to their purpose, and if at least a short oral were included as for the undergraduate divisionals, the committee doubts whether any time would be saved.

II. Size of the graduate school in economics.

The committee believes that if standards of graduate instruction are to be maintained a limit must be set to the number of students admitted to the graduate school and suggests tentatively about two hundred and fifty. This would involve limiting the number of first year students to approximately one hundred. Substantial increase in the number of students will increase markedly the amount of time which will have to be given to the direction of theses and to other forms of individual instruction. It is probable that with a graduate school of two hundred and fifty, less time will in any case be available for such instruction but the committee feels that no appreciable lowering of standards need accompany an increase to the suggested size.

A second major burden will be imposed on instruction in the fields of theory, statistics and economic history. In order to lighten this burden the committee recommends that the Department take the following steps:

  1. The basic graduate course in theory should be offered anew each term. The committee is of the opinion that the staff of theory instructors is adequate for this purpose.
  2. The Department should proceed forthwith to the appointment of its full quota of faculty and annual instructors and teaching fellows. We understand that the Department is entitled to six faculty instructors and we urge that the available positions be filled as soon as possible.
  3. In making the appointments, particular attention should be given to securing an adequate number of instructors and assistants in the field of statistics. One or more of the people appointed in this area should be Ph.D.’s in order that the examining burden on present officers may be lightened.
  4. It is imperative that an able young man be appointed in the field of economic history and he must have his degree if the very heavy examining load in this field is to be shared.

III. Weeding out incompetents.

The committee is agreed that to the greatest extent possible this weeding out process should begin with the raising of standards of admission to the graduate school. It urges on the Chairman of the Department that he throw his influence in favor of rejecting the lower fringe of candidates who in ordinary times would have been admitted and that he emphasize strongly to the Dean of the Graduate School the necessity of applying higher standards. With respect to students already admitted the committee recommends:

  1. that ordinarily the failure to receive an average of two B’s and two B+’s for the first year of work in the graduate school be considered reason for refusing students permission to continue their studies;
  2. that, in addition to raising the standard required to be satisfied in the general examination, failures be divided into two categories:

(1) Failed, but permitted to apply for re-examination.
(2) Failed, and prohibited from applying for re-examination.

Respectfully submitted,

Edward S. Mason, Chairman
Edward H. Chamberlin
Alvin H. Hansen

 

Source: Harvard University Archives. Department of Economics, Correspondence and Papers Department (UAV349), Box 13.

Categories
Columbia Regulations Research Tip Salaries

Columbia. Excerpts from annual faculty meeting. GRE’s, Math, Salaries discussed, 1951

 

 

The Department of Economics at Columbia University was a constituent element of the Faculty of Political Science from its earliest days. The Columbia University Archives have a long series of bound, typed minutes of the Faculty of Political Science and some of its committee meetings [Research tip: these bound volumes run from 1897 to at least 1957, when I approached the end of my project’s historical window].  I have somewhat randomly selected today’s transcription. The meeting had four items directly relevant to the greater project of chronicling the education of economists (i.e., about four items above the mode) and a relatively descriptive account of presentation and debate. When the discussion turned to a motion to replace a foreign language with a math requirement, the secretary of the Faculty, Professor Barzun, threw in the towel as keeper of the minutes: “From this point forward the discussion became at once so lively and so subtle that the Secretary was unable to keep up with it, and can provide only a feeble rendering of its reality.”

_____________________

FACULTY OF POLITICAL SCIENCE
April 27, 1951

The annual meeting of the Faculty of Political Science was held on April 27, 1951, at 4:10 P.M. in the Trustees’ Room.

Roll Call
[p. 1035]

Present:

Vice President Kirk
Dean Krout
Professors Anderson, Angell, Barzun, Bergson, Bonbright, Burns (A.F.), Burns (A.R.), Clark, Dorfman, Davis, Evans, Florinsky, Fox, Goodrich (Carter), Goodrich (L.M.), Greenberg, Hunt, Lazarsfeld, Lerner, Mattingly, Mills, Miner, Merton, Macmahon, Nurkse, Orchard, Peffer, Scheffé, Shoup, Strong, Steward, Stigler, Vickrey, Wagley, Wallace, Wilbur, Wolfowitz, Wuorinen.

Absent:

Professors Abel, Aly, Barghoorn, Baron, Berle, Brebner, Brunner, Carman, Clough, Commager, Dowling, Einaudi, Gellhorn, Haig, Hart, Haas, Hazard, Ho, Holborn, Jessup, Kroeber, Lehmann, Lipset, Lissitzyn, Lynd, MacIver, McNeill, Malone, Millett, Moley, Morris, Mosely, Neumann, Niebuhr, Nevins, Odlozilik, Pearden, Pennock, Polanyi, Robinson, Rogers, Saulnier, Sayre, Schuyler, Shapiro, Szeftel, Tannenbaum, Thomson, Truman, Westermann, Wolman.

[…]

Re-admission of graduate students
[p. 1036]

Dean Krout proposed the resolution of the Joint Committee on Graduate Instruction concerning the readmission of graduate students, as follows:

RESOLVED, That any former graduate student who seeks re-admission for work in residence at a date more than five years following his latest residence, must have his earlier academic work re-evaluated and his essay or dissertation subject reconsidered, either prior to readmission, or during the first semester of renewed residence. The credit which such students shall receive shall be determined by the Admissions Office on the recommendation of the Department concerned.

In the case of a former graduate student who makes application for the final examination in defense of his dissertation, at a date more than five years following his latest residence, the department concerned may require a similar re-evaluation.

It was passed unanimously without discussion.

[…]

Salary Report (of Committee of Six)
[p. 1038]

Speaking for the Committee of Six representing the three Graduate Faculties, Professor Stigler spoke briefly about the Report on University Salaries, copies of which had been previously sent to all members of the Faculty. He again stressed the fact that the role of the Committee was not to recommend a salary schedule, nor to cope with the difficulties of financing, but simply to report comparative findings. He pointed out the inadequacy of data for the period 1914-1930, but expressed confidence in the statistical results for the period 1930-1950. “We have now reached”, he said, “the lowest point of the entire stretch, and a remedial rise, to be significant, would have to be about 20% generally, and relatively higher for the lower ranks”.

Professor Carter Goodrich moved approval of the general thesis of the report, namely, that it is of the utmost importance to the academic standing of the University that our competitive position expressed through our salary scale be maintained.

The motion was unanimously approved.


Requirement of Graduate Record Examination for admission rescinded
[p. 1039]

Professor Carter Goodrich offered a resolution for the Committee on Instruction regarding the Graduate Record Examination. In discussion he gave a brief history of the requirement and referred to published survey showing that college grades offer a better means of predicting success in Graduate Studies than the examination. Moreover, the Examination costs the student $13.00 and three afternoons, which seems a lavish expenditure for an uncertain measure of prophecy. The Faculty unanimously voted to rescind the requirement.

 

Proposal of Dep’t. of Sociology to substitute Mathematics for one foreign language as a Ph.D. requirement
[pp. 1039-1040]

Professor Lazarsfeld offered a resolution to permit students in Sociology and Economics to substitute Mathematics for one of the two foreign languages normally required for the Ph.D. degree. In the discussion Professor Wuorinen asked to be enlightened on the tendency of the motion. The answer was that Mathematics is a language and one far more necessary to the statistical student of society than any of the languages that consist of words.

Professor Evans opposed the motion on two grounds: first, the principle that all Doctors of Philosophy in Columbia University are rightly deemed able to use the literature of their fields in two foreign languages besides their own; second, the technicality that any change in the requirement must be approved by all three Faculties.

From this point forward the discussion became at once so lively and so subtle that the Secretary was unable to keep up with it, and can provide only a feeble rendering of its reality. Professor Angell urged the far greater range of ideas available in his field through mathematical formulations; Professor Bonbright uttered the suspicion that our language requirement was not really effective, and implied that a mathematics requirement would be. Dean Krout rose to reinforce Professor Evans’ point that we could not take separate action as a Faculty.

