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Arizona State University
Department of English
Box 870302
Tempe, AZ 85287-0302
480.965.3168

Main Office Location:
G. Homer Durham Language and Literature Building - LL 542

ASU English Home > Rhetoric and Composition > Phd Program

Karen Adams & Keith Miller, Co-Directors

The. Ph.D. concentration in Rhetoric/Composition and Linguistics promotes the study of the production, distribution and interpretation of oral and written texts. It focuses on rhetorical and linguistic structures and functions within the texts and on the internal and external factors involved in the creation of these texts.

Requirements are designed to encourage a full understanding of theoretical and applied aspects of both rhetoric/composition and linguistics and their intersection. Flexibility in requirements makes it possible for students to pursue those aspects of the disciplines which interest them the most.

Courses explore both historical and current theoretical approaches. The program prepares students for entrance into the field as teachers, scholars and professionals.

All applications for admission to the program must be approved by the Ph.D. Admissions Committee in the Department of English and by the Graduate College. There are several requirements for admission, none of which will be arbitrarily disregarded, and the best applicants will meet or exceed all of these criteria. However, the Admissions Committee will consider the individual aspects of each application. For more information see the Department of English Application Procedures.

1. Undergraduate and Graduate Majors.
Given the interdisciplinary nature of work in rhetoric/composition and linguistics, faculty will consider applicants with B.A. and M.A. majors in fields such as anthropology, applied linguistics, cognitive science, communication, comparative languages and literatures, English literature, education, history, law, linguistics, modern languages, philosophy, political science, psychology, religion, rhetoric/composition, sociology, and speech and hearing science.

2. Cumulative Grade Point Average.
The Graduate College requires a grade point average of 3.0 or better in the last two years of work leading to the bachelor's degree and the recommendation of the academic unit in which the applicant plans to study. In addition, the Department of English requires that applicants have at least a 3.5 grade point average in all previous graduate work.

3. Graduate Record Examination.
Applicants must submit scores on the GRE. Normally, they should achieve a score in the 85th percentile or higher.

4. Letters of Recommendation.
Applicants must submit three letters of recommendation from professors familiar with their academic performance. These letters must be sent by the professors directly to the Chair, Department of English. Forms can be obtained on-line in word format or pdf format.

5. Statement of Aims and Purpose.
A well-considered, one-page statement of purpose in which candidates explain how their experience and training--either in school, out of school, or both--have prepared them for the program. Candidates should indicate their career goals and explain how these goals relate to our graduate program in Rhetoric/Composition and Linguistics.

6. Sample of Scholarly Work.
Applicants should submit a critical paper or research paper prepared in a recent course.

7. Vita.
A professional vita that outlines educational background, relevant work experience, honors, and publications.

8. A Department of English Application (available on-line in word for pdf ).

9. A Graduate College Admissions application.

A minimum of 60 semester hours of graduate work (exculsive of the dissertation) beyond the bachelor's degree constitute the formal course preparation.

A. Research Methods: (3 hours)
Students must take ENG/LIN 500 or its equivalent

B. Foundational Distribution: (12 hours)
Foundational courses are offered at the 500-level, but also may include courses completed as masters' level work at other universities. Students must complete at the 500-level (or equivalent):

• one course in rhetoric
• one course in composition studies
• two courses in linguistics

C. Advanced Studies Distribution: (12 hours)
Advanced Studies courses are offered at the 600-level or above. Students may choose to take 600-level courses required by the distribution from one area of study (rhetoric, composition, or linguistics) or a combination of areas in which they would like to concentrate. It is assumed that a student will have taken a foundational level course, prior to taking an advanced studies course, especially when the area of study is new for the student.

All advanced courses may be repeated for credit when topics vary. Thus, two classes with the same course number (e.g., LIN 610 or ENG 651) may count toward two of the requirements for distribution. At least three of the advanced courses must be taken in the doctoral program at ASU.

D. Continuing Concentration: (33 hours)
Students may choose to take other foundational (500 or equivalent) and advanced (600 and above or equivalent) courses in any one of the areas of concentration or a combination of areas in which they would like to concentrate. Students should consult with an advisor when selecting additional courses for concentration. It is expected that some of these continuing courses will include ENG or LIN 790 and 792's used in preparation for the PhD Examination.

