PhD Procedures

This Manual  sets forth the rules and procedures governing graduate study in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations (NELC) at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) and the principles that should be observed in advising and mentoring graduate students in NELC. The Manual is designed to be a resource equally for students, faculty, and staff and to outline expectations for graduate studies in NELC. It provides a streamlined account of a graduate student’s progress to degree that may be consulted by all members of the Department, especially in their roles as advisees, advisors, and administrators, and also in their roles as mentees and mentors. Although the focus of this Manual is on PhD students, it is also relevant to MA students as appropriate.  

The matters set forth in this Manual are governed by and subject to all applicable rules governing graduate study and graduate advising at Penn and in the Graduate Division of Penn’s School of Arts and Sciences (GAS). Links to these rules appear in the notes below and are collected at the end of this Manual. In general, the progress of students toward completion of the PhD is governed University-wide by rules promulgated by the Office of the Provost in the form of Academic Rules for PhD Programs. This Manual also incorporates by reference the entirety of the advising and mentoring manual AMP’ed: Advising & Mentoring PhD Students: Guidelines for Students, Faculty, and Administrators at the University of Pennsylvania that was first produced by the Office of the Provost and distributed in August 2018, updated copies of which are distributed periodically. This Manual, together with the just-mentioned AMP’ed, shall be distributed to all incoming NELC graduate students in hard copy. Both documents are also available as pdf files on the NELC website.

This Manual consists of an Introduction, a survey of benchmarks and requirements, a general discussion of mentoring, an overview of dispute resolution procedures, and a list of resources for graduate students and faculty. Where most directly relevant, reference is also made to the rules and policies of the Graduate Division of Penn’s School of Arts and Sciences and of Penn.

Crucially, as noted above, this Manual is conceived as guidance for both students and faculty, and, also for staff members who administer NELC’s graduate programs, for while students are responsible for fulfilling requirements, meeting benchmarks, and producing the written work that will provide the foundation for their degree and, also for their careers, faculty and staff are responsible for creating an environment in which students can accomplish these things successfully and thrive.

The study of Near and Middle Eastern languages and societies lies at the heart of graduate study in NELC and the acquisition of the languages of primary sources is one of the centerpieces of a NELC PhD. In addition to studying the languages of the region and coursework, there are several requirements that students must fulfill on the way to successful completion of a PhD in NELC. These include examinations in two (usually European) reading languages other than English, Qualifying Examinations, Candidacy Examinations, submission of a PhD Proposal, completion of the PhD Dissertation, and a public defense of that dissertation. The monitoring and achievement of these benchmarks are discussed in the following sections.

First Year
• Incoming student orientation with Graduate Chair and Graduate Coordinator.
• Incoming students assigned to an advisor in the primary field.
• Semester 1: 4 courses.
• Semester 2: 4 courses.
• Spring: Students meet individually with Graduate Chair and Advisor.
• First modern language exam before the beginning of third semester.

Second Year
• Qualifying Exams reading list and information about primary language component provided to student before first day of classes.
• Semester 3: 3 courses + TA-ship.
• Qualifying Exams given the day before the beginning of classes in the fourth semester.
• Semester 4: 3 courses + TA-ship.
• For students continuing, MA requirements to be completed by the end of August.
• Spring: Students meet individually with Graduate Chair and Advisor.
• Second modern language examination taken before the beginning of fifth semester.

Third Year
• Semester 5: 3 courses + TA-ship.
• Semester 6: 3 courses + TA-ship = 20 courses (one course in this semester must be a NELC 9980 course taken with the student’s Advisor and directed toward the dissertation Proposal and Candidacy Exam preparation). Candidacy Exams may be taken and draft dissertation Proposal submitted.
• Spring: Students meet individually with Graduate Chair and Advisor.

Summer between Third and Fourth Years
• Preparation for Candidacy Examinations and draft dissertation Proposal.

Fourth Year
• Semester 7: Candidacy Exams taken over no more than two weeks in late August–early October or earlier with permission of the Graduate Chair and the student’s Advisor. Submission of a preliminary dissertation Proposal one week before the beginning of the Candidacy Exams. Oral component of the Candidacy Exams no later than two weeks after the completion of the written exams.
• Semester 8: Submission to the NELC Graduate Group of formal dissertation Proposal within two months after completion of Candidacy Exams.
• Spring: Students meet individually with Graduate Chair and dissertation supervisor.

Fifth Year
• Last two semesters of guaranteed funding.
• Semester 9: Dissertation research and writing.
• Public presentation of dissertation research in the ninth or tenth semester. 
• Semester 10: Dissertation research and writing.
• Spring: Students meet individually with Graduate Chair and dissertation supervisor.

Note: Students who have not completed all their exams and not had their dissertation Proposal accepted by the end of the fifth year will be dropped from the PhD program.

Sixth Year (if necessary)
• First semesters on reduced dissertation tuition.
• Semester 11:  Dissertation research and writing.
• Semester 12:  Dissertation research and writing. • Spring:  students meet individually with Graduate Chair and dissertation supervisor.

