GOVERNMENT
Requirements Prior to the General Examination
Candidates for the PhD in Government are expected to complete the required coursework during their first two years of graduate study and take the General Examination at the end of the second year. A typical schedule consists of these two years, followed by three or four years of work on a dissertation, combined with supervised teaching.
First-year students are not permitted to serve as teaching fellows. Second-year students may teach with permission of the director of graduate studies (DGS).
Requirements for Students Admitted Prior to Fall 2010
Courses
Students must complete successfully at least twelve half-courses, of which eight must be in political science. At least ten of these twelve half-courses and seven of the eight half-courses in political science must be listed in the catalogue as 1000- or 2000-level courses.
Students must complete six half-courses by the end of their second term in residence and nine by the end of their third.
Upon petition to the department and with the approval of the director of graduate studies, a student may receive credit toward the twelve required half-courses for not more than two graduate-level courses successfully completed elsewhere.
Minor Course Requirement
Students must enroll in one government department half-course, ordinarily at the 2000-level, in a minor field. The department is organized into four fields: American government, comparative politics, international relations, and political theory. Two of these four fields will be assessed during the general examination (see below). The minor course requirement is fulfilled through one half-course from either of the remaining two fields not assessed during the general examination.
Seminar Papers
At least three seminar-style research papers must be completed. The usual means is through enrollment in seminars, but the requirement may also be satisfied by reading or lecture courses in which papers of this type are written.
Language Requirement
Every student must demonstrate competence in a language other than English. Competence in a language is defined as the ability to translate from the foreign language into English approximately 750 words of a political text in one hour with the aid of a dictionary. A student may choose to be examined in any language in which there is substantial political science literature, such as French, Spanish, German, Italian, Greek, Latin, Russian, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, or in any other language specifically appropriate to the student’s PhD program and approved by the director of graduate studies. Students whose native language is not English must also satisfy this requirement even if that language is specifically appropriate to their PhD work.
Quantitative Methods Requirement
Every student must successfully complete one half-course, with a grade of B (not B-) or better, in quantitative methods, such as Gov 2000: Quantitative Methods for Political Science I or, with the approval of the DGS, a course equivalent in level and coverage.
Completion of Requirements
Requirements relating to courses, seminar (research) papers, languages, and quantitative methods should normally be completed before the general examination, that is, during the first two years of graduate work. A student may defer the fulfillment of two of the following until after the general examination:
- one seminar paper
- two half-courses, or one half-course and one other deferred requirement.
- the quantitative methods requirement
- the language requirement, although work toward fulfillment of the language requirement should be under way, in any case, prior to the general examination.
Within six months of passing the general examination, the student must have fulfilled one of these deferred requirements. Within twelve months, he or she must have completed both deferred requirements.
Advising
First-year students are assigned a faculty advisor by the director of graduate studies. In subsequent years, students may either remain with the first-year advisor or choose an advisor on their own.
Dissertation prospectus committees must include at least three faculty members. Dissertations must be approved by three committee members, two of whom must be faculty members of the Harvard University Faculty of Arts and Sciences. The chair must be a member of the Department of Government. Any member of the committee who is not a member of the department must be approved by the director of graduate studies.
General Examinations
The general examination must be taken by May of a student’s second year of study; however, in exceptional cases the student may petition the department for special permission to take the examination in December. The general examination consists of a ninety-minute oral examination.
Each general examination is structured as follows:
Major Field
This part of the examination covers one of the four areas of political science: American government, comparative politics, international relations, or political theory.
Focus Field
This part of the examination covers in greater depth one subfield within the student’s major field, or, if the student chooses, it covers either the field of empirical political methodology or the field of formal political theory.