Professor Evans introduced an amendment of which the effect was to reduce the requirement to one language for all fields. The amendment was not accepted by the first mover and Professor ANGELL called for a test vote on the original motion. It was carried 25-10; but given the Faculty lack of power to act independently on this matter, Professor Angell moved the appointment of a committee to reconsider the language requirement for the Ph.D. degree. This suggestion was powerless to stem the debate. Professor Stigler urged that all departments be treated equally. Professor Wuorinen questioned the relevance of mathematics to the purpose served by the linguistic equipment. Professor Davis wondered how much mathematics would equal one language. Dean Krout likewise wished to know what would be meant by “mathematics”. Professor Lazarsfeld replied that a committee exists and has expressed itself on the nature of the mathematical equipment required by social scientists. Professor Angell revealed that the Department of Economics has the specifications all worked out. Professors Macmahon and Shoup both agreed in considering mathematics a language and raised the spectre of a three-language requirement.

Finally the question was called for, and Professor Angell’s motion to appoint a committee was passed 26-9.

[…]

The meeting adjourned at 5:35 P.M.

Respectfully submitted
[signed]
Jacques Barzun
Secretary

 

Source: Columbia University Archive, Minutes of the Faculty of Political Science, 1950-1962. pp.1035-1042.

Categories
Harvard Regulations

Harvard. Economics Ph.D. Regulations, 1968

 

Besides the general university regulations governing the award of a Ph.D. degree, specific departmental rules evolve as a matter of case-law decided committee meeting by committee meeting and/or departmental meeting by departmental meeting. In the summer of 1968 the Harvard chairman of economics, Professor Richard Caves, offered the following codification of specific economics practice. Caves’ cover letter and memo that I have transcribed below were found in personal departmental files kept by John Kenneth Galbraith.

___________________________________

1968 Codification of Harvard Economics Ph.D. Regulations

HARVARD UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMICS

OFFICE OF THE CHAIRMAN

M-8 LITTAUER CENTER
CAMBRIDGE 38, MASSACHUSETTS

September 13, 1968

To: Members of the Department of Economics
From: R. E. Caves, Chairman

Attached is a memorandum prepared this summer which seeks to codify the department’s regulations concerning the Ph.D. program. It is restricted to information not contained in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, General Announcement, 1968-1969 (“The Red Book”) and the leaflet “Higher Degrees in Economics,” Supplement to the General Announcement.

For some time I have felt the need for a memorandum of this type, for distribution both to graduate students and members of the department. A number of changes have been made during the last few years in the administration of various phases of the PhD. program, and it is difficult to bring these to the attention of the students. Furthermore, some regulations rest on oral traditions that I have found to vary depending on whose mouth they come from. This memorandum has been prepared following a search of the minutes of Department and Executive Committee meetings, and in consultation with the chairman of the Committee on Graduate Instruction. Please bring any inaccuracies to my attention.

This document will be distributed to the returning graduate student at the annual meeting held with them during the first week of classes. (It seems best to spare the first-year students until a psychologically more propitious time.)

Let me take this opportunity to remind members of the Committee on Graduate Instruction that they will be in charge of advising first-year graduate students this year, superseding our previous practice of assigning them to all professors and associate professors in the Department.

___________________________________

DEPARTMENT REGULATIONS GOVERNING THE Ph.D. IN ECONOMICS

SUGGESTIONS FOR COURSE REGISTRATION

First year graduate students in economics with an ordinary undergraduate background should usually enroll in 201a, b, 221a, b, and 233a, b, plus some other course (or pair of half courses) relating to one of the fields that they expect to present on the general examination. Those who have not passed the mathematics exemption exam should substitute 199 for 201a and 221a during the fall term; either 200a or some other graduate course not requiring advanced prerequisites may be included. 201a and 221a are then begun in the spring semester and their continuations (201b and 221b) completed in the following fall. The mathematics placement examination is advisory, so that students who feel its results do not accurately reflect their abilities may consult the instructors in 201a or 221a.

Four courses per term is the standard load, and full-time students are not permitted to take less. There is no tuition charge for additional courses.

First year students may proceed on their own to arrange reading courses where they seem appropriate. Representative cases would be where the student is preparing an optional field for the general examination for which no regular course is currently given, or where his previous study covers a substantial portion but not all of the first-year theory, history, or statistics courses. (None of these courses is required, although they are recommended for most students.) It is also possible for first year students to sign up for “Time,” although this is normally used primarily to cover study for the general examination, and should not be substituted for a reading course without good cause.

The same general rules pertain to registration for the second year. Economics 202a is normally a second-year course, and students who still need to complete 221b or 201b or both should do so during the fall term. Other courses should be chosen to complete the preparation of the fields which the student plans to present on the oral examination.

The department expects that students will normally take at least one working seminar before the end of their second year. This may be taken during the first year, but ordinarily comes in the second. The Graduate Instruction Committee maintains an up-to-date list of working seminars. Second-year students may then wish to register for “Time” for a substantial part of their program. They are not permitted to do so unless the working seminar requirement has been or is being fulfilled. Exceptions to this requirement are given by the chairman only in rare cases to students who are still carrying a heavy load of regular courses during their second year.

In the third year, or after the residence requirement and general examination have been completed, students do not need to be registered if they are not taking courses. Those in residence, however, will ordinarily wish to register in order to use the university’s facilities, and Teaching Fellows must be registered. Registration at this stage may be either for thesis supervision (Economics 301) or “Time” unless the student wishes to take some regular course.

Students who have done graduate work in economics elsewhere before coming to Harvard may wish to apply for transfer credit. This has the sole effect of reducing their tuition obligation to the University. Since none of our courses is required of graduate students, it has no formal implications for either course registration or for the grade average compiled at Harvard. Credit for work done elsewhere is granted at the discretion of the Graduate Instruction Committee. The number of courses for which credit is granted depends on grades earned at Harvard, the nature of courses taken elsewhere and the quality of the student’s performance in them. The maximum credit that may be given for work done other than at Harvard is eight half courses, and students will be granted all or part of this, depending on the record compiled in the Department. Petition forms for requesting credit for work done elsewhere may be secured from the Graduate Office (Littauer M-13) at the end of the student’s second semester in residence at Harvard.

 

THE GENERAL EXAMINATION

The Department of Economics has prepared a number of handouts describing such topics as writing off fields for the general examination, the written theory and statistics examinations, and fields of concentration; these are available in Littauer M-13.

Composition and Timing of the General Examination. The General Examination is given in three parts: a four-hour written examination in economic theory and its history, a four-hour written examination in statistical methods, and a one-and-one-half hour oral examination in three specialized fields.

General examinations are given twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring. In the past, the fall theory examination has occurred about November 7 and the spring theory examination the week after spring vacation, around April 11. The statistics examination is ordinarily given a few days after the theory exam. Two to three weeks are allowed for grading, so that the fall oral examinations commence after Thanksgiving vacation and the spring orals at the end of April. Exact dates are posted on the bulletin board outside M-13 as soon as they are available. All parts of the examination must ordinarily be taken at the same time, i.e., a student may not take and pass the theory written exam in one “season” and defer the balance until the next. Students will, however, in some cases be permitted to take the written statistics exam prior to the other two parts.

In the past, it was possible for students to request a particular date for the oral examination. With increased number of students to be examined, this is becoming less and less feasible, especially in the spring. Requests to be first are much more likely to be entertained than requests to be last. In the final analysis, the Department feels that the composition of the board is a great deal more important than the actual exam date, and we consequently give this factor priority in scheduling.

Application for the General Examination. Students are invited to apply for the fall exam after October 1 and for the spring exam after March 1. Application may be made in M-13.

The Written Examination. Copies of past exams are available in M-12. It should be understood that the Department is in no way committed to the format or contents of past exams. Because Business Economics Ph.D. candidates are not responsible for the portion of the written theory examination dealing with the history of economic thought, they are given an optional alternate question.