Seventh Year (if necessary)
• Semester 13:  Dissertation research and writing.
• Semester 14:  Dissertation research and writing.
• Spring:  students meet individually with Graduate Chair and dissertation supervisor.

Note:Students who do not complete the dissertation by the end of their 10th year will be dropped from the PhD program.

GAS at present provides a maximum of five years of full funding for NELC PhD students with the clear expectation that students will complete their Dissertation within that time frame.

The Department may nominate a student in the year before their sixth or seventh year for a competitively awarded Dissertation Completion Fellowship (DCF). Eligibility for nominations will be determined by the Graduate Chair in consultation with NELC faculty. The DCF provides full funding for one year, during which it is expected that the student will complete their Dissertation, and after which no additional funding will be forthcoming from GAS. Thus, nominations will be made on the basis of the likelihood that a potential nominee will in fact finish their Dissertation during the Dissertation Completion Fellowship period.

Other Penn-internal funding opportunities for students become available over the course of the year and will be forwarded by the Graduate Coordinator as they are announced.

It is GAS policy not to provide any fellowship-unit funding beyond the seventh year.

Students who require funding beyond their fifth year therefore must either be nominated for a DCF or seek an external grant or fellowship. In the latter case, it is the obligation of students to be proactive in seeking out funding sources; Advisors, Dissertation Supervisors, and other faculty are expected to render every reasonable assistance in bringing funding opportunities to their students’ attention and in obtaining such funding.

Ten-year time limit:

As of 2010-2011, the University’s maximum time limit for completion of a PhD program is ten years after matriculation. Graduate students who have been dropped after ten years may petition the Graduate Group to return as a student for a maximum of one year in order to achieve recertification and defend the Dissertation. 

For NELC, students who apply to be re-enrolled in the PhD program must pass a recertification examination demonstrating satisfactory grasp of current scholarship in their field. The Graduate Group Chair and the Dissertation Committee will constitute the recertification Committee for this purpose. After an initial oral examination, the Committee may, at its discretion, require that the student retake the Candidacy Examination and/or submit a revised Dissertation Proposal prior to recertification. Upon satisfactory re-certification, the student must complete all requirements for the PhD, including deposit of the Dissertation, within one year.

When a student first matriculates (i.e., becomes formally registered as a student) in NELC, the Graduate Chair (the faculty member in charge of NELC graduate matters) and Graduate Coordinator (the NELC administrator in charge of graduate matters) will hold a formal orientation for new students at or just prior to the beginning of the first semester in which they matriculate. The orientation will help incoming students familiarize themselves with NELC, its personnel, procedures, degree requirements, and related matters. This initial meeting is an ideal time for students to ask questions of the Graduate Chair and Graduate Coordinator (and students should feel free at this time and at any time afterwards to ask the Graduate Chair and Graduate Coordinator questions about their studies and any related matters).

At this time, the Graduate Chair will also assign a faculty member from the student's major field to serve as their initial Advisor. The Advisor should meet with incoming advisees as close to the beginning of the student’s first semester as possible to advise on appropriate courses and to answer any questions new advisees may have.

The NELC Graduate Chair and NELC Graduate Coordinator monitor student progress on behalf of the Department, in addition to the oversight exercised by a student’s initial Advisor or Dissertation Supervisor. The Graduate Coordinator is responsible for maintaining the student’s official GAS electronic worksheet (on Degree Works), on which both coursework and benchmarks are recorded. In addition, the Graduate Coordinator maintains a spreadsheet in which a student’s progress to degree, funding status, and other matters are tracked.

At a minimum, the Graduate Coordinator and Graduate Chair will update information on the spreadsheet once per semester, as needed. Each fall the Graduate Coordinator will contact students individually to update the spreadsheet that records the details of their progress toward degree. Students must respond promptly to this request for information. Each spring the Graduate Chair and Graduate Coordinator hold individual meetings with students and their Advisors or Dissertation Supervisors to review each student’s progress to degree and update the spreadsheet as necessary. The spring meeting may occur by means of Skype, Zoom, or other remote video technology when necessary.

For all students who have not yet advanced to Candidacy, the Graduate Chair will solicit written comments from the student’s initial Advisor and any faculty who have taught the student or for whom the student has served as TA and summarize those comments in a brief written evaluation of the student’s progress. In addition, by University rule, all Dissertation Supervisors must convene an annual meeting with each supervisee who has advanced to Candidacy and that student’s Dissertation Committee to discuss the student’s progress. The meeting may occur by means of Skype, Zoom, or other remote video technology when necessary. In NELC, these meetings must occur in February or March. Following that meeting, the Dissertation Supervisor shall provide to the Graduate Chair a brief written evaluation of the student’s progress to degree and certify in that report that the required annual meeting has been held. Both kinds of evaluations will be provided to students no later than one week before the spring meeting, and the students may respond orally at the meeting or in writing no later than one month after the spring meeting. In addition, all PhD students must provide a brief self-evaluation to the Graduate Chair no later than one week prior to the spring meeting with the Graduate Chair, and the Graduate Chair will provide a copy to the student’s initial Advisor or Dissertation Supervisor prior to the meeting.

