Degree Requirements

The requirements listed below are special to this department and must be read in conjunction with the general requirements of the Graduate School. In addition, students are urged to consult either the department’s or the University’s website directly for further information and course descriptions.

Ph.D. Program (rev. 2011)

The Ph.D. requirements reflect what students need to do once they leave the department and become academic sociologists. An assistant professor of sociology needs to be well-grounded in the discipline of sociology, fully knowledgeable about the critical debates in at least one field so that her work will have strategic impact, capable of designing and carrying out research projects, able to present research results in written and oral form, and ready to teach courses. In short, students completing a Ph.D. in our program will need to apply for grants; they need to publish articles and/or books; and they need to present their work in professional meetings.

To be ABD (all but dissertation), students need to accomplish the following 5 tasks:

  • Write and submit a grant/fellowship application for a research project. The application need not be accepted to be considered a fulfillment of the requirement.
  • Write a field statement on a topic of their choice (topic approved by adviser and DGS).
  • Write and submit a paper to be presented at a professional conference. To be considered in fulfillment of the requirement, the paper must be presented at some forum, though not necessarily at the professional conference to which it was submitted. It could, for example, be presented at a departmental or center workshop in Columbia.
  • Write and submit a paper to a scholarly journal. The paper need not be accepted to be considered in fulfillment of the requirement. The paper can be co-authored, but the student must be first author. Unless in exceptional circumstances, it should not be a paper that was published before the student joined the department.
  • Submit the dissertation proposal for approval

Sequencing

Of the first four requirements, students must complete

  • One requirement by the beginning of the Fall semester of the second year
  • By the end of the Fall semester of their second year, students must have identified, contacted, been accepted by, and switched to (if necessary) their "true" adviser/mentor
  • Two requirements by the beginning of the Spring semester of their second year; upon which they obtain the MA.
  • All four requirements by the end of the third year.

Upon completion of these four requirements, they obtain the M.Phil. Degree The dissertation proposal must be approved by January 1st of their fourth year.

Standards for good academic standing

All requirements, except for the grant/fellowship proposal, would be read and approved by two faculty members: the adviser and a second reader. The grant/fellowship proposal would be read only by the adviser. If a student has not completed all requirements as stipulated below by the end of a given year, or if the work is deemed inadequate by the two faculty members reading it, the student will be given feedback in writing, a deadline for completing the work, and a written warning that if the work is not corrected as stipulated, the student would be asked to leave the program.

  • One requirement by the end of the fall semester of the second year
  • Two requirements by the end of the spring semester of the second year
  • Or all four requirements by the end of the third year

Students must complete all coursework in 24 credits by the end of their second year and a total of 48 credits by the end of the third year. Incomplete coursework may lead to dismissal from the program.

Advanced standing

The normal route to a doctoral degree in the Department of Sociology is for students to first earn the MA, typically at the end of the second year, then the M.Phil typically at the end of the third year, and finally the Ph.D. Advanced standing means that the MA requirement is waived, the student is granted up to 27 course credits and up to 2 Residence units, and is moved one year ahead in the program and the M.Phil. requirement is typically fulfilled by the end of the second year. Students receiving advanced standing for the MA degree are not eligible to receive an MA from Columbia University. Students who obtain advanced standing are not exempted from any of the 6 requirements listed above.

Who can obtain advanced standing?

Advanced standing may be granted to students admitted into the department with MA degrees in sociology from other institutions, but it is not guaranteed. The department reserves the right to judge the quality of the program of studies undergone by the student, and whether it merits advanced standing. In some rare cases, advanced standing may be granted to students with non-sociology MA degrees.

How and when to obtain advanced standing?

Advanced standing can be granted as soon as the first semester at Columbia. Students should consult with the DGS during the first semester and provide the DGS with documentation of their degree, courses taken, and especially with syllabi of courses. The DGS will then make a recommendation to the Graduate School. The final decision will is made by the Graduate School. International students are not considered for advanced standing until they have passed the ALP examination with a grade of 10. Fellowships and Advanced Standing Students who are granted full advanced standing (2 Residence Units) receive four years of fellowship funding, rather than the standard five years. For this reason, the department makes the decision about advanced standing only after careful discussion with the student about his or her background and objectives in the program, and with a view to promoting and protecting the best interests of the student. After a decision has been reached, however, advanced standing is not something a student can decline. If the department judges that a student is eligible for advanced standing, then it will recommend accordingly to the Graduate School.

Partial advanced standing

If a student's MA degree is not in sociology or is judged not rigorous enough, or if a student has taken courses toward MA degree but did not complete it, the DGS may recommend partial advanced standing or simply transfer of credits. With partial advanced standing, the student will typically be granted only 1 Residence Unit, and between 8 and 18 course credits. Transfer of credits typically involves no more than eight course credits. In both cases, the MA requirement is not waived. Students wishing to receive credit for course work completed in other departments or schools within the University must consult the Director of Graduate Studies for approval. Requirements for the MA (leading to the Ph.D.) The MA degree is awarded to all graduate students who complete the requirements listed below. Students must also satisfy the requirements of the Graduate School. It is the student's responsibility to apply for the MA degree in a timely fashion, upon completion of all necessary requirements. Students admitted to the Ph.D. program are expected to apply for the MA degree before the end of semester four.

