KOREA UNIVETSITY Department of Sociology

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홈 Graduate Graduation Requirements Graduation Requirements

Graduation Requirements

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY

Degree Requirements

  1. All students at the master's or Ph.D. programs must complete two required courses, The Seminar on Contemporary Sociological Theory (SOC 501) and the Seminar on Social Research Method (SOC 502).
  2. Graduate students who did not major in Sociology at the undergraduate level must take 5 courses designated by his/her academic advisor. These courses must include Contemporary Sociological Theory and The History of Sociological Development, and can be waived if the students had already taken at the undergraduate level.
  3. The maximum number of credits that can be earned outside the Department of Sociology is 9 credits for M.A. students out of a total of 24 credits (excluding credits of research guidance), 12 credits for Ph.D. students out of a total of 36 credits (excluding credits of research guidance), and 15 credits for M.A.-Ph.D. joint program students out of a total of 54 credits (excluding credits of research guidance).
  4. Ph.D. candidates are required to publish at least one article in a domestic journal registered on the Korea Research Foundation or an international Journal of SSCI level before they submit Ph.D. dissertation. The article must be published as a main author or a correspondence author, and a forthcoming article can be approved with a certification.


Comprehensive Examinations

1. The type and scope

The Comprehensive Examinations is divided into three parts : Core Examination, Major Field Examination, and Minor Field Examination

  • 1) The Core Examination covers subjects of the Seminar on Contemporary Sociological Theory, the Seminar on History of Sociology, the Seminar on Social Research Method, the Seminar on Social Statistics I, and the Seminar on Sociological Methodology.
  • 2) The subjects of the Major and Minor Field Examinations are to be decided by the advisory committee where the academic advisor acts as its chair.
2. Master's Program

The Comprehensive Examinations at the M.A. level is divided into two parts : the Core Examination and the Major Field Examination.

  • 1) The scope of the Core Examination is the same as above.
  • 2) The subjects of the Major Field Examination are to be decided by the advisory committee where the academic advisor acts as its chair.
3. Ph.D. Program
The students who had not passed the Core Examination at the master's program are required to pass it during the course work. The students admitted to the Ph.D. program before 2004, however, can substitute the Exam by taking four courses designated by the advisory committee. The subjects of the Major and Minor Field Examinations are to be decided by the advisory committee where the academic advisor acts as its chair.
4. M.A.-Ph.D. Joint Program
  • 1) The scope of the Core Examination is the same as above.
  • 2) The subjects of the Major and Minor Field Examinations are to be decided by the advisory committee where the academic advisor acts as its chair.


Detailed Regulations of the Comprehensive Examinations

1. The Composition of the Advisory Committee
  • 1) Ph.D. Program : The advisory committee composed of 2~4 faculty present questions for the Major and Minor Field Examinations.
  • 2) Master's Program : The advisory committee composed of two or more faculty present questions for the Major Field Examination.
  • 3) If necessary, the academic advisor can replace some members of the advisory committee.
2. The Administration of the Examinations
  • 1)The Core Examination is governed by the supervisory committee of the graduate program.
  • 2) Candidates for the Major and Minor Field Examinations are required to submit the study plan and the reading list before or at the beginning of semester.
  • 3) The advisory committee of each candidate administers the Major and Minor Field Examinations, and its chair reports the results of the Examinations to the supervisory committee.
3. The Method of the Examinations and Making Questions
  • 1) The supervisory committee elects the committee of making questions for the Core Examination.
  • 2) The chair of the advisory committee elects the committee of making questions for the Major and Minor Field Examinations.
  • 3) The supervisory committee or the advisory committee decides the method of the examination. It can be a three-hour in-class examination or the three-day take-home examination.
4. The Allotment of Marks and Assessment
  • 1) The Core Examination is marked on the basis of total 100 points and each question has the same value. The total mark is the sum of points of each question. The minimum mark for pass is 70 points.
  • 2) The Major Field Examination at the M.A. level is marked by Pass, Conditional Pass, or Fail. The minimum passing mark is the combination of Pass and Conditional Pass.
  • 3) The Major and Minor Field Examinations at the Ph. D. level are marked by Pass or Fail. The minimum passing mark is the combination of Pass and Pass if two faculty present questions. The minimum passing mark is the combination of Pass, Pass, and Fail if three faculty present questions.
  • 4) In the case of Fail (the total mark of the Core Examination is lower than 70 points), each subjects whose mark is 17 points and above is marked as Pass within the corresponding subject.
5. The Order of Applying and Date of the Examinations
  • 1) Students at the M.A. level can apply to the Comprehensive Examinations after completing two semesters or more, earning 18 credits or more and GPA of 3.0 or higher, and passing the foreign language test. Students at the Ph. D. level can apply to the Comprehensive Examinations after completing three semesters or more, earning 27 credits or more and GPA of 3.0 or higher, and passing two foreign language tests.
  • 2) The date of the Core Examination is decided according to the schedule of the Comprehensive Examinations.
  • 3) The Major and Minor Field Examinations can be held at any time by the decision of the advisory committee.
6. The Order of Examinations and the Decision of Pass
  • The order of the Core Examination, the Major Field Examination, and the Minor Field Examination is not pre-determined. Students can choose the order of the two or three examinations under the guidance of the academic advisor. If the students pass the two or three examinations, the supervisory committee decides that they pass the Comprehensive Examinations.
7.The Scope of Examinations
  • 1) The supervisory committee sets the scope of the Core Examination (and the reading list) and announces it three months in advance of the examination. If there is no special announcement, the scope announced earlier is applied.
  • 2)The advisory committee sets the scope of the Major and Minor Field Examinations.


Dissertation Proposal

1.The Composition of the Proposal Committee
  • 1) Ph.D. Program : The committee is composed of 4 appraisers and the candidate's academic advisor
  • 2) Master Program : The committee is composed of 2 appraisers and the candidate's academic advisor
  • 3) Academic advisor names 2 appraisers for Ph.D. candidate and 1 appraiser for Master candidate. The rest advisor(s)is(are)named by the Proposal Committee.
2. The Process of the Dissertation Proposal
  • 1) Candidates for dissertation proposal are required to submit a research proposal to the Proposal Committee before their proposal defence.
  • 2) Candidates should have an open proposal defence at least a semester before their dissertation defence.
3. The Decision of Dissertation Proposal
  • 1) Ph.D. Program : Pass with more than 4 appraiser's approval
  • 2) Master Program : Pass with more than 2 appraiser's approval


Addendum

1) The revised rules become effective after the Spring Semester of 2004 except Degree Requirements , 4 , which are applied to the students admitted after the Spring Semester of 2009.

2) For the students at the master's degree program who passed some parts of the Comprehensive Examinations before the revised rules applies, the passed courses are acknowledged as passing of the Core Examination or the Major Field Examination.

3) The students at the Ph.D. program admitted before the revised rules applies have a freedom to take the Core Examination. If they decide not to take the examination, they should complete four core courses designated by the advisory committee.