Finally, and in addition to the above evaluations, note that each fall, GAS sends every PhD student who has advanced to Candidacy an electronic request to confirm the details of their progress to degree, which form is subsequently reviewed, and must be approved, by the student’s Advisor or Dissertation Supervisor and the Graduate Chair.

NELC generally requires PhD students to complete twenty (20) courses over three years. First-year students take four (4) courses each semester and second-and-third-year students take three (3) courses per semester. The course load is reduced in the final two years to leave time for required pedagogical internships (TA-ships) over the course of four semesters. In order to be considered a full-time student, a minimum load of three (3) courses each semester must be taken in the first three years. Unless on official leave, students must be continuously registered.

Students in their final semester of coursework (usually the sixth semester) must take a course numbered NELC 9980 with their likely Dissertation Supervisor. The goal of this tutorial-style course is threefold: to assist the student to prepare for Candidacy Exams, to produce a draft Dissertation Proposal, and to form a Dissertation Committee (see below).

Students who have successfully completed relevant graduate-level coursework at another institution or in another graduate program may, with the approval of their Advisor, and in consultation with the Graduate Chair, have certain of those courses applied to their transcript as credits that will count toward the requirement of twenty (20) courses for the PhD. Only the credits are transferred, not any other data about prior courses. All requests for transfer credit must be recommended by the Graduate Chair and approved by the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies. External courses accepted for Penn credit will be entered on the student’s transcript at the time of the Candidacy Exams. For planning purposes, the specific courses that may be transferred should be discussed with the student’s Advisor and the Graduate Chair no later than the beginning of the student’s fifth semester. By departmental rule, no more than eight (8) external credits may be accepted for Penn credit.

PhD students must demonstrate reading proficiency in two modern (usually European) languages other than English. This requirement ensures that students will be able to consult relevant secondary literature in their field. Typically, students demonstrate this competence in French and German, though other languages may be appropriate depending on a student’s field of study, with the approval of the Advisor or Supervisor and the Graduate Chair. The first modern reading language requirement must be satisfied before the student begins the third semester of study and the second before the beginning of the fifth semester.  Students who enter the program with reading proficiency in the relevant languages may sit for the departmental exam (described below) at any time before these deadlines.

GAS offers PhD students free summer reading courses in several languages, including French and German, to help them satisfy this requirement. Space for these courses is limited, so students are strongly encouraged to sign-up for such courses early. NELC’s Graduate Coordinator will send out emails about these courses once the courses are announced by GAS, which typically occurs in the spring semester.  NELC generally accepts the result of these courses as satisfying the NELC reading language requirement, though the Graduate Chair reserves the right to review or request another NELC faculty member to review the student’s exam in any such course for purposes of determining whether the requirement has been satisfied.

MA students need only demonstrate reading proficiency in one modern reading language other than English. Proficiency is demonstrated through a written examination as described below.

Modern reading language exams given in NELC will have the following format: Students will have two hours to translate a section of a work of secondary literature written in the language that is the subject of the examination. Such texts will be chosen by the student’s Advisor or Supervisor. Students must write their exam in a ‘blue book’ and may use a dictionary of their choice. The Graduate Coordinator or an appropriate designee identified by the Graduate Chair will proctor such exams.

If they fail to do so, they may be prohibited from registering and their Fellowship support may be suspended. If a student repeatedly fails to pass research language examinations, the Graduate Group may drop them from the program for insufficient progress to degree.

Note that PhD students who have not passed their second modern reading language exam may not sit for their Candidacy Exams.

PhD students in GAS are required to complete four semesters of pedagogical internships. Such internships typically involve being a teaching assistant (TA) for an undergraduate course in NELC. Although every effort is made to match such TA-ships to the student’s primary field of study, the Graduate Chair may need to assign students to NELC courses on the basis of enrollments. In some cases, depending on the needs of NELC faculty and faculty in other departments, it may be possible (or necessary) to assign a student to a TA-ship in a department other than NELC. Although the Graduate Chair will consult with the student in all such cases, the Graduate Chair’s decision will be final in regard to TA-ship assignments.

Faculty in whose courses students fulfill the pedagogical internship requirement must meet with the pedagogical interns and clearly explain the interns’ responsibilities for the course in question before the first meeting of that course. Faculty who use pedagogical interns in their courses are responsible for fostering the professional development of those interns in the interns’ capacity as apprentice teachers.

Students teaching for the first time are required to participate in a three-day workshop on teaching and learning, normally held in the summer just before classes begin. Penn’s Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL), which supports teaching with a wide variety of programs and resources, conducts the workshop. Student teachers are encouraged to consult CTL’s website.