Residence

Two Residence Units

Points of credit: A total of 24: 18 points of courses taken for a letter grade within the department six points of R credit within the department. Courses taken outside the department must have authorization from the DGS. Per the departmental guidelines for formal admission to the doctoral program, 18 points of courses taken for a letter grade are to be completed in the first year.

Required courses

G4050 Sociological Theory Origins (must be taken in year 1)
G4074-G4075 Introductory Social Data Analysis, a two-semester sequence, plus the associated lab courses G4076-G4077 G4097 Designs of Social Research (must be taken in the first semester of the second year)

These courses are taken pass/fail only

A weekly, noncredit Professional Seminar is to be completed in the first and second semesters. Attendance is compulsory, but registration is not required.

3 of the 6 requirements by the end of the 2nd year, as explained above

Language requirement: Students are not required to demonstrate proficiency in any language with the following exception. International students for whom English is not their native language and who have not previously earned an undergraduate degree at an English-speaking college or University must pass the ALP (American Language Program) two-part examination with a grade of 10 before the end of semester two. This is a requirement of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Instructors of the first-year required courses assess the language skills of all students. Any student deemed inadequately prepared in English is required to take a language course approved by the DGS.

For the M.Phil. Degree

Students granted permission to proceed to the M.Phil. degree must complete all requirements for the Ph.D. except for the dissertation proposal and the preparation and defense of the dissertation in order to receive the M.Phil degree. Timely completion of the M.Phil. ensures that students retain full eligibility for departmental, University, and outside fellowships, as well as for other forms of support. As with the MA, it is the student's responsibility to observe all departmental and school deadlines in applying for the M.Phil. degree.

Residence

Six Residence Units, including the two earned for the M.A. degree.

Prerequisite Columbia University MA degree or two Residence Units of Advanced Standing

Points of credit A total of 48: 36 points taken for a letter grade or Pass/Fail 12 R-credit courses, including those acquired for the MA degree.

Students should note that instructors may impose certain requirements, with the exception of an examination, on students whom they permit to enroll for R credit. Students may satisfy a portion of the letter grade requirement by registering for an independent study in which they write a major research paper. For more information on individual study, students should consult the DGS as well as the faculty member with whom they wish to study.

Required courses

In addition to those required for the MA, a second theory course (to be approved by the DGS), an advanced methods course to be taken by semester four (to be approved by the DGS) and the Graduate Research Practicum to be taken in semester five (offered for R credit only).

M.Phil paper

Students must fulfill all 5 requirements; except for dissertation proposal, by the end of their third year. The journal submission requirement counts as their M.Phil. paper. The paper is evaluated by a committee of two faculty members from the department, the adviser and a second reader. The committee may (1) approve the paper and recommend that the student continue to the Ph.D. (2) approve the paper but not recommend that the student continue to the Ph.D., in which case the student then receives the M.Phil. degree (assuming course requirements have been fulfilled) and is dismissed from the program or (3) reject the paper altogether, in which case the student receives the MA degree, which is usually awarded at the end of the fourth semester.

Teaching requirement

Participation in the instructional activities of the department for three years. As a rule, in the second, third, and fourth years of study, students gain exposure to teaching as assistants to professors in introductory undergraduate courses or other types of assignments. Students who are interested in broadening their teaching apprenticeships are eligible to teach in the Core Program once they have received the M.Phil. Students may only apply to be a preceptor if they have or expect to have the M.Phil. by the May prior to being appointed as a preceptor, and if they are not past their sixth year of registration during the first year of the preceptorship. Students may not hold instructional appointments after year seven.

For the Ph.D. Degree

For every student recommended to proceed to the Ph.D., a faculty member must indicate willingness to advise that student for the dissertation. The student must identify a dissertation sponsor before the start of the seventh semester. A dissertation proposal must be approved no later than the end of the fourth year of study. For more information on the dissertation proposal, students should consult the departmental guidelines. Subsequently, students must successfully conduct research for, defend, write, and deposit their doctoral dissertation according to the rules of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The dissertation proposal must submitted by January 1st of the 4th year.

For the Free-Standing MA in Sociology

The free-standing MA program in Sociology is designed to enhance the skills of business managers, consultants, and public administrators, as well as to provide conceptual and practical research tools for a number of areas in applied sociology. Along with traditional research methods, new techniques for analyzing issues in various substantive areas are investigated. Students are encouraged to use sociological approaches to assess and address issues that they have encountered in workplace or organizational settings.

Students are required to register for two Residence Units and to complete courses totaling 24 points, of which at least 18 must be taken for a letter grade and no more than six for R credit.

Among the courses taken for a letter grade, one must be in Theory, one in Statistics, and one in Methodology.

Note that the associated lab for G4074-G4075 (Introduction to Social Data Analysis I and II) is an R credit course and does not count toward credits taken for a letter grade.

Students must write two research papers of publishable quality, based on field research or quantitative analysis and written for courses taken within the department. Each paper must be written for a different professor within the department.

All courses are normally taken within the Department of Sociology. Students wishing to take a course outside of the department must obtain written permission from the Director of Graduate Studies.

For more information about the Ph.D. program, contact the Director of Graduate Studies, Josh Whitford.  For information about the MAO program, contact the MAO Advisor, Denise Milstein.