Note: Special topic courses (ENG 598, LIN 548, LIN 598) and seminars (ENG 591, LIN 591) may fulfill some of the distribution requirements at the foundational (500-level) and advanced studies (600-level) levels. Students should consult with an advisor when choosing these courses.

E. Interdisciplinary Option: (up to 12 hours)
Students are encouraged to take up to twelve hours of courses outside the department to count toward the degree. Those courses may fulfill some of the foregoing requirements at the foundational and advanced studies distribution or be taken in addition to those required by the distribution. Students should consult with an advisor when choosing these courses.

F. Language: (3 hours or exam)
Students must give evidence of a competent reading knowledge of a language other than modern English to be selected by the student n consultation with the supervisory committee. The language requirement must be completed before the student is eligible to take part one of the PhD exams. This requirement may be met by:

1) earning a B or better in a 400- or 500-level course in an appropriate (approved) language
2) demonstrating comparable proficiency by taking a language examination approved by the student's supervisory committee
3) demonstrating native speaker proficiency in a language approved by the student's supervisory committee
4) earning a B or better in both ENG 530 Old English and ENG 531 Old English Literature or their equivalent

Note: Successful completion of the language requirement for the M.A. will count as the PhD requirement.

G. Dissertation:
A minimum of 24 hours of ENG/LIN 792 and 799, 12 of which must be completed subsequent to the semester in which the student advanced to candidacy.

Miscellaneous:
Students have the option of taking ENG/LIN 792 Research, on an individual basis, for the purpose of working independently in preparation for the PhD exam. This is an alternative to be elected by the student with the approval of the advisor and supervisory committee. Satisfactory completion of ENG/LIN 792 is indicated by the grade of "Y."

The Graduate College also requires that students be enrolled every semester, excluding summer sessions, until they have completed all requirements for the degree. Continuous enrollment may be satisfied by registration for one hour of ENG 799, or, in cases where dissertation or other credit hours are not needed, Continuous Registration (ENG 595 or 795). If students wish to interrupt their programs of study for one or more semesters, they may apply for leave status, not to exceed one year. Failure to obtain leave status for the semesters in which they are not enrolled may result in dismissal from the program.

Ph.D. SUPERVISORY COMMITTEE:
The Ph.D. supervisory committee consists of a minimum of three members selected at the time the student files a Program of Study. In consultation with the director of the Ph.D. program, the student will select the committee chair, who also serves as the student's advisor. The student and chair will then consult before recommending two other members to the director of the Ph.D. program. Ideally another member of the supervisory committee in addition to the chair should be in the area of specialization. It is the responsibility of each student to form a supervisory committee very early in the program so that the chair and members of the committee may be involved in shaping the course of study, for example, in determining such matters as the choice of foreign language(s) and in specifying courses that will be required for the student's particular area of concentration.

Ph.D. EXAMINATION:
While the following procedures reflect general departmental requirements and guidelines, it is expected that they will be interpreted and refined by dissertation committee chairs and committees to best serve the professional needs of each student's program.

Each student will present three copies of a portfolio containing three article-length essays, an approved bibliography that will serve as the material for the written exam in the area of specialization (see below), a program of study, a transcript, and an accompanying form, "Ph.D. Examination, Part I--Portfolio Review and Statement of Intent," available from the graduate coordinator. Students are encouraged to undertake the portfolio portion of the Ph.D. exam by the time they complete 24 hours of course work in the Ph.D. program (12 hours if beginning with an M.A. degree). They must do so before completing 48 hours of course work in the Ph.D. program (30 if already holding an M.A. degree).

Portfolios will be accepted during either semester, beginning with the second week of classes, but they may not be submitted during the last two weeks of the term. No portfolio will be accepted for review during the summer sessions. Portfolios must be submitted by October 31 for the fall semester and March 3l for the spring semester if a report is expected during the semester of submission. A student will normally present the portfolio in the semester prior to taking the written examination, but if the portfolio is submitted early enough in any given semester to allow for an early report, and if all members of the supervisory committee are agreeable, it is possible to schedule Part II of the examination, the written examination in the area of specialization, the same semester.

