Admissions Procedures and Plan of Study for Dual-Title Ph.D. Programs

Admissions Procedures for a Dual-Title Ph.D.

1. The student applies and is admitted to the major Ph.D. program. The student must enroll in the major Ph.D. program for at least one semester and be in good academic standing before applying to the dual-title Ph.D. program.

2. The student may then apply and be admitted to the dual-title Ph.D. program. This is an internal application procedure for students already admitted and enrolled at KU. 

Plan of Study for Dual-Title Ph.D.

1. The student completes coursework in the major Ph.D. program and any additional coursework in the dual-title Ph.D. program. In many cases, the dual-title field coursework is integrated with the disciplinary field coursework.  For example, PSYC 691 (Psychology of Aging) might meet the requirements for the dual-title degree in Psychology and Gerontology. 
    
2. The two participating Ph.D. programs of the dual-title program develop sections in their graduate student handbooks that outline the nature of the dual-title degree, stipulate the array of courses typically taken, and detail other structural and practical requirements of a dual-title degree.
   
   Each participating program oversees its own dual-title students and signs off on a curricular plan for its own program.
    
3. Ideally, the student’s advisor is a member of the major Ph.D. program and the dual-title program. If this is not possible, the student must have a co-chair from each of the two fields. This ensures integration of the two areas in the coursework, examinations, and the dissertation. 
    
4. The candidacy examination committee for the dual-title degree-seeking student must be composed of faculty from the major Ph.D. program as well as at least one faculty member from the dual-title Ph.D. program. The comprehensive exam requirements of both programs must be met. 
    
5. The dissertation topic should integrate both fields and be defended before a committee of graduate faculty from both programs. 

The dean of the school for the major Ph.D. program confers the dual-title degree. The student’s diploma carries the name of both programs; for example: Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology and Gerontology. One Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code is assigned for the dual-title degree.