PhD students must pass two sets of exams, called Qualifying Exams and Candidacy Exams, before embarking on their Dissertation. The Qualifying Exams will be given to all PhD students shortly before the beginning of classes of their fourth semester (early January of the students’ second academic year, on the day before classes begin, proctored by the Graduate Coordinator or his or her designee with the approval of the Graduate Chair). Qualifying Exams, which are to last no more than eight (8) hours, typically cover a reading list of thirty to fifty books and must include a component that tests students’ reading proficiency in a primary research language (for example, Arabic or Akkadian). The Qualifying Exams may be set by more than one faculty member.

The student’s Advisor must provide a finalized reading list for the Qualifying Exam and finalize, and apprise the student of, the material to be covered in the primary language component of the exam no later than the first day of classes of the fall semester of the academic year in which the exam is to be given (fall semester of the student’s second year). It is a good practice for students and Advisors to consult well in advance about the format and substance of the Qualifying Exams as well as the examiners’ expectations for student performance in the exams.

Whether a student has passed the Qualifying Exams lies within the sole discretion of the examining faculty member(s). Whether a student who has failed the Qualifying Exams may retake them lies within the sole discretion of the examining faculty and the Graduate Chair.

MA Exams will be given at the same time as the Qualifying Exams and the same rules apply in regard to examining faculty, provision of reading lists, and finalization of a primary language component.

Students who fail the Qualifying Exams may take a terminal MA. The terminal MA requires that a student pass one reading language examination (usually French or German) and submit either an MA thesis or two research papers written in graduate-level seminars. Students who fail the MA Exams may retake them no later than the final day of Penn’s exam period that same semester.

Students taking a terminal MA and submitting an MA thesis may register for two semesters of MA thesis preparation at reduced tuition.

In most cases the initial Advisor assigned by the Graduate Chair to an incoming student will become that student’s Dissertation Supervisor and the instructor in the student’s NELC 9980 course for Dissertation Proposal and Candidacy Exam preparation. In some cases, it may be preferable for another faculty member to serve as Dissertation Supervisor. Students should consult closely with the faculty in their area of specialization, and with the Graduate Chair if necessary, well in advance of their final semester of coursework to determine who the most appropriate Dissertation Supervisor will be. It is critical also that faculty should anticipate student needs in this regard well in advance of a student’s final semester of coursework and consult with each other and with individual students in regard to selecting the most appropriate Dissertation Supervisor.

As the Candidate and Advisor explore possible Dissertation topics within the context of the NELC 9980 course, potential members of the Dissertation Committee should be identified and contacted to see whether they are willing to serve. The Candidate and the Advisor should consult closely on the composition of the Dissertation Committee. Ideally, a complete Committee will be constituted no later than the stage at which a Candidate is soliciting comments on late-stage drafts of the Dissertation Proposal, and it is mandatory to finalize the Committee prior to circulating the Proposal to the NELC Graduate Group.

Dissertation Committees must consist of at least three faculty members, two of whom must be from the NELC Graduate Group at the time of appointment to the Committee. For Committees with four or more members, at least half the members of the Dissertation Committee must be members of the NELC Graduate Group. Non-Graduate Group faculty may only serve with the written approval of the Graduate Group (in practice, the authority to approve non-Graduate Group faculty is delegated to the Graduate Chair.) The Dissertation Committee is required to meet annually, in February or March, with the Candidate, and the Dissertation Supervisor must provide an annual written report on the Candidate's progress to degree subsequent to that meeting and certify therein that the annual meeting has been held. That report must be submitted to the Graduate Chair prior to the spring meeting with the Graduate Chair, and it will be made available to the student no later than one week prior to the spring meeting, as detailed above.

Reading lists for the Candidacy Exams are prepared in conjunction with NELC 9980, described above, which is taken in a student’s final semester of coursework (usually the sixth semester). If there is at least one other Dissertation Committee member (or likely member) identified at this time, then it is often the case that that other Committee member will participate in setting reading lists and in other aspects of the Candidacy Exams.  

The Candidacy Exams are administered upon the completion of coursework, at the conclusion of the sixth semester, but no later than the early fall (late August through early October) of the student’s seventh semester. The Candidacy Exams will be given over a period of two weeks and may include take-home components and timed exams on campus. Timed on-campus components of the Candidacy Exams may not exceed two four-hour sessions in any one day. No more than one exam may be given per day. Candidacy Exams include both a written and an oral component. Often, one component of the exam (in addition to one or more fields) is the drafting of a detailed syllabus for an undergraduate course within or closely related to the main field or fields examined. The syllabus component has become a particular practice of NELC’s subfield in Middle Eastern Literatures and Societies.

Within two weeks of the submission of the Candidacy Exams, the examining faculty will meet with the student for the oral component of the exam, which will involve a discussion of the exams and also a discussion of the draft Dissertation Proposal.