The portfolio and other required documents will be submitted to the department graduate coordinator and will be evaluated by the student's three-member supervisory committee. The committee will assess each of the three papers and judge them (a) acceptable, (b) acceptable with minor revisions, (c) acceptable with major revision, (d) unacceptable. The committee has the option of awarding an extraordinary portfolio a "Pass With Distinction." A summary of the committee's evaluation, provided by the chair of the committee, will be made available to the student who should feel free to consult with the chair and members of the committee for clarification about revisions that might have been requested. Students whose portfolios are judged to be unacceptable will not be allowed to continue in the program.

The essays in the portfolio must represent three different areas of study within the concentration and must employ more than one approach. One essay may represent the student's area of specialization. Students preparing the portfolio are expected to work closely with the chair of the supervisory committee as the primary source of advice in the preparation of the papers, including approval of the choice of papers in matters of breadth and theoretical approach. It is helpful to keep in mind that the intent of the portfolio is not that it be a substitute for three traditional examinations; rather, it is to be a demonstration that the student is able to produce scholarly work at a level expected by the profession and consistent with the degree program. Essays may be revised versions of work submitted in courses, but they must bear no grade or comment. Because papers submitted in the portfolio will be read more critically than is often the case with course work, students should not assume that a term paper favorable evaluated in a course will meet the scholarly standard required of a successful portfolio essay (a student who expects to use a course paper in the portfolio might ask the professor for whom it is written to read and evaluate it with that goal in mind). In both length (15-25 pages) and in level of scholarship the papers should be modeled after articles published in specific scholarly journals in the field.

At the time the portfolio is submitted, the student will prepare a bibliography of a minimum of forty works central to the area of specialization and the dissertation. The student's dissertation committee chair will evaluate, modify as needed, and approve the bibliography, after consultation with the student and the other members of the committee. For Part II of the examination, the committee will prepare a written examination based on the bibliography and will be responsible for evaluating the student's performance in that examination.

Just as the portfolio is meant to test a specific attainment, the ability to produce professional scholarly writing, so the purpose of the written examination is to demonstrate that the candidate has an appropriate knowledge of representative primary and secondary works in the area of specialization and the dissertation topic. The department expects that the examination will be broader in scope than the dissertation (which is the subject of the third part of the examination process, the colloquy on the dissertation prospectus).

Written examinations will be scheduled by mutual agreement among the student, the chair of the committee, and the other committee members. While Part II will typically be written the semester after the portfolio requirement has been satisfied, if the portfolio is submitted early in the semester so that a report on it is available, a student may request to take Part II during the same semester.

Successful completion of the written examination will be followed by a colloquy on the dissertation prospectus. This colloquy may be scheduled in the same semester as the written examination but no later than the semester following that examination. A student may not register for dissertation hours (ENG 799) until the colloquy requirement is met. The subject of the dissertation will be decided in consultation with the student's supervisory committee and with the approval of the director of the Ph.D. program. Using the form available from the graduate coordinator, each student will submit a prospectus, defining the dissertation topic, indicating its scope, significance, and the student's awareness of what has already been done in the field. The prospectus, especially the research plan and procedure, constitutes the basis for the colloquy with the supervisory committee.

Students who have passed the examination requirements, secured approval of the prospectus, and fulfilled the foreign language requirement should apply immediately for admission to candidacy by calling or visiting the Graduation Office (Student Services Building). It is a Graduate College requirement that students earn a minimum of twelve (12) hours of dissertation/research credit after the semester in which they advance to candidacy.

DISSERTATION AND FINAL ORAL EXAMINATION
(DEFENSE OF THE DISSERTATION)

Notes and documentation in doctoral dissertations are to conform to the latest edition of the MLA Style Manual, or the APA Publication Manual or any other format accepted by the Graduate College.

The student should confer with members of the supervisory committee to determine the preferred procedure for submitting chapters of the dissertation (for example, whether each member of the committee wishes to examine, along with the chair, each separate chapter or only the complete first draft).

Upon acceptance of the dissertation by the supervisory committee, the candidate will take a final oral examination, traditionally a defense of the dissertation, both as to methods and conclusions. The candidate must take the final oral examination within five years after passing the written examination in the area of specialization. Any exception must be approved by the supervisory committee and the Dean of the Graduate College and may involve repetition of the examination. Students may find it helpful to sit in on other oral defenses before their own is scheduled. Defenses are announced by memo in the Department of English and in Insight.

It is the obligation of the candidate to observe Graduate College deadlines for both format approval and the defense of the dissertation, both included in the annual flier that specifies dates for that year.