In order to take the Oral Examination, a student must pass both the written theory and written statistics examinations. In most cases, students will not be examined orally on economic theory and statistical methods material covered on the written examinations. However, candidates who receive a grade of Fair Minus on the written theory examination will take a separate oral examination in economic theory and its history, which will be conducted by at least two members of the committee responsible for the written theory examination. This examination will be given as soon as possible after the theory examinations are graded, and the candidate must pass this separate examination in order to present himself for the general oral examination. The oral theory examination will last about forty minutes and will cover the same subjects, but not necessarily the same questions, as the written theory examination. If the candidate fails the oral theory examination, he will also be considered to have failed the written theory examination; if he passes the oral theory examination, his grade on the written theory examination will remain Fair Minus, and he may proceed to the remainder of the general examination.

The procedure for the statistics examination is somewhat different. A student who performs marginally on the written statistics examination will be examined orally in statistics at his general oral examination along with his other three fields. A student who had planned to present General Analytic Ability plus two specialized fields may therefore find he must present statistics orally. If so, he will continue to present General Analytic Ability, but will have a four member board. A student with no write-off will present four specialized fields: economic history, two selected fields, and statistics.

About two or three weeks after the theory and statistics examinations, students are told whether or not they have passed via sealed envelope distributed by the Graduate Secretary in M-13. Students who must present either statistics or theory orally are informed at this time. Except for any Fair Minuses, letter grades are not given out and no grades are posted.

Write-offs. Although the general examination normally consists of three parts, the written theory examination, the written statistics examination, and the oral examination, it is sometimes possible for students to waive either the statistics examination or one field of the oral examination. The theory examination may never be waived and students may not write off more than one field.

Normally the write-off requirement will consist of distinguished grades in either one full course or two half courses indicated for that field. “Distinguished grades” are defined as A or A- for a full course, or at least an A- average for two half courses, obtained by one of the following combinations: A and A; A and A-; A and B+; A- and A-. The following do not qualify: A- and B+; A and B. The order in which the grades are obtained is not important.

Because the spring general examination is given before the end of the second semester, the questions of conditional write-offs may arise. If a student has completed the first semester of a pair of half courses for the write-off and is taking the second semester course at the time he wishes to present that field on his general examination, he may do so only if he obtained an A in that course first semester. If, at the end of the second semester, he does not have at least a B+ in that course, he will be required to take an oral examination in the field.

The courses usable for a write-off change somewhat from year to year, and students should check with the Graduate Office before taking two halves of a write-off in different years. However, if a student completely fulfills a write-off requirement his first year and does not take his general examination until his second year (the most usual case), he may still waive a generals field with his first year work, even though the write-off requirements may have changed substantially by the time he takes his generals.

The sheet on write-off requirements that is available each fall in the Graduate Office contains a list of fields in which a write-off is automatically granted for candidates with the requisite grades. Occasionally, a student will wish to write off a field which is not listed. In this case, a student has the right to petition, in writing, the Committee on Graduate Instruction.

Final jurisdiction on all matters pertaining to write-offs rests with the Committee on Graduate Instruction. Students who wish a write-off that deviates from the normal procedure should check with the Graduate Secretary in M-13, who will supply instructions on petitioning the Committee. To allow the Committee ample time to meet and discuss petitions, and to allow a student to revise his program of study if his petition is rejected, a student should present his petition as soon as possible, certainly no later than the beginning of the semester in which he wishes to take his Generals.

The Oral Examination. The identity of the board members remains a secret until twenty-four hours before the oral. (Those with Monday exams are informed by a Sunday phone call.) The board will usually consist of three faculty members, at least one of whom is tenured.

Students who have no write-off, or who write off statistics, will be examined in three fields. All others will be examined in two regular fields, but a third examiner will be present on the board to evaluate the student’s General Analytic Ability.

The final grade on the General Examination is a composite of three other grades: the theory exam grade, the statistics exam grade, and the grade on the orals. The only grade that is recorded on the permanent record is the final grade. Students are informed within an hour or so of their oral examinations of their final grade for the general.

As in the past, if a student fails any portion of the general oral examination, he fails the entire oral examination, and must again present the same three specialized fields (or two specialized fields and General Analytic Ability). If a student who must present statistics orally fails this portion of the general examination, he will have to retake both the written statistics examination and the entire general oral examination.

Students who receive a grade of at least Good Minus on the general are not required to take a final examination in any fields which were presented at the oral.

Master of Arts Degree. Students who have passed all portions of the general examination may apply for an M.A. degree. There is no fee for this. However, students who have received credit for work done elsewhere should check before applying for an M.A., as this may jeopardize having the necessary sixteen half courses for the Ph.D. residence requirement. Since there is a December 1 deadline for the March degree and an April 1 deadline for the June degree, degree applications may be submitted by the optimistic before generals are taken.

As far as the Department has been told, applying for an M.A. in no way affects one’s draft status, unless the MA. is a terminal one.

 

SUPERVISION OF THE DOCTORAL DISSERTATION

A student is expected to begin active work on his doctoral dissertation as soon as he has completed his General Examination. At that time, he will ask two faculty members from the Department to comprise his thesis committee and to supervise his thesis until it is completed. One of the committee members should be either a professor or an associate professor in the Department (or comparable visiting faculty member), but the second committee member may be chosen from among the lecturers and assistant professors. In some cases it has been possible for students to choose as one committee member a professor from either another department at Harvard or from the economics department of another university. The student will ask one of the committee members (which need not be the tenure member) to serve as principal director of his thesis and chairman of his thesis committee. (A different procedure applies optionally to students who passed the general examination before 1968.)

Having secured approval from two faculty members, a Ph.D. candidate shall register his thesis topic with the Graduate Office within one term after completing the General Examination. On the appropriate form, he shall propose to the Department Chairman a thesis topic and suggest the two faculty members who have agreed to supervise it. The Chairman of the Department will consider the suitability of the proposed thesis committee. Unless they hear otherwise, students may assume approval has been given.

Throughout the time he is writing his thesis, a student is expected to keep in touch with both members of his dissertation committee on the progress of his work. In case a member of the dissertation committee leaves the university for more than a semester, the student is responsible for suggesting a replacement. Department members who are on leave from the university are expected, however, to continue to supervise theses begun under them whenever practicable.

Every student who has passed his General Examination since February 1, 1966, is required to present at least one report on his thesis project to a working seminar. Each year a list of working seminars is issued by the committee on Graduate Instruction. If no working seminar in the field exists, arrangements shall be made for presenting the thesis to another seminar in the presence of at least one member of the thesis committee. Students who plan to be out of residence while writing their dissertations would contact the Department Chairman regarding special arrangements for fulfilling this requirement.

Students are reminded that five years after the general oral examination has been passed, there is a deadline for submitting the thesis. Because the special examination is an investigation of a student’s knowledge of his particular field, not merely a thesis defense, it is imperative that a student maintain an up-to-date knowledge of his field. Students who spend many years writing their dissertations may tend not to keep in touch with current literature and may find themselves handicapped at the special examination. Therefore the Department is quite strict about enforcing this five-year rule, and extensions of time are by not means automatic.

A limited amount of computer time is available each year to students writing theses. Unfortunately, the funds available have been increasingly less adequate in recent years, but the Department is able to allow each student one-half hour of time for writing his thesis. However, we are sufficiently constrained that it is impossible for us to give thesis-writing students additional time beyond the thirty minutes except in a few special cases. Students must plan their programs very carefully and take advantage of the services of the IBM fellows in order to cut costs. Anyone planning a thesis which will involve considerable use of the computer should be all means establish how it will be financed before beginning work on it. While it is unfortunate that students must sometimes pay for their own computer time, this avenue is nevertheless always open. Computer time on the 7094 costs $2.50 a minute and students whose fellowships or personal finances permit the outlay may always purchase time. Computer time is arranged through the Graduate Office in M-13.

Some seminars and courses have funds to finance computing needs for term papers, etc. Slightly more lenient rules than those quoted above apply to holders of NSF Fellowships.

