DOCTORAL PRELIMINARY EXAMINATIONS

 

Experimental Program

Introduction

In order to complete a Ph.D., students must pass a set of doctoral preliminary exams (prelims). These exams are designed to measure the student’s understanding of an area. These exams vary in nature and format by the program, which are outlined below for each area. This section provides information on the policies and procedures for the exams needed to set up and take these exams. The student should contact his/her advisor and/or area coordinator prior to preparing for preliminary exams insofar as each concentration has different policies, which are subject to change.

Prerequisites

In order to take prelims, a student must complete a Master’s degree, must complete the core curriculum, and must obtain the approval of his/her prelims committee. It is not necessary to have completed a minor in order to take preliminary exams. With the approval of their advisor, students may enroll in prelim hours while preparing for these exams. These hours are Pass/Fail and count as part of the 12 hours needed to qualify as a full-time student and be considered as a GRA/GTA. Students are encouraged to save their core course and seminar readings, inasmuch as these will more than likely be pivotal for exam preparation. The institute requires that all graduate students complete their Ph.D.s within five years of the term in which s/he passes preliminary exams.

Area Specific Information

The prelims committee composition varies by area. The content of prelims is determined by the Prelims Examination Committee. Different areas of concentration may have different format requirements.

Establishing a Committee

Prelims committees are composed of 5 faculty members selected by the student and advisor. The committee must consist of at least three full-time psychology faculty members. The remaining members can be Georgia Tech professors or adjunct instructors. Scholars outside the Institute may serve on committees but must be approved (by a vote) by the area and by the school of Psychology. A list of committee members should be generated as soon as the student wants to begin preparing for these exams (usually immediately after the completion of the Masters thesis).

Necessary Approval

Typically, the following steps are required in order to complete the examination process:

1. A letter from the advisor must be submitted to the area coordinator suggesting committee members.
2. Immediately after the committee has been established, a meeting must be held with the committee members to discuss the appropriate areas of study and suggested readings. The student should be prepared to provide extensive input concerning topic areas and readings.
3. Committee members must be informed of the dates exams will be taken, the format they will take, and be reminded of the agreed areas of study approximately one month before the student plans to take prelims.

Content and Format of Examination

A student typically selects a combination of 2 of the 3 following examination formats, which must be approved by the prelims committee:

1. Take-home paper on a specific question or set of related questions – length of time is negotiable, but typically 7-14 days; typically written by advisor with input from committee members;
2. In-class exams – 5 sets of questions (one set per committee member); format as well as breadth and depth of content areas are negotiated with each committee member; the student is given approximately 4 hours per set of questions, one or two sets of questions per day within a 5-day period, typically; and
3. Oral examination – length and content areas to be negotiated among committee members.

**NOTE FOR STUDENTS IN ALL AREAS:

Composition of the prelims committee should be consistent with the School of Psychology rules governing eligibility of faculty to serve on doctoral committees. Currently, only regular faculty of the Georgia Institute of Technology and adjunct faculty of the School of Psychology may serve on Prelims Committees.