Traditional Ph.D. Degree Requirements

1. COURSE WORK: Students normally take between 2 and 3 years of course work beyond their Master's degree. They are required to take tool courses, such as Research Methods. They are required to take courses designed to prepare them for advanced research problems in their chosen area of concentration. A second set of courses may also be required for a "minor" area. Most of the courses to fulfill major or minor requirements are normally taken after the completion of tool courses.

Students may transfer up to a maximum of nine hours if they have taken Ph.D. coursework at another university. The Advisory Committee in the department of concern will determine whether any of these courses serve as adequate substitutes for the course requirements in FAU's doctoral program.

To remain in good standing, Ph.D. students must maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.0 (based on a 4.0 scale) on all courses taken for the Ph.D. program. Students with a concentration in Finance must maintain a grade point average of 3.2 (based on a 4.0 scale). If a student receives a grade below B for any course or has a grade point average below the minimum allowed for their area of concentration, the student's Advisory Committee determines whether any action (such as an assignment of remedial work, dismissal, loss of assistantship, loss of tuition waivers, etc.) should be taken.

2. COMPREHENSIVE EXAM: Students must pass a comprehensive examination administered within their area of concentration. The comprehensive examination will normally be taken once students have completed most or all of their coursework. The examination may contain an oral component as well as a written component.

3. DISSERTATION: A minimum of 18 hours of dissertation credits must be taken. The completed dissertation, reflecting an original in-depth study by the student on a topic within the student's main area of concentration, must be successfully defended through an oral presentation.

4. TOTAL CREDITS: A minimum of 80 total credit hours is required (including dissertation hours).

5. MAXIMUM TIME LIMIT: The doctoral program must be completed by each student within seven years; thus, all requirements, including the defense of the dissertation, must be completed within the seven-year period.

The Traditional Ph.D. coordinator for each area of concentration may specify additional requirements for students pursuing that area that are not listed here.  Please see the College of Business PhD Program Handbook for additional details.