 

THE SPECIAL EXAMINATION AND COMPLETION OF THE THESIS

When a candidate has nearly finished writing his doctoral dissertation, he shoud see the Graduate Secretary in Littauer M-13 about typing and binding the thesis and taking the Special Examination.

In order to take the Special Examination, it is required that a candidate first submit two bound copies of his thesis to the Department.* At this time he will fill out an application for the Special Examination. A third reader will be chosen and an examination date fixed. (Should a second reader not already have been chosen, he will also be selected at this time.)

*In spite of past leniency, the Department will be adamant about enforcing this rule, and exceptions to it will not be automatic.

            Contrary to the extract “Higher Degrees under the Department of Economics,” from the Supplement to the General Announcement, the thesis does not have to be submitted by December 1 for a March degree or March 1 for a June degree. However, candidates must file a degree application with the Graduate Secretary by December 1 for a midyear degree or April 1 for Commencement, and must pass the Special Examination before either February 1 or June 1 for the appropriate degree to be conferred. A degree application may be filed before the thesis is submitted, as degree applications may be withdrawn if the thesis is not completed in time.

Special examinations may be arranged at any time of the year. Students are warned, however, to allow ample time for the readers after the final draft is completed and before the special exam is scheduled. Furthermore, a serious traffic jam develops at the end of every summer, when most faculty members are away and many students wish to finish in order to take fall jobs. The department cannot guarantee prompt scheduling of specials at this time.

Candidates are reminded that the Special Examination is now formally an examination in the field, or parts of fields, in which the thesis lies. Students are referred to a memorandum dated September 12, 1966, which explains this further.

Physical Requirements for the Thesis. “The Form of the Doctoral Thesis,” taken from the Supplement to the General Announcement, explains procedures for finishing the thesis, but the following points should be noted.

Number of Copies. Unless specifically told otherwise by his advisor, a student may assume the Department requires only two copies of his thesis.

Paper. The first copy of the thesis must be typed on Crane’s thesis paper, which is available in the Coop. The second copy may be Xeroxed. As twenty pound paper does not travel successfully through most Xerox machines, it obviously cannot be required for the second copy. If the second copy is a carbon, it should be done on thirteen pound (or heavier) paper. Any deviation from this format should be cleared through Mr. Elkins, Archivist at Widener Library.

Summary. Although a summary is no longer required by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, two copies of a four to ten page summary are required by the Department of Economics. The summaries are initialed by the two supervising members of the thesis committee when the thesis is accepted and are inserted in a pocket in the back of each copy of the thesis. In addition, the Department would like a 75-word summary of the thesis to be published in the September issue of the American Economic Review.

Binding. The New England Book Binding Company, 24 Blackstone Street, Cambridge (located parallel to Memorial Drive and one block north, between Western Avenue and River Street, phone 868-7220), can bind theses in five working days for about $9.00 per volume. They will also pick up and deliver in Cambridge. Candidates should be sure to tell the bindery to put a pocket for the summary in the back of each copy of the thesis, as this is not done automatically. The thesis may be bound in any reasonable color.

Footnotes. Unless a student is informed otherwise by his advisor, he may follow the editorial recommendations on page 4 of “The Form of the Doctoral Thesis.” Footnotes may be at the bottom of the page, within the text, at the end of chapters, or at the end of the thesis.

Thesis Acceptance Certificate. The Thesis Acceptance Certificate is signed by the first and second readers at the Special Examination. The Department will take care of pasting it in the thesis.

Caveat. Once a thesis has been taken to the Registrar’s Office, it cannot be retrieved.

Special Examination. The special field or fields in which the Special Examination shall be taken are designated by the chairman of the dissertation committee. The exam also constitutes a defense of the thesis.

The two supervising members of the thesis committee agree on a grade on the thesis itself. A separate grade on the special examination is given by the three-man examining committee.

 

Source: John Kenneth Galbraith Papers. Series 5. Harvard University File, 1949-1990. Box 526, Folder “Harvard University Department of Economics: General correspondence, 1967-1974 (3 of 3)”.

Image Source: PhinisheD Gown at pinterest.co.uk

 

 

 

Categories
Fields Harvard Regulations Statistics

Harvard. Use of written general examination for quantitative methods in economics, 1968

 

We can see in the following memo how the traditional oral examinations had to be adapted for a field such as quantitative methods that does not lend itself readily to oral examination while still holding to the principle of a general oral examination  “to assess the candidate’s general ability to use the tools of theory and quantitative methods and to understand the interrelation of different parts of the discipline.” I am surprised that they were apparently still using oral examination for quantitative methods up through the 1967 “generals season”.

___________________________

Additional Oral General Examiner for Students Taking Written Quantitative Methods Exam

April 10, 1968

Memo to: Members of Department of Economics
From: Richard E. Caves, Chairman

At its meeting of February 27, the Department of Economics voted to change the examining procedure for the field of quantitative methods. A written exam will now be given in this field, with the result that students having a write-off and presenting the field of quantitative methods will be offering only two fields on the oral examination. It was voted that, in these cases, a third examiner be present to judge the candidate’s general ability to use economic reasoning and his proficiency as an economist.

A number of members of the department will be asked to take up this open-ended rule in oral examinations during the Spring generals season. Discussion at the Department meeting indicated an agreement that the third examiner should not raise detailed questions of substance outside of the two fields being presented for specific oral examination, but should try to assess the candidate’s general ability to use the tools of theory and quantitative methods and to understand the interrelation of different parts of the discipline. It was suggested that the third examiner might either take his turn at the end of the examination or break in periodically during examination in the two specific fields. He also might, if practical, develop questions on the basis of the candidate’s performance in the written theory and statistics examinations.

The new system of oral examination may call for some change in our traditional method of grading a general examination, which involved each examiner giving a grade both on his own field and on the examination as a whole. It may be more suitable, depending upon the course of the individual examination, for the third examiner to evaluate only the examination as a whole. The grade on the written statistics examination should be taken into account in the same way that the grade on the written theory exam has been in the past.

The Department viewed the inclusion of a third examiner as experimental. I hope that members of the department who have taken up this role will discuss it among themselves to help us develop a standard of practice in this area an to evaluate its usefulness.

 

Source: John Kenneth Galbraith Papers. Series 5. Harvard University File, 1949-1990. Box 526, Folder “Harvard University Department of Economics: General correspondence, 1967-1974 (3 of 3)”.

Image Source:  “Bye-Bye, Blue Books?” in Harvard Magazine, July/August 2010.

Categories
Chicago Regulations

Chicago. Graduate Schools and Regulations. April, 1892

 

The new University of Chicago began its “work of instruction” in October, 1892. In a series of Official Bulletins an outline of the organization of its constituent divisions and departments  along with sundry regulations was published. The fourth Bulletin in the series was dedicated to the Graduate Schools of the University and it is transcribed below. Literally we have here a founding document, an institutional initial condition from which to trace the development of graduate education at Chicago. These organizational blueprints included the Department of Political Economy that James Laurence Laughlin signed up to build as its first head. 

__________________________

THE
UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

OFFICIAL BULLETIN, NO. 4.
APRIL, 1892.

THE GRADUATE SCHOOLS OF THE UNIVERSITY.

CONTENTS.

  1. The Schools and Their Organization.

1) The various Schools.
2) The Relation of the Schools to the Colleges.
3) The Courses offered in each School.
4) The Administration of the Schools.

  1. Admission to the Graduate Schools.

1) The Terms of Admission.
2) Method of Admission.

  1. Candidates for a Degree.

1) For A.M., S.M., Ph. M.
2) For Ph. D.
3) For LL. D.

  1. Regulations for the Selection of Courses.
  2. Non-resident Graduate Work.
  3. University Fellows.

1) Perquisites.
2) Basis of Appointment.
3) Service.
4) First Assignment.
5) Method of Application.

  1. Docents.

1) Basis of Appointment.
2) Amount and Character of Teaching.
3) Compensation.
4) Method of Application.