University-wide rules stipulate that students must be given feedback on the Candidacy Exams within one month. Whether a student has passed the Candidacy Exams lies within the sole discretion of the examining faculty. Candidacy Exams are given on a pass/fail basis. If a student fails the Candidacy Exams, the Graduate Group will determine whether they may retake the Exams or be dropped from the PhD program. University-wide rules stipulate that the maximum time limit for a Student to advance to Candidacy is five years, after which the Student will be dropped.

NOTE: Within the above guidelines, the Candidacy Exams may vary by subfield in NELC. It is therefore incumbent on Advisors, Supervisors, and any examining faculty to fully explain specific exam formats, procedures, and expectations to students. Equally, it is incumbent on students to request Advisors, Supervisors, and any examining faculty to explain fully specific exam formats, procedures, and expectations. Discussion and clarification of these matters should occur, at the very latest, at the beginning of the required NELC 9980 course.

A draft of the Dissertation Proposal should be prepared as part of the NELC 9980 course taken by PhD students in their final year of coursework. The draft Dissertation Proposal must be submitted to the Advisor or Supervisor and the examining faculty one week before the commencement of the Candidacy Examination. In NELC, Dissertation Proposals are ideally no longer than 15-20 pages (double-spaced) including footnotes, citations, and a selected bibliography. Previously accepted NELC Dissertation Proposals are available from the Graduate Coordinator for reference. Students are urged to consult these for guidance in addition to the guidance that they will necessarily receive from their Advisor or Supervisor.

The oral component of the Candidacy Exams, at which all the examiners must be present (including through video technology), and at which any other Dissertation Committee members may be present, will include a consideration of the draft Dissertation Proposal. It is expected that the Dissertation Proposal will occasion comment, further discussion, possibly several rounds of revisions, and eventually be submitted to a finalized Dissertation Committee for approval. The Dissertation Committee must be finalized before the Dissertation Proposal may be circulated to the Graduate Group. 

Once the Advisor and the Dissertation Committee are satisfied with the Proposal, it is circulated to the NELC Graduate Group for approval. Members of the Graduate Group may forward comments, requests for clarification, or suggestions to the Dissertation Supervisor or the Graduate Chair. Three weeks after the Proposal is circulated to the Graduate Group, or after any suggested revisions to the Proposal are completed in a satisfactory manner (as determined by the Advisor or Supervisor), the Dissertation Proposal is considered officially accepted by the Graduate Group and the student advances to Candidacy, which means that the student officially becomes a Candidate for the degree of PhD (what is often termed “ABD”).

Writing a Dissertation can be a daunting prospect. Students are urged to consult closely with their Dissertation Supervisors at the initial stages of Dissertation writing, to consult with their peers who are farther along in the drafting process, and to consult completed Dissertations from past NELC students (these are available electronically through the Library). While this Manual is not the place for a comprehensive guide to Dissertation writing, a few general remarks are in order

First, Dissertation Supervisors are expected (and students may expect them) to provide sufficient structure at the initial phases of Dissertation writing to aid students to begin writing in a timely and efficient manner and to provide regular contact thereafter to ensure that students make regular progress in writing their Dissertations.

Second, it is almost always best to start with a chapter other than the Introduction or first chapter. Focusing on a discrete body of evidence and its interpretation will usually provide an easier starting point than a general discussion of the state of a field, a description of a broad research problem, and an explanation and justification of one’s methodology (even though these matters should already have received at least brief attention in the Dissertation Proposal).

Third, bearing in mind that students have not written Dissertations previously, it is likely that the first draft chapter submitted will receive extensive comments and suggestions for revisions and improvements from the Dissertation Supervisor and any other Committee members to whom it is submitted. Students and faculty should bear in mind that it may take one or two chapters for the student to understand fully the readers’ expectations. Faculty should be aware that a student may not understand completely the faculty member’s expectations, even when it is supposed that these have been explicitly communicated to the student, until the student receives comments on a first draft of a first chapter. 

Fourth, students must take seriously their obligation to submit drafts that are well-written, polished, and complete. Experience suggests that draft chapters may not always be sufficiently polished when submitted. Particular areas requiring vigilance and attention include clear writing, logical organization, grammatical and syntactic accuracy, spelling and punctuation, accurate and appropriate transliteration, and correct citation style. Students should carefully proofread work prior to submitting it and in nearly every case it will be beneficial to ask a trusted third party to proofread draft chapters. Most formal writing can benefit enormously from the good-willed attention of a practiced, neutral reader. The fact that chapters are drafts does not mean that they are exempt from being polished. Faculty readers want to comment on the substance of draft Dissertation chapters, but writing that is not polished will distract them from that vital task. For advice and guidance on formal academic writing, students may wish to consult with the writing specialists at Penn’s Marks Family Writing Center (http://writing.upenn.edu/critical/wc/). Students who have difficulty producing drafts that adhere to expected standards may be directed to the Writing Center or to the Weingarten Learning Resources Center (https://www.vpul.upenn.edu/lrc/lr/) for writing assistance.

