Coursework and doctoral program of study

The doctoral program of study includes coursework, research, internships, and/or seminar credits according to the requirements of the individual doctoral program. A minimum of three academic years of graduate study beyond the bachelor’s degree (equivalent to 81 quarter credits minimum) is required for all doctoral degrees. A minimum 27 credits of 603 Dissertation is required for all Ph.D. students; a minimum of 18 credits of 606 Project is required for all professional doctoral students. 

All doctoral degrees are approved with a minimum number of required credits. These minimum credit totals cannot be waived even if the approved program of study exceeds the University minimum of 81 credits for a doctoral degree.

For doctoral degrees, pre-admission and transfer limits are at the discretion of the individual doctoral programs; however, 603 Dissertation/606 Project credits, or their equivalent, cannot be transferred from another university. Transfer credits are approved via a Proposed Transfer Credit form (GO-21D) submitted to the Graduate School. See Pre-admission and transfer credit for detailed information. While potentially all coursework for the degree can be transferred from another institution, the following items must be completed at PSU: comprehensive exams, residency, proposal, advancement to candidacy, and dissertation/project research.

A student must have a minimum 3.00 GPA on the courses applied to the program of study, as well as a minimum 3.00 GPA in all graduate-level courses taken at PSU, in order to graduate. Doctoral programs may establish a more rigorous standard. Although grades of C+, C, and C- are below the graduate standard, they may be counted as credit toward a doctoral degree with the specific written approval of the doctoral program. Grades of D or F indicate clearly unacceptable work and cannot be applied to graduate degree requirements. Audited courses cannot be used to meet any requirement for doctoral degrees.

A grade of IP (In Progress) may be used for 601 Research and for 606 Project when a student is progressing in an acceptable manner toward completion of the work; final grades for 601 and 606 credits are assigned by the instructor via an online grade change. An IP grade must be used for 603 Dissertation when a student is progressing in an acceptable manner; final grades for 603 Dissertation credits are assigned by the instructor on the Recommendation for the Degree form (GO-17D) and posted to the student’s transcript after approval of the dissertation and certification for graduation by the Graduate School.

All coursework on the program of study, with the possible exception of seminar and internships, must be completed before a Ph.D. student can be advanced to doctoral candidacy. All coursework on the program of study must be satisfactorily completed before graduation.

For students entering a Ph.D. program with a master’s degree, a maximum of five years will be allowed from admission to completion of all required comprehensive examinations. For students entering a Ph.D. program with a bachelor’s degree, a maximum of two additional years will be added to this limit, for a maximum of seven years from admission to completion of all comprehensive examinations. For students entering a professional doctoral program, a maximum of four years will be allowed from admission to completion of all required comprehensive examinations. Failure to meet these time limits will result in cancellation of admission to the doctoral program.