  1. Theses and Examinations.
  2. Departmental Journals.
  3. Special Regulations for the Graduate Schools.

__________________________

I. THE SCHOOLS AND THEIR ORGANIZATION.

  1. The Various Schools:

(1)* The School of Philosophy.
(2)* The School of Political Economy.
(3) The School of Political Science.
(4)* The School of History.
(5)* The School of Social Science.
(6)* The School of the Semitic Languages and Literatures.
(7)* The School of Sanskrit, Zend and Indo-Germanic Comparative Philology.
(8)* The School of the Greek Language and Literature.
(9)* The School of the Latin Language and Literature.
(10)* The School of the Romance Languages and Literatures.
(11)* The School of the Germanic Languages and Literatures.
(12)* The School of English.
(13)* The School of Mathematics and Astronomy.
(14) The School of Physics.
(15)* The School of Chemistry.
(16)* The School of Biology.
(17) The School of Geology and Mineralogy.
(18) The School of Civil Engineering.
(19) The School of Mechanical Engineering.
(20) The School of Electrical Engineering.
(21) The School of Mining Engineering.

The particular courses to be offered in each school will be announced in the University Calendar, to be issued in May. The remaining Schools will be organized as early as circumstances will permit.

Note.—The Schools designated with an * will be open for graduate work October 1892.

  1. The Relation of the Schools to the Colleges: For the sake of unity and of convenience, the work of the University Colleges is in each case organized in connection with that of the Graduate Schools, the same relation existing between the University Colleges and the Graduate Schools which exists between the Academy and the Academic Colleges.

 

  1. The Courses offered in each School:

(1) Courses intended exclusively for Graduate students.
(2) Courses intended primarily for Graduate students, to which, however, University College students may be admitted.
(3) Courses intended primarily for University College students, to which, however, Graduate students will be admitted.

  1. The Administration of the Schools: The administration of the schools will be conducted by

1) The President of the University.
2) The Dean of the Graduate Department, who shall be appointed by the Trustees, and who shall (1) take charge of the special correspondence of the department; (2) arrange in consultation with the heads of schools the courses of study to be offered from quarter to quarter; (3) present business for the action of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences; (4) preside at the meetings of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and at the meetings of the University Council and of the University Senate, in the absence of the President; (5) co-operate with the University Examiner in arranging for graduate examinations; (6) personally meet and consult with all students entering the Graduate Schools, and give them a card of entrance; (7) assume general responsibility for the students in the graduate schools; (8) and serve in the University Council.*

*The University Council shall include (1) the President; (2) the University officers, viz., Examiner, Recorder, Registrar; (3) the Deans of all Schools, Colleges and Academies; (4) the Presidents of affiliated Colleges: (5) the Director of the University Extension Division; (6) the Director of the University Press. The Council shall hold stated meetings monthly, to discuss and decide matters relating to the general administration of the University.

3) Heads of Schools, who shall in each case (1) supervise in general the entire work of the school; (2) approve examination papers set in the school; (3) arrange, in consultation with the Dean, and with other instructors in the school, the particular courses to be offered from quarter to quarter; (4) examine all theses offered in the school; (5) edit such papers or journals as may be published by the University, on subjects relating to the work of the school; (6) conduct the Club and the principal Seminar of the department; (7) consult with the Librarian as to books and periodicals relating to the work of the school needed in the University or Departmental Libraries; (8) consult with the President and the Dean as to the appointment of instructors in the School; (9) countersign the course certificates of the School; (10) and serve in the University Senate.‡

‡The University Senate shall include (1) the President; (2) the University Recorder; (3) the Heads of Departments in all schools (professional and non-professional) in the University; (4) the University Librarian. The Senate shall hold stated meetings monthly to discuss and decide matters relating to the educational work of the University.

Remark.—In the absence of the head of a School, the instructor next in rank, will assume his duties.

 

II. ADMISSION TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOLS.

  1. Terms of Admission: Admission to the Graduate Schools of the University will be granted

1) To those who have been graduated from the University of Chicago with the degree of A.B., S.B., Ph B.
2) To those who are graduates of other institutions of learning of high standing, with degrees equivalent to those mentioned in the preceding paragraph.
3) To special students, of at least 21 years of age, not candidates for a degree, provided that (1) they can show good reason for not entering upon the regular course; (2) they can give evidence to the Dean and the particular instructor under whom they desire to study, that they are prepared to undertake the proposed subject or subjects; (3) they agree to adjust themselves to all the regulations of the University; (4) having been admitted, they maintain a standing which will warrant their continuance.
4) To honorary students, to attend the lectures offered, without undertaking the ordinary work of the class room. This privilege will be granted only in exceptional cases, upon application to the President of the University, or to the Dean of the Graduate Schools.

Applications for admission, in the case of students not graduates of this University, should be accompanied by testimonials as to character and scholarship; and, wherever possible, such testimonials should take the form of Diplomas, written or printed theses, or satisfactory evidence in some other form of the student’s fitness for admission.

  1. Method of Admission: Applications should be addressed to the University Examiner. In entering for the first time the Graduate Department of the University, the student is expected

(1) To obtain by correspondence, or in person, from the University Examiner, a certificate that he is entitled to preliminary admission.
(2) To obtain from the Dean a card certifying that he is entitled to entrance into the Graduate Department, if found to be prepared and competent in the special schools in which he desires to work.
(3) To consult with the heads of these schools, to arrange the courses of work with them, and obtain their signatures upon his card.
(4) To deposit with the University Registrar a guaranty for the payment of all fees and charges, and to obtain from him, upon payment of a matriculation fee of $5.oo, the stamp of his office upon this card.*

*The Registrar will furnish to the Dean of the Graduate Department a list of all students whose cards have been thus endorsed with the stamp of his office.

In entering upon any course of study, the student must present this card to the instructor.

 

III. CANDIDATES FOR A DEGREE.

  1. For the degree of Master of Arts, Master of Science or Master of Philosophy, the candidate will be required

(1) To have completed the corresponding Bachelor’s course.
(2) To have spent at least one year of resident study at the University in pursuance of an accepted course of study.
(3) To present a satisfactory thesis upon a subject which has been approved by the head of the school in which the principal part of the candidate’s work has been done.
(4) To pass a special final examination upon the work of the year.

  1. For the degree of Ph. D., candidates will be required.

(1) To have completed a Bachelor’s course, including an amount of Latin equivalent to that required for the Bachelor’s degree in the University of Chicago.
(2) To spend three years of resident study at the University in pursuance of an accepted course of study.
(3) To present a satisfactory printed thesis (see below) upon a subject which has been approved by the head of the school in which the principal part of the candidate’s work has been done.
(4) To pass a satisfactory final examination upon the work of the three years.

  1. For the degree of LL.D., candidates will be required.

(1) To have received the degree of Ph.D.
(2) To spend three years of resident study at the University, -in pursuance of an accepted course of study.
(3) To present a printed thesis (see below) upon a subject which has been approved by the head of the school in which the principal part of the candidate’s work has been done.
(4) To pass a satisfactory final examination upon the work of the three years.

  1. Work done in other Universities. Graduate work done in another University will be accepted as resident work in the University of Chicago, provided that

(1) The institution in which the work has been done is one of high standing; and
(2) Sufficient evidence is furnished that the particular work has been satisfactorily performed.

In no case will work in another University count for more than one year and a half of resident work in this University.