Examples of appropriate focus fields are listed below:
| American Government | International Relations |
| Congress | Foreign Policy of (a major country or region) |
| Presidency | International Conflict |
| Bureaucracy | International Political Economy |
| Law and Courts | International Laws and Organization |
| Federalism | Nationalism and Imperialism |
| Urban Politics | Security Studies |
| Political Parties | |
| Interest Groups | |
| American Political Development | |
| Public Opinion and Elections |
Comparative Politics
Government and Politics of (a major foreign country or region)
Comparative Political Development
Comparative Legislatures
Comparative Executives
Comparative Bureaucracy
Comparative Elections and Party Systems
Comparative Political Economy
Comparative Public Policy
Comparative Political Behavior
Political Theory
All students whose major field is political theory will be examined in both ancient/medieval and modern political thought.
The director of graduate studies, in consultation with the chair and other relevant faculty members, may authorize alternative focus fields, defined in other ways but comparable in scope to those listed above. Requests for the approval of alternative focus fields must be approved by a member of the faculty and submitted to the department at least three months before taking the examination.
Students are expected to have developed with a member of the faculty a focus field within their major at least three months before taking the examination.
Political Theory
All students must include political theory as one part of the general examination.
Students not majoring in political theory are expected to have a basic knowledge of Plato’s Republic and Aristotle’s Politics in addition to the writings of major political philosophers from the Renaissance to the nineteenth century. Such students should take Government 1061 and Government 2030, the political concepts field seminar or have equivalent preparation. Students whose major field is political theory must take one minor field in the Department of Government.
Composition of Examination Board
The ninety-minute oral examination covers all three of the fields being presented by the student. The oral examination is conducted by three faculty members, two of whom are ordinarily professors with whom the student has worked. The student is normally informed of the composition of his or her general examination board seven days before the oral examination.
Seminar Paper
Every student must submit one of the three required seminar papers, which will serve as a basis of questioning for the general examination. This seminar paper will ordinarily pertain principally to the student’s focus field but, at the student’s discretion, it may pertain to any of the four fields or to a combination thereof. The paper must be graded (on a seminar paper approval form) by the professor for whom it was written and submitted to the graduate office no later than one month before the beginning of oral examinations. The paper cannot be co-authored or revised before submission to the graduate office.
Dissertation Prospectus
Within sixteen months of passing the general examination, each student shall discuss and receive final approval of his or her written dissertation prospectus with at least three faculty members at an informal dissertation conference. These faculty members are chosen by the student with the approval of the director of graduate studies. Students may receive formal consent for the proposed dissertation topic at that conference but final approval must be obtained no later than eighteen months after generals.
The prospectus, typically ten to twenty pages in length, should set the proposed topic in an appropriate theoretical framework, allude to relevant literature, and describe the proposed research methods. Petitions may be submitted to the director of graduate studies for extensions of this deadline. Students who have not received final approval of their dissertation prospectus by eighteen months after the general examination will be placed in unsatisfactory standing and may not be appointed as teaching fellows until they have had their dissertation prospectus approved. The dissertation title and name(s) of the advisor(s) must be registered with the graduate office.
Requirements for Students Admitted for Fall 2010 and Later
Courses — A student must successfully complete at least twelve half-courses, of which eight must be in government. At least ten of these twelve half-courses and seven of the eight half-courses in government must be listed in the catalogue as 1000- or 2000-level courses.
Students must complete six half-courses by the end of their second term in residence and nine by the end of their third.
Every first-year student must enroll in the government department graduate seminar, Gov 3001: Approaches to the Study of Politics. The course, offered each fall, is to be taken pass/fail for a full semester of credit.
Incompletes — A grade of Incomplete can be converted into a letter grade if the student completes the work before the end of the term following that in which the course was taken. If an Incomplete has not been completed within the period, the student must have the instructor and DGS approve the petition for an extension. No grade of Incomplete can be used to satisfy any departmental requirement.
Seminar Papers — In order to ensure that students secure adequate training in research and writing, at least three seminar-style research papers must be completed. The usual means is through enrollment in seminars, but the requirement may be satisfied also by reading or lecture courses in which papers of this type are written.
It is the student’s responsibility to obtain written verification from the instructor that the completed paper is of seminar quality.