Usually, a complete draft of the Dissertation will only be submitted to the entire Committee after the Advisor has reviewed all the individual chapters and the student has undertaken the necessary revisions. Dissertation Supervisors and members of the Dissertation Committee should respond to drafts within six weeks at the very latest.

In case of conflicts between members of the Dissertation Committee and the student, or between the Dissertation Supervisor and the student, see the section on “Dispute Resolution” below.

Keeping lines of communication open for frequent consultation is a vital component of the Dissertation writing process. Students should expect to receive constructive criticism from their readers. Even senior scholars continue to receive constructive criticism throughout their careers, whether in the form of anonymous peer reviews, comments on presentations at conferences, through colleagues in the field who are asked to comment on drafts, and through other channels. Criticism and even sharp disagreement are normal parts of academic life. Faculty should remember that the provision of feedback on student work is also an opportunity for modeling constructive engagement and even collegiality for their advisees.

Penn’s Graduate Center provides a number of important and helpful resources to assist students at various stages of Dissertation writing (https://gsc.upenn.edu/academic-programs/thesis-and-Dissertation-support). In addition, NELC’s own Professor Heather Sharkey has created a Canvas page with many extremely useful pointers for negotiating the PhD program in general and writing the Dissertation in particular. To gain access to her Canvas resources for PhD students, please email her and request to be added as a guest to her Canvas site (hsharkey@sas.upenn.edu).

Finally, students are responsible for complying with all University rules governing formatting of the Dissertation, which may be found at the following two links: (https://guides.library.upenn.edu/Dissertation_manual).

Within the first two weeks of the semester in which a PhD Candidate expects to graduate, he or she shall submit the final draft of the Dissertation to the Supervisor and Committee. This draft must be in proper order and complete except for the indices (if any), which need not be supplied until after a successful defense. At the same time the Candidate must apply to The Graduate Division for a degree and make certain that they have fulfilled all the requirements. Candidates should use the PhD Candidate Graduation Checklist for an overview of what tasks are required during their final term.  

Penn requires a public, oral defense of the Dissertation. When the Dissertation is deemed ready to defend by the Dissertation Supervisor and the other Committee members, the Candidate arranges to table (as defined below) the Dissertation in the NELC office with the Graduate Coordinator. At this time, the Candidate must also arrange with her or his Supervisor and Committee a date or possible dates for the defense. In NELC, Friday defenses at 11:00 a.m. are preferred. Once a date (or dates) is agreed on by the Candidate and the Committee members, the Candidate must confirm with the Graduate Coordinator and the Graduate Chair that the date or dates in question are available for a defense. The Graduate Chair will then ask the Graduate Coordinator to schedule a date for the defense. It is NELC policy to avoid holding PhD defenses in June and July and also in August before the first week of classes. 

No defense will be scheduled without the express approval of the Supervisor. 

Once the defense date is set, the Candidate must table their Dissertation a minimum of three (3) weeks before the defense date. “Tabling” means providing an electronic copy of the complete Dissertation to the Graduate Coordinator (but no index is required at this point).

In NELC, defenses typically consist of a presentation by the Candidate of no more than thirty (30) minutes in which the Candidate outlines his or her Dissertation and explains how and why it is a contribution to scholarship. After this presentation, the Dissertation Committee members and other Penn standing faculty who are present will question the Candidate about the research and conclusions in the Dissertation and about other matters pertaining to the Dissertation. When the Committee and faculty have no more questions, the Candidate and all other persons in attendance except for the Committee and Penn standing faculty will be asked to leave the room and those present will deliberate. Whether the defense is successful lies within the sole discretion of the Dissertation Supervisor and Dissertation Committee, who may nonetheless solicit the views of Penn standing faculty in attendance in reaching their decision. Once a decision has been reached, the Candidate will be notified.

It is common for the Dissertation Committee to require post-defense revisions to the Dissertation. 

If the defense is not successful, the Candidate will be informed either that the Dissertation may be resubmitted for another defense after major revisions are made or that the rejection is final. 

Students who believe that they will defend their Dissertation in a particular semester should consult with the Graduate Coordinator, well in advance of tabling their Dissertation, about making an appointment to deposit the Dissertation (see below).

After a successful defense, and once the Dissertation and any post-defense revisions have received final approval from the Dissertation Supervisor and Dissertation Committee, the Dissertation must be deposited with GAS. The Dissertation must conform to all University and GAS guidelines before it may be deposited. An appointment with GAS is required for deposit of the Dissertation; the Graduate Coordinator can assist with making such an appointment. Students should be aware that appointments for depositing the Dissertation at the end of a given semester (i.e., in proximity to the deadline for receiving a degree that semester) tend to fill up rapidly and well in advance. Although it is relatively easy to cancel such appointments, it is advisable to plan in advance for a deposit date.

This short section deals with relatively specific matters, but it is (like this whole Manual) to be interpreted expansively and implemented in a wider spirit of good mentoring. What constitutes good mentoring can differ from situation to situation and depend on a wide variety of factors, but it is nonetheless possible to outline some general notions that may be of assistance for mentees and mentors. 