 

IV. REGULATIONS FOR THE SELECTION OF COURSES.

  1. The University Calendar will publish announcements of the particular courses offered during a given term or quarter. The Calendar will be published quarterly on the first day of June, September, December and March. Each number will contain (1) the preliminary announcements for the quarter beginning four months from the date of issue, and (2) the revised announcements for the quarter beginning four weeks from the date of issue.
  2. Students in continuous residence will select at one time two Majors and two Minors, the work of a quarter. The selection shall be handed to the Dean within six weeks of the date of the preliminary announcement. Permission to substitute other courses will be granted only when, for any reason, a course offered in a preliminary announcement is withdrawn in the revised announcement.
  3. Students who expect to resume work after an absence of a quarter or a term, and students entering the University only for a quarter or a term, must indicate their selection of, courses within one week from the date of the revised announcement. In case no selection has been indicated, a student may be admitted to a course only (1) by special permission granted by the Dean, and (2) after the payment of a special fee of $5.
  4. Advanced courses in a department may not be selected before the preliminary work in the department has been completed. An instructor, with the approval of the President, may make the completion of the studies in tributary departments a condition in the selection of courses.
  5. A candidate for a degree may not select more than two-thirds of his Majors or Minors during the three years of University work from one school.
  6. The student may not, without special permission, select his Majors and Minors during the three years of University work from more than three different schools.

 

V. NON-RESIDENT WORK.

In the Graduate Department of the University, non-resident work may be substituted for resident work, under the following conditions:

(1) The non-resident student shall be expected to matriculate at the University, and to spend the first year of the time required for the degree in residence, unless he is able to satisfy the head of the school in which his principal work is to be done, that he can do the introductory work in a satisfactory manner, when not in attendance.
(2) The non-resident work shall be performed under the general direction of the head professor.
(3) The final examination shall be passed at the University.
(4) Non-resident work will be accepted for only one-third of the work required for a degree.
(5) In reckoning the comparative time-value of resident and non-resident work, two years of non-resident work, if satisfactorily performed, will be regarded as equivalent to one year of resident work.

VI. UNIVERSITY FELLOWS.

University Fellowships will be assigned in accordance with the following terms and conditions:

  1. Twenty Fellowships will be assigned, each yielding the sum of $500 annually.
  2. Twenty Fellowships will be assigned, each yielding the sum of $300 annually.
  3. Honorary Fellowships, yielding no income and requiring no service, will be assigned as a mark of distinction in special cases.
  4. The appointment to a Fellowship will be based upon proficiency already attained in a given department. It is very desirable that the student should have already spent one year in resident study after receiving his bachelor’s degree. In making the appointment, special weight will be given to theses, indicating the candidate’s ability to do original investigation.
  5. Service. In order to cultivate independence on the part of the student, and to obtain for him the advantage which proceeds from practical work, each student on a fellowship will be expected to render assistance of some kind in connection with the work of the University. This assistance will consist, for the most part in service (1) as an instructor, either in colleges of the University, or in affiliated colleges; but in no case will a student be expected, or allowed, to devote more than one-sixth of his time to such service (while holding a fellowship, a student will not be permitted to do private tutorial work of any kind); (2) as assistant in the reading of examination papers; or (3) as an assistant on a University Journal.
  6. The first assignment of fellowships will take place June 15th, and applications must be made on or before May 15th.
  7. Method of application. Applications for a fellowship should be addressed to the President of the University. Such application should be accompanied by:

(1) A brief sketch of the life and work of the applicant.
(2) A catalogue of the institution from which he has received his bachelor’s degree, with the courses in which he has studied marked.
(3) Any theses or papers of a scientific character which have been prepared by the applicant, whether printed or otherwise.
(4) Letters or testimonials from former instructors in regard to the applicant’s ability in the particular line in which he applies for a fellowship. ,

 

VII. UNIVERSITY DOCENTS.

University docentships will be assigned in accordance with the following terms and conditions:

  1. The appointment to a docentship will be restricted to those who have received from an approved institution the degree of Ph. D.
  2. The Docent will be permitted to offer courses of instruction under the direction of the head professor in his department, in the Colleges of the University, and in the Graduate Department, but in no case shall he be allowed to do more than one-half of the work of the full instructor, it being expected that the remainder of his time shall be devoted exclusively to original investigation.
  3. The Docent shall receive in compensation for his work a proportionate amount of the tuition fees of those who attend his courses, which shall be reckoned as follows: $8 from each student attending a Major course, and $4 from each student attending a Minor course.
  4. Method of application. Applications for a docentship should be addressed to the President of the University. Such application should be accompanied by:

(1) A brief sketch of the life and work of the applicant.
(2) A catalogue of the institution from which he has received his bachelor’s degree.
(3) A detailed statement of the work for which the degree of Ph. D. was granted.
(4) Any theses or papers of a scientific character, which have been prepared by the applicant, whether printed or otherwise.
(5) Letters or testimonials from former instructors in regard to the applicant’s ability in the particular line in which he applies for a docentship.

 

VIII. THESES AND EXAMINATIONS.

The following are the requirements of candidates for the degree of Ph. D., with reference to theses and examinations:

  1. Each student is required to prepare a thesis upon some question connected with a major subject. This production must be scholarly in character, exhaustive in its subject matter, and must constitute an actual contribution to knowledge.
  2. The subject must be submitted for approval to the head professor at least 12 months before the date of the final examinations; the thesis itself must be submitted in written form to the head professor 3 months before the date of the final examinations, and, after acceptance, 25 printed copies of the same must be deposited in the Library within 30 days of the date of the final examinations. Accepted theses will become the property of the University.
  3. In addition to the regular term examinations, during the period of residence, the candidate for the degree of Ph. D. will be required to pass a final written and oral examination, the latter to be conducted by the professors of the school in which the candidate has done his principal work, in the presence of professors representing at least three different schools of the University. In no case will the candidate be admitted to the final examination until his thesis has been accepted.
  4. Candidates for the degree of A.M. will not be required to print their theses. The subject must be submitted for approval to the head professor at least six months before graduation, and the thesis, at least two months before graduation.
  5. Candidates for the degree of LL. D. will not be received until further notice.

 

IX. DEPARTMENTAL JOURNALS AND PUBLICATIONS.

  1. Each school of the Graduate Department will issue, through the University Press, either a journal or a series of papers relating to subjects connected with the schools. Such publications will include only papers of a scientific character.
  2. The editorial work will be performed in each case by the head professor of the school, assisted by the other professors and instructors connected with the school. In the case of regularly-published journals, the names of all permanent instructors connected with the school shall be placed upon the title page as associate or assistant editors.
  3. The financial responsibility for publication will be assumed by the University. Members of the University contributing to the Journals will receive no honorarium.
  4. While one purpose of such publications is to furnish a medium for the publication of material prepared by those who are connected with the University, contributions from others will also be received, at the discretion of the editor.
  5. Each article, editorial, book review or statement of any kind, appearing in a University publication, shall be signed by the writer. For such matter, the writer, not the University, will be responsible, but the editor shall assume responsibility for the admission of the article or statement.
  6. Publications received in exchange, and books received for notice, shall be the property of the University Library.

 