Students who wish to submit graduate seminar papers written outside the government department should consult the director of graduate studies.
Quantitative Methods Requirement — Every student, during their first or second year, must successfully complete, with a grade of B or better, at least one graduate-level course in quantitative social science methods relevant to political science, from a list of appropriate government department and other Harvard/MIT courses regularly updated by the Graduate Policy Committee.
Political Theory Requirement — Every student, during their first or second year, must take a minimum of one graduate-level half-course (or section) in Political Theory, chosen from a list of courses approved by the Graduate Policy Committee.
Research Tools Requirement — Every student must submit to the director of graduate studies, by the end of his or her first year, a written Research Tools Plan outlining intentions to acquire tools and methodological expertise connected to his or her areas of research interest. The Tools Plan also should list the courses, modules or workshops the student intends to take in order to meet the research tools requirement.
Every student must complete a minimum of 3.5 half-course-equivalent units of research tools and methods courses, modules or workshops by the end of their seventh term in residence (middle of the fourth year). The required seminar, “Approaches to the Study of Politics,” and the required graduate course in quantitative social science methods count for two units within this total. Students may count language training in various formats (e.g. semester courses; intensive summer sessions) toward fulfillment of this requirement. The Graduate Policy Committee will determine what counts for 1.0 or 0.5 units.
Research Workshops — The government department offers a series of research workshops, in each of the four fields (American Government, International Relations, Comparative Politics, Political Theory), Applied Statistics, and Political Economy, for graduate students to present and discuss work in progress. Every student should attend at least one research workshop, starting in his or her second or third term in residence. Research workshops do not count toward the requirement to complete twelve half-courses.
The General Examination
Every student will sit for a General Examination in May of their second year, with the exam administered orally by three faculty not known in advance. The ninety-minute exam will cover two of the four major substantive fields in political science (chosen by the student from among American Politics; Comparative Politics; International Relations; and Political Theory), plus an additional focus field defined by the student. A student may substitute either Formal Theory or Political Methodology for one of the two major fields. For the focus field, each student will submit by a date designated by the director of graduate studies a five-to-eight-page statement outlining a special area for examination. This area may encompass a special literature; an area of the world; a realm of special interest spanning subfields or disciplinary boundaries; or a research approach.
The department regularly offers “field seminars” introducing each of the four major fields of the discipline. However, no examination field is co-terminus with any one course, or even with any group of courses. The student is responsible for preparation in the field and should not assume that satisfactory completion of a course or courses dealing with the material in the field will constitute adequate preparation for the examination. The student should consult faculty members in each field to ensure such preparation. All students who choose a field are responsible for the same range of materials.
Progress toward the Degree after the General Examination
Students in their third year and beyond spend most of their time researching and writing the PhD dissertation. These students are eligible for teaching fellowships, which enable them to participate in Harvard’s undergraduate tutorial program, teach sections in the introductory government courses, or assist undergraduates in middle-group courses by leading discussion sessions or directing senior theses. Some research assistantships are also available from individual faculty members and research centers.
In the third year, most teaching fellows devote two-fifths TIME to teaching, the remainder to work on the dissertation. The fourth year may be devoted entirely to writing the dissertation or to a combination of teaching and research. Students who have passed the General Examination may teach three-fifths TIME for four years, with the following exception: those who have taught fewer than sixteen term-fifths may be appointed in a fifth year up to that total.
Requirements relating to courses, seminars (research) papers, quantitative methods and political theory should normally be completed before the General Examination, that is, during the first two years of graduate work. In special circumstances, a student may defer fulfillment of two half-courses or two of the following until after the General Examination:
-One seminar paper
-One half-course
Within six months of passing the General Examination, the student must have fulfilled one of these deferred requirements. Within twelve months, he or she must have completed both deferred requirements.
