Proposals for PhD Secondary Fields

Guidelines for Proposals to the Graduate Policy Committee

Departments or instructional committees at Harvard may offer menus of courses from which students in PhD programs can complete an elective secondary field to be listed on the graduate transcript. A secondary field in PhD studies consists of a set of four or five graduate courses in a discipline, interdisciplinary area, or intellectually coherent subfield. The program offering the secondary field provides an intellectual rationale and outlines the package of courses required.

Normally, coursework alone — four or five graduate seminars — will be required for a secondary field. If an additional demonstration of achievement is required, it should consist of an administratively simple, standardized step, such as a requirement that a well-developed seminar paper from one of the secondary field courses be read and approved by a small committee of faculty affiliated with the department or committee offering the secondary field.

Graduate students will not apply for separate admission to a secondary field, and students who choose to pursue courses for a secondary field remain under GSAS time-limits and must meet all milestones and deadlines in their home PhD programs. Coursework for a secondary field is entirely optional and should fit into elective space in the normal sequence of the primary graduate program. If a PhD student completes the requirements for a secondary field, he or she may expect that the achievement will be recorded by the Registrar. No PhD student is required to pursue a secondary field, and no student may receive recognition for more than one secondary field.

Starting in the fall of 2006–2007, the Graduate Policy Committee will review proposals for the establishment of secondary fields, and the descriptions and requirements for approved fields will be presented in Graduate School materials prepared for current graduate students and for applicants to Harvard PhD programs. Secondary fields are attractive options for many PhD students, and they will enhance the competitiveness and professional reach of PhD studies at Harvard.