X. SPECIAL REGULATIONS FOR THE GRADUATE SCHOOLS.

  1. Quarters and Terms. The year shall be divided into four quarters, beginning respectively on the first day of October, January, April and July, and continuing twelve weeks each, thus leaving a week between the close of one quarter and the beginning of the next. Each quarter shall be divided into two equal terms of six weeks each.
  2. Classification of Courses. All courses of instruction given in the University shall be classified as Majors and Minors. The Major will call for 10 hours of class-room work, or its equivalent, each week, the Minor for 5 hours of class-room work, or its equivalent, each week. All courses shall continue six weeks, but the same subject may be continued through two or more successive terms, either as a Major or a Minor.
  3. The Work of Professors and Teachers. Each resident professor or teacher shall give instruction 36 weeks of the year, 10 hours a week, or its equivalent; no instructor shall be required to give instruction more than this amount.
  4. The Vacations of Professors and Teachers. A professor or teacher may take as vacation any one of the four quarters, according as it may be arranged; or, he may take two vacations of six weeks each at different periods of the year.
  5. Substitution and Extra Work. A professor or teacher, if he desire, may teach two quarters 5 hours a week, instead of one quarter 10 hours a week. For every quarter or term in the year he may teach beyond the three quarters required, and for every extra Minor in the quarter or term he may teach in addition to the 10 hours a week required, he shall receive either an extra two-thirds pro rata salary or an extra full pro rata vacation. A teacher who has taught three years of 48 weeks each, or six years of 42 weeks each, will thus be entitled to a year’s vacation on full salary.
  6. Adjustment of Vacations. No work will be credited for extra vacation or extra salary except that which may have been accepted by the President, the Dean of the Graduate Schools and the Heads of the Schools concerned. All vacations, whether extra or regular, shall be adjusted to the demands of the situation, in order that there may always be on hand a working force.
  7. Tuition-Fee. The fee for instruction shall be $35.00 a quarter. Besides the tuition fee there shall also be an incidental fee of $2.50 a quarter, and a library fee of $2.50 a quarter. To students entering the University for the first time there will be a charge of $5.00 as a matriculation fee. The fee for graduation is $10.00.
  8. Full and Partial Work of a Student. Each student doing full work shall be required to take one Major and one Minor during each term of a quarter, but a student by special request may, for good and sufficient reasons, be permitted to take one Major or two Minors, in which case he must furnish satisfactory evidence that he is making a proper use of all his time.
  9. Vacations of Students. A student may take as his vacation any one of the four quarters; or, if he desire, two terms of six weeks in different parts of the year.
  10. Rooms in Dormitories. (1) As soon as a sufficient number of dormitories is erected, students will be advised to make their residence in these rather than in rooms rented in private houses. Special dormitories will be provided for women. University officers will be given rooms in the dormitories, and in this way a closer intimacy encouraged, not only between students themselves, but also between instructors and students. (2) The cost of rooms in the dormitories will be from 50 cents to $3.00 a week. The occupant of a room must notify the Registrar six weeks beforehand of his intention to give up a room. (3) The occupation of a room thirty-six consecutive weeks will entitle the occupant to a reduction of 20 per cent., to be refunded at the end of the term. (4) Rooms may not be sub-rented. (5) Application for rooms should be sent to the University Registrar.
  11. Payment of University Bills. Quarter-bills including the tuition-fee, the incidental-fee and the library-fee will be delivered at the beginning of the quarter; if not paid within two weeks of the time they are issued, the student will be liable to be prohibited from reciting. Term-bills (for six weeks) instead of quarter bills (for twelve weeks) will be issued only when the student has notified the Registrar beforehand that he will be absent after the following term. A student who, for any reason, leaves the University in the middle of a term (six weeks) shall pay the full bill for that term. A student who enters the University, intending to remain only six weeks, must indicate this purpose at the time of entrance.
  12. General Expenses of a Student. The following table will furnish an estimate of the annual expenses for 36 weeks of a student in the University.
LOWEST. AVERAGE. LIBERAL.
University bill: tuition $105.00 $105.00 $105.00
University bill: incidentals 7.50 7.50 7.50
University bill: library 7.50 7.50 7.50
Rent and care of room 18.00 72.00 100.00
Board 125.00 175.00 225.00
Fuel and light 15.00 20.00 25.00
Washing 15.00 25.00 35.00
Text-books and stationary 10.00 20.00 50.00
Sundries 10.00 40.00 60.00
$313.00 $472.00 $615.00

 

  1. Opportunities for Self-Help. The University Steward, under the direction of the University Council, will conduct an employment bureau for the aid of students desiring to earn money to assist them in defraying their expenses while attending the University. Through this agency it is hoped that opportunity will be afforded to secure, for one hundred students, work which will yield to each the sum of at least one hundred dollars. Application may be made after May 1, 1892, to the University Steward.

 

Source: University of Chicago. Official Bulletin, No. 4 (April 1892), 11 pages.

Image Source:  View of the University of Chicago campus from the Ferris Wheel of the World’s Columbian Exposition in 1893.   University of Chicago Photographic Archive, apf2-02561 , Special Collections Research Center, University of Chicago Library

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Columbia Regulations

Columbia. Rules for Conduct of Graduate Oral and Final Exams, 1967

 

Every so often some well-meaning Dean tries to capture established procedures in writing. Since the Faculty of Political Science was explicitly referred to and the printed pamphlet transcribed below was found in the papers of the former head of the economics department (located within the Faculty of Political Science), Carl Shoup, it would seem reasonable that the spirit of the these rules, if not the letter, governed the administration of graduate oral and Ph.D. final examinations in economics. When one thinks of the salience of such examination memories, I find it surprising that it is difficult to find detailed written recollections of the oral exams experienced by generations of economic graduate students.

______________________

The Graduate Faculties
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
1967

The Conduct of Oral and Final Examinations

Note

During the academic year 1958-1959 the Chairmen of the Committees on Instruction of the Graduate Faculties wrote to the Dean of the Graduate Faculties to ask that he set down in permanent form the rules governing oral examinations. Before and after that request, numerous faculty members had also asked the Dean’s office question on particular points…

The few pages that follow attempt to answer these various inquiries by summarizing the contents of committee minutes and faculty statements. The forms and procedures here listed were developed over the years by the Faculties themselves and given coherence and fixity by the decisions of the Joint Committee on Graduate Instruction. They apply also to the professional schools in which the Ph.D. degree is offered. The customs indicated, such as rising, notifying the candidate in subjects in one’s office, but bringing back the dissertation candidate, are of course no compulsory but they will be found pleasant and convenient to observe…

I
The Conduct of Oral Examinations

THE CERTIFYING EXAMINATION OR ORALS IN SUBJECTS

In departments where oral examinations are required, a student applies for his orals in subjects to his department. When the request has been approved, the department appoints a committee of not fewer than five members, one of whom is designated as chairman, to examine the candidate on specified subjects or fields. (In the Faculty of Political Science, at least one member of the committee must belong to a department other than the candidate’s; in other faculties, members of outside departments are called on when it is appropriate to do so.) The examination is held preferably in an examination or seminar room, not in an office or classroom, and its duration may be two or two and a half hours, depending on department practice.

The examination chairman is responsible for the conduct of the examination. He calls upon the committee members to ask questions and regulates the length of time that each examiner may occupy. All persons present are deemed members of the committee, whether members of the department or not, and must be given an opportunity to ask questions. The chairman has the right to disallow any question that seems to him irrelevant or improper.

At some convenient point during the examination — e.g., between the major and the minor when that division applies — the candidate is given an opportunity to leave the room for two or three minutes. He is not required to do so and may prefer to forge ahead to the end. At the close of the examination, the candidate is asked to wait in or near his sponsor’s office, the examiners rising as he leaves the room. The chairman then asks for opinions on the examination. Every person present may vote on the issue of Pass or Fail, a majority vote being sufficient.

If passing, the committee must next assign a grade or comment which is entered on the student’s record. Excellent. Very Good, Good, Fair are the commonest terms in use. Poor is not considered passing. In some departments, failure on the examination as a whole is final, unless the committee, of its own motion, recommends to the department a reexamination at some specified time in the future; in others a second examination is normally permitted. There is precedent for giving this second examination in written form if the committee decides that the oral method would permanently prevent the candidate from displaying his knowledge. The committee may also require reexamination, either written or oral, in some part or parts, suspending judgment on the examination as a whole until the deficiency is removed.

Only in the most unusual circumstances should an examination be terminated as a failure before it has run its normal course. This and several of the other cautions enumerated here arise from the experience of many years, during which a number of embarrassments — threatened lawsuits and the like — have been created by contentious students who took advantage of laxness or informality in the conduct of their examinations. Needless to say, it is the student who fails who has recourse to this attempted vindication, but it can be troublesome to the department and expensive for the University.

 

THE FINAL EXAMINATION OR DEFENSE OF THE DISSERTATION

At the final examination, the dissertation is defended by the student with respect to its sources, interpretations, and conclusions. The candidate is expected to show familiarity with the bibliography of his subject and the knowledge relating to the thesis he puts forward.

The committee to examine on the dissertation is not a departmental but a faculty committee. For the Ph.D. degree the Dean of the Graduate Faculties appoints a committee after nominations have been sent him by the department. The committee should consist of at least five members and should not exceed nine or ten. At least two members should come from University departments other than the candidate’s. The reason for the limit on size is that a larger number than ten can scarcely examine to any purpose within a span of two hours, and it is unfair to ask a faculty member to read and annotate a book, listen to his colleagues criticize it, and deny him the right to do the same.

