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GUIDELINES
FOR NEW MA STUDENTS
ADVISING.
In your first semester of study, you will be assigned a faculty advisor
normally drawn from the field in which you plan to specialize.
The faculty advisor can discuss course options with you and serve as a
source of information about the substantive part of your program.
REQUIRED COURSES.
Master's students must take PSC 5913, Introduction to Analysis of
Political and Administrative Data. This course is normally
offered in the Fall semester, although alternate offerings may be
available.
FIELDS
OF STUDY. You should choose your concentration and
distribution fields as soon as possible. Knowing your fields of study
will aid you with course selection and identification of potential
members for your advisory committee.
M.A.
ADVISORY COMMITTEE. You are strongly encouraged to select
your three member advisory committee by the end of your second semester
in the program.
(a)
You should consider selecting the person who will serve as the chair of
your committee first. Students frequently choose a chair from the
field they consider to be their primary area of interest. This person
can advise you on other possible committee members who are appropriate
given your particular interests. However, it is your responsibility to
contact each prospective member and secure their consent to serve.
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(b) The chair of your committee is responsible for
the general oversight of your program of study and will coordinate the
oral defense and comprehensive examination. More information on this is
provided in the Guidelines Concerning the M.A. Comprehensive
Examination included in this manual.
(c) You are responsible for
meeting with your committee chair to consider your proposed course of
study. The M.A. Advisory Worksheet provides information regarding the
courses you have taken and those you propose to take. After your
committee chair has approved your program of study, submit the
completed form to the Graduate Program office.
(d) You may alter your program of
study or change the membership of your committee at any time with the
consent of your committee chair and the Graduate Program Director.
PROGRESS TOWARD DEGREE COMPLETION.
The department normally expects full-time
master’s students to enroll in at least nine hours of course work each
of the fall and spring semesters. If a student carries a lesser load,
it becomes difficult to complete the degree within a reasonable period
of time.
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT. The department encourages graduate students
to participate in a variety of professional development
opportunities. Each month, there is a graduate student brown bag
in which faculty and students meet to discuss special topics.
Recent examples include taking courses and preparing for comprehensive
and general examinations, research expectations, job opportunities,
conference presentations, and networking. In addition, the
department hosts irregular research brown bags for faculty and graduate
students who are presenting conference papers to “test-drive” their
talk.
There are many special events with guest speakers such as the biennial
Rothbaum Lectures, the annual Bellmon Lecture, and job talks for
prospective faculty members, and graduate students are encouraged to
attend these as well.
ANNUAL EVALUATION.
The Graduate College requires that all departments conduct an annual
evaluation of graduate student progress. In political science, this
assessment occurs in June, after spring grades are available. The
period covered includes the fall and spring semesters and the previous
summer, if applicable. Guidelines for the Annual Evaluation of Graduate
Students are included in this manual.
In preparation for the annual evaluation, all MA students are required
to submit a Mini-vitae to the Graduate Program Director at the end of
the spring semester. This form is included in the Forms section
of this manual and can be transmitted to students electronically after
spring break with instructions for completion and submission.