Following completion of the General Exam, each student will engage faculty advisors through a two-stage process of research exploration and prospectus approval, marked by two meetings as follows:
-An initial “Research Consultation Meeting” must convene in the fall semester of the third year, to discuss an approximately ten-page statement from the student, which, as appropriate, may either present a potential research question for the dissertation, or set forth alternative possible research questions for consideration and development. The student may consult the director of graduate studies to identify three or four appropriate faculty consultants, if these are not readily apparent.
-Involving the same three or four faculty or a different set where appropriate, the second “Prospectus Evaluation Meeting” will convene to discuss and approve the student’s written dissertation prospectus. These faculty members, one of whom must be non-tenured, are chosen by the student with the approval of the director of graduate studies. The evaluation meeting will preferably be held in the spring semester of the third year and in no instance later than October 1 of the fourth year. Whenever this meeting is held, there may be a one month follow-up period for final changes in the prospectus. To be in good standing, therefore, all students must have an approved prospectus, with the dissertation title and name(s) of the advisor(s) registered with the director of graduate studies, by no later than early November of the fourth year.
By May 15 of each year, each student must submit a progress report, approved by his or her major faculty advisor, to the director of graduate studies.
If these conditions are not met, the student will be classified “not in good standing” by the Graduate School and the department and will become ineligible for a teaching fellowship, other financial aid, or employment within the University. After completing these requirements, the student may petition the department to be reinstated “in good standing.”
Teaching
Students in their third year and beyond are eligible for teaching fellowships, which enable them to participate in Harvard’s undergraduate tutorial program, teach sections in the introductory government courses, or assist undergraduates in middle-group courses by leading discussion sessions or directing senior theses. All graduate students will normally be required to teach a minimum of two sections in departmental courses sometime during the period that they are in residence. To ensure diversity of experience, one section will normally be in an introductory course and one section will be in an advanced course (such as a 1000-level course).
In the third year, most teaching fellows devote two-fifths time to teaching, the remainder to work on the dissertation. The fourth year may be devoted entirely to writing the dissertation or to a combination of teaching and research. Students who have passed the general examination may teach three-fifths time for four years, with the following exception: those who have taught fewer than sixteen term-fifths may be appointed in a fifth year up to that total.
Dissertation
A student is required to demonstrate ability to perform original research in political science by writing a dissertation that makes a significant contribution to knowledge in the field. The requirement may also be fulfilled in the form of a three-article dissertation by approval of the dissertation committee.
Dissertations must be approved by three committee members, two of whom must be faculty members of the Harvard University Faculty of Arts and Sciences. The chair must be a member of the Department of Government. Any member of the committee who is not a member of the department must be approved by the director of graduate studies. Dissertations must be approved for defense by the committee. The final copies of the dissertation must conform to the requirements described online in The Form of the PhD Dissertation.
By May 15, all students beyond their third year must submit a dissertation progress report to his or her major faculty advisor and to the director of graduate studies.
Special Examination
After the dissertation has been approved, and after all other degree requirements have been met, a student will take the “special” oral examination, or defense. This examination is focused on the dissertation and on the relevant special field, which is ordinarily one of the fields that the student presented in the general examination, or an approved portion of that field.
Students who defend their dissertation later than six years after taking the general examination must re-take the focus field of the general examination. Approved parental leave extends this period by one year per child, but no other reason for leave does.
Depositing Dissertation Data
Students are required to make available to the Harvard-MIT Data Center all of the quantitative data they have compiled in machine-readable form (together with accompanying explanatory materials) upon which the findings in their dissertation depend. These data will be made available to other users five years after receipt of PhD or sooner, if the PhD recipient permits.
Ten-Year Enrollment Cap
An overall Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) policy has been established that students ordinarily will not be permitted to register beyond their tenth year in the Graduate School. However, exceptions to this rule may be made for students who have taken maternity or parental leave or for students with other special circumstances. However, according to GSAS policy, the number of G8s and above may impact the number of offers made during admissions. Students who are administratively withdrawn are free to apply for readmission to GSAS, so as to re-register for the purpose of receiving the degree, when their dissertation is completed.