For this reason also, the chairman of the committee must be strict about allotting time. If the candidate is asked to begin by summarizing his preparation and his results, this must be kept within reasonable limits.

Points made by examiners will naturally divide into substantial and editorial. Unless it is necessary to show that a very badly written dissertation must be entirely rewritten, the editorial comments ought not be taken up one by one. The sheet of notes on these matters is handed by the reader to the candidate, leaving examining tie for matters of substance.

When all examiners have finished their questioning, the candidate is asked to step outside and wait for a signal to return. During the discussion period, the question at issue is, first, Pass or Fail; then, if passing is approved, is it with minor or major revisions (known as Column 1 and Column 2 respectively)? A majority vote is required for all decisions on the final examination. But if any two examiners vote not to pass the dissertation (Column 3), it may only be accepted with major revisions, i.e., in Column 2. The committee may also, by unanimous vote, designate an exceptionally meritorious dissertation as “distinguished,” an honor which is place on the candidate’s permanent record.

When passed with minor revisions, the dissertation is corrected by the candidate in the light of the comments made upon it, and his revision is supervised by his sponsor. For major revisions, the chairman of the examination committee appoints a revision committee of three, whose names must be entered upon the reporting sheet. When the student has finished the major revisions, they must be submitted to each of the three members of the revision committee and each must state in writing that the new text is satisfactory. The three letters are sent to the Dean of the Graduate Faculties to be attached to the reporting sheet and thus settle the suspending passing. In the Faculty of Philosophy, such a dissertation may not be deposited until three months after the defense, and not during the summer months.

No candidate may have a second final examination unless the Dean considers, upon evidence put before him, that the first one was maladministered. Under special circumstances, however, the examining committee may by unanimous vote recommend that the Dean, after consultation with the chairman of the department, permit the candidate to submit and defend a totally new dissertation.

Since some students misconstrue encouragement and civilities, and blind themselves to the meaning of the phrase “certified for examination,” it is important for sponsors to make clear at all stages two fundamental features of the final examination procedure:

  1. Certification of the dissertation for examination in no way guarantees that it will be passed, nor does this certification commit the vote of any member of the examining committee.
  2. Certification does not deprive examiners of the right to press questions and criticisms during the examination.

Special dispensation for irregular modes of examination is not unknown but the precedents cannot be construed as a right. Upon formal recommendation of the department, the Dean may approve, on evidence put before him, such irregular procedures as have occurred in the past: defense in absentia (the candidate was in Asia and kept from attending by more than one circumstance); posthumous defense (the candidate’s sponsor recorded and embodied the committee’s suggestions); defense per alium (the candidate, in military service abroad, was represented by a scientific collaborator.

 

Source: Columbia University Libraries, Manuscript Collections. Columbia University, Department of Economics Collection. Carl Shoup Materials, Box 10, Folder “Columbia University—General”. Printed Pamphlet: The Graduate Faculties, Columbia University, 1967. The Conduct of Oral and Final Examinations [etc.], pp. 1-5.

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Harvard. Memo on Master’s degree requirements in ten other departments, 1935

 

The following memo was found in the papers of the Harvard department of economics outlining the formal requirements for the award of a master’s degree in economics for ten other departments ca. 1935.  Harvard requirements for 1934-35 have been previously posted here at Economics in the Rear-View Mirror.

____________________

REQUIREMENTS FOR A.M. IN ECONOMICS

University of Chicago
—Catalogue Vol. XXV, March 15, 1935—
No. 7, p. 293.

“The specific requirements for the Master’s degree are:

  1. A minimum of 8 courses, or their equivalent (of which at least 6 must be in Grades II and III above*). Either in his undergraduate or graduate work the candidate should cover the substantial equivalent of the requirements for the Bachelor’s degree in economics…(May be shown by examination.)
  2. A thesis involving research of at least semi-independent character.
  3. A final examination (either oral or written at discretion of the department). The examination is on the thesis and its field and on one other field chosen by the candidate.
  4. All candidates…are expected to show ability to think clearly…on abstract economic questions, and familiarity with terms and common concepts of economic science.

No language requirement for A.M. apparently.

No set time limit, but (p. 282) they seem to regard three of work in economics (either as graduate or as undergraduate) as “normal preparation” although “exceptionally capable” students may do it in less time.

* Grade II and III being respectively survey and problem courses (II), and Research, reading and seminar courses (III). Grade I includes intermediate courses.

 

Stanford University

  1. One academic year of graduate work (A “normal time” but also minimum).
  2. Thesis
  3. Examinations (general or final and at discretion of department).

 

Cornell University

  1. At least one full year of residence at Cornell.
  2. “No student may be admitted to candidacy for any of the degrees of A.M., M.S.,…, or Ph.D. whose training has not included work in a foreign language equivalent to three units of entrance in one language or two in each of two languages.
  3. A thesis or (at departmental discretion) an essay.
  4. Written or oral (at departmental discretion) final examination.

He must show a knowledge of:

Three special fields, such as: in Economic Theory and History:

(1) Good general knowledge of history of economic thought, including classical school and contemporary.
(2) Familiarity with economic analysis and controversial area of economic thought.
(3) A background knowledge of social and intellectual history.

or in Monetary Theory:

One requirement:
(1) A detailed understanding of the theory and history of money; monetary system of the United States, theory and history of banking; banking system of United States, foreign exchange, monetary aspects of cyclical fluctuations.

No specific course requirements as far as I can see.

 

University of Minnesota

  1. At least one full academic year’s work (in residence).
  2. Thesis required.
  3. Nine credit hours each quarter of graduate courses for three quarters.
  4. He must have done in three years (undergraduate) work in his major subject if it is open to freshmen, or two years otherwise.
  5. A reading knowledge of a foreign language to be determined by the department is necessary.
  6. An examination.

 

University of Michigan

  1. Residence requirement: One semester and one summer session, or three summer sessions; nine hours work a semester and six hours a summer session are minimum to establish residence at the respective sessions.
  2. A minimum of 24 hours of graduate work is required (i.e. necessary but not alone sufficient).
  3. Thesis may be required at discretion of department (apparently economics does not require it).

 

University of Wisconsin

  1. At least two semesters’ work, at least one of which to be at Wisconsin.
  2. An oral examination.
  3. A thesis may be required of students seeking to specialize in a definite line of study.

 

Princeton University

“After Commencement Day, 1935, the degree of M.A. will be awarded only to a student who has passed the general examination for the Doctor’s degree.” This implies a knowledge of French and German; and implies not less than two years graduate study. The examination may be written, oral, or both. One year of residence is required.

 

Yale University

  1. Two full years of resident graduate study required (but may be in less time in exceptional cases where unusual scholarship is demonstrated).
  2. Reading knowledge of either French or German.
  3. An essay is required of all candidates.
  4. (Apparently) A comprehensive written examination in field of concentration in Department of Economics (it is not specified for which degree so that it seems to apply to both M.A. and Ph.D.).

 

Columbia University

  1. “The candidate shall have registered for and attended courses aggregating not less than thirty tuition points, distributed over a period of not less than one academic year or its equivalent.”
  2. “The candidate shall have satisfied the department of his choice that he has satisfied requirements specified by the department for the degree.” (May include courses, examination, an essay, seminars, or “other work”.)

 

University of California

“There are required 20 semester units and in addition a thesis.”

“At least eight of the 20 units must be strictly graduate work.”

“The student must spend one year of residence.”

Rate of taking units:

“Graduate students in the regular session taking only upper division courses are limited to a program of 16 units” (a semester or a year? probably a semester).

“Graduate students…taking only graduate courses are limited to 12 units.” Mixtures are regulated in proportion thereto.

 

Source: Harvard University Archives. Department of Economics, Correspondence and Papers 1930-1961. (UAV 349.11) Box 13, Folder “Graduate Instruction, Degree Requirements.”