Although much learning at the graduate level is self-directed, faculty must nevertheless provide guidance, broadly construed, during all phases of a student’s graduate education. Such guidance will not always be limited to narrow questions pertaining to a student’s chosen field of concentration or to specific questions about requirements.

Mentoring is the responsibility of all NELC faculty members and is a duty owed to all NELC (and Penn) students, irrespective of concentration, program, or department. Mentoring is not always outcome-specific, but rather entails assisting students to realize their capabilities, to learn, and to achieve an appropriate result from their experience as graduate students in NELC and at Penn. In addition, Advisors and Supervisors especially, but all faculty and staff as well, must be sensitive to students’ personal situations, which may involve complexities relating to identity, family, immigration status, illness, medical conditions, and other matters. Resources that may be helpful in some of these situations are listed at the end of this Manual.

Advisors and Dissertation Supervisors should, and students are in general entitled to expect them to, advocate for their students.

It may be useful for faculty to reflect on those things they wished that they had been told while pursuing their own graduate studies (as opposed to the many matters that are appropriately left for students to discover, discern, or master for themselves).

The topics discussed in this section are not intended as an exhaustive list. Rather, they should be read as exemplary and as suggesting the outlines of a general approach to faculty-student interaction. This section includes discussions of course selection, feedback on student work, progress to degree, and professionalization. Each of these topics is intimately connected to students’ ability to thrive in NELC.

Course selection: Advisors should provide substantial guidance to advisees in planning coursework. This should be done with a view to balancing program requirements, language study, courses in methodology and theory, exam preparation, exposure to other NELC and non-NELC faculty as appropriate, as well as taking into account a student’s interests.

Student work: Advisors, Supervisors, Committee members (and faculty generally) should promptly read and comment on all student work, especially on Dissertation chapters and drafts. In addition, in commenting on student work, faculty should provide useful feedback, explain criticisms, and make sure that criticism is both constructive and productive. This approach, though valuable in its own right, also teaches professionalism by example. When students one day become teachers, they should be able to model much of their practice on what went right for them in their graduate program and not have to think about how to provide their own students with what they lacked as graduate students.

Faculty, Advisors, or Supervisors who determine that a student’s performance in their graduate studies is not satisfactory should bring their concerns to the student as early as possible, clarify expectations, provide constructive criticism, and work to help the student. Advisors who have concerns about a student’s performance should make these known in specific terms to the student and, if warranted, in the annual written evaluations produced in conjunction with the annual spring meeting with the student, the Graduate Chair, and Graduate Coordinator. Faculty other than the Advisor who have concerns about a student’s performance in any aspect of the graduate program should make these known to the Graduate Chair, who will consult with the student and/or the Advisor or Dissertation Supervisor as appropriate.

Student progress: It is critical that NELC students make efficient and steady progress toward the completion of their PhD. Although it is the students who must complete coursework, pass exams, and write Dissertations, Advisors and faculty mentors are also responsible for regularly reviewing, monitoring, facilitating, and encouraging their advisees’ and all students’ progress to degree. Faculty must regularly review students’ progress toward, and satisfaction of, the benchmarks and requirements listed in this Manual and required by GAS and Penn.

Past experience suggests that particular attention to students’ progress is required at the stage when students begin developing their Dissertation Proposals, seek to identify likely Dissertation Committee members, and set out to produce initial drafts of the first chapters of their Dissertations.

Faculty should strongly encourage students to avoid grades of Incomplete; incompletes can often be avoided through targeted bibliographic, methodological, and other substantive guidance provided by the instructor during the semester. Grades of Incomplete that are not resolved within one year from the end of the semester in which the course in question was taken become permanent and cannot be changed.

Professionalization: Fostering student professionalization is an indispensable component of advising and mentoring. What constitutes professionalization will necessarily vary by field and discipline. The following areas, expressed in an economical and non-exhaustive format, all call for close consultation among students, Advisors, and other faculty. Students are strongly encouraged, and should feel entitled, to seek advice from Advisors, Dissertation Supervisors, and other faculty (all of whom should be considered mentors) in regard to any and all of the following points. In addition, the Graduate Chair should always make himself or herself available to discuss and provide advice about any and all of the following topics (bearing in mind that the Graduate Chair may be in a different field than the student who seeks out such advice from him or her).

• Dissertation Supervisors and other faculty should provide advice about when and where to present research and provide timely pre-presentation feedback on the substance of such scholarly presentations. Penn’s Middle East Center provides opportunities for graduate students to present their research in an informal setting. Students (even those in ancient fields) are strongly encouraged to take advantage of that service. In addition, Penn provides modest assistance for students to travel to academic conferences; the Graduate Coordinator can direct students to the appropriate resources. Students should also be pro-active in seeking out such support within the University (and should share what they learn with their peers!).

• Dissertation Supervisors and other faculty should make every reasonable effort to observe their students’ scholarly presentations at conferences and in other relevant fora and provide meaningful feedback.

• Dissertation Supervisors and other faculty should make every reasonable effort to introduce their students to other scholars at conferences and in other relevant fora.

• Dissertation Supervisors and other faculty should provide advice about when and where to publish research prior to finishing the PhD and provide timely pre-submission feedback on the substance of any material submitted for publication.

• Dissertation Supervisors and other faculty should provide advice about balancing the need to present and publish research, the need to have a strong CV, and time to degree.

• Dissertation Supervisors and other faculty should provide advice about how to craft a strong CV and should periodically (and at the very least annually) review their students’ CVs.

• Dissertation Supervisors (especially) and other faculty must provide frank advice about the appropriateness of individual employment opportunities, whether fellowships, tenure-track positions, or alternative academic or other employment.

• Dissertation Supervisors should make every effort to provide timely opportunities for mock job talks for their students who are applying for jobs. The Graduate Chair will assist with arranging mock job talks.

• Dissertation Supervisors (especially) and other faculty should provide timely, detailed, and fully engaged feedback on all fellowship and job application materials including: performance in mock job talks, CV, cover letter, teaching statement, research statement, the identification of appropriate writing samples if required, and the identification of appropriate letter writers.

• Dissertation Supervisors must be proactive in bringing appropriate employment opportunities to the attention of their students and bringing their students to the attention of appropriate employers.

It sometimes happens that students and faculty, advisors, or dissertation supervisors disagree. When there is a disagreement, the student and the other party should make every effort to resolve the disagreement themselves. In some cases, it can be helpful for the student to speak first with the Graduate Coordinator or the Graduate Chair, who may be able to provide guidance. If the disagreement pertains to an evaluation, exam, or course grade and cannot be resolved with the instructor, the student may submit a request in writing to the Graduate Chair for assistance. If the matter cannot be resolved with the aid of the Graduate Chair, the student may seek the assistance of the appropriate Associate Dean.

In the case of other academic grievances, the student and the other party should make every effort to resolve the disagreement themselves. If those efforts do not lead to a satisfactory solution, the student may consult with the Graduate Chair. If the Graduate Chair cannot provide a satisfactory solution, the student may take the matter to the NELC Department Chair. If after raising the matter with the NELC Department Chair the student cannot achieve a satisfactory solution, the student may take the matter directly to the Associate Dean. If the Associate Dean is unable to resolve the problem, then, as a last resort, the student may request a hearing before the Graduate Academic Grievance Committee of the School of Arts and Sciences.

The two preceding paragraphs offer a brief summary of the grievance procedure for graduate students in GAS, the official text of which (which is controlling for all such disputes) may be found at this link: (https://www.sas.upenn.edu/graduate-division/resources/academic-grievance-procedure).

Most questions about NELC, GAS, or Penn requirements, rules, procedures, resources, and problems may best be directed in the first instance to the Graduate Coordinator, and/or to the Graduate Chair. If they do not know the answer to a question, they are well placed to find it out. This Manual is also designed to answer many such questions and should be consulted first. Of course, students should always feel free to ask instructors, other faculty, Advisors, or Dissertation Supervisors about their studies. 

The following is an abbreviated list of resources that may be of use during a PhD student’s career in NELC and at Penn. Some have been noted above but are mentioned again here; they are mostly culled from AMP’ed and the Graduate Center’s website (https://gsc.upenn.edu/), where fuller lists may be found.

WELLNESS

• Graduate Center Resources (https://gsc.upenn.edu/resources/wellness)
• Student Health and Counseling (formerly CAPS) (https://wellness.upenn.edu/student-health-and-counseling)
• Public Health and Wellbeing (https://wellness.upenn.edu/public-health-and-wellbeing)

STUDENT LIFE

• Penn’s policy initiatives relating to graduate student life (https://www.upenn.edu/pages/valuing-grad-students)
• Graduate Center Resources (https://gsc.upenn.edu/graduate-life)
• Family Resource Center (https://familycenter.upenn.edu/about-us)

WRITING AND DISSERTATION WRITING

• Weingarten Center for Academic Support (https://weingartencenter.universitylife.upenn.edu/academic-support/)
• Marks Family Writing Center (http://writing.upenn.edu/critical/wc/)
• Graduate Student Center (https://gsc.upenn.edu/academic-programs/thesis-and-Dissertation-support#writing)

CONFERENCE TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENT

• Individual Funding (https://www.sasgov.sas.upenn.edu/individual-funding)

TEACHING, TEACHING FELLOWSHIPS, TEACHING CERTIFICATE

• Center for Teaching and Learning (https://www.ctl.upenn.edu/programs-and-services-graduate-students)

ALTERNATIVE EMPLOYMENT

• Career Services (https://careerservices.upenn.edu/)

ACADEMIC RULES (see also AMP’ed for a comprehensive set of web links)

• PhD Programs (https://catalog.upenn.edu/pennbook/academic-rules-phd/)
• MA Programs (https://catalog.upenn.edu/pennbook/academic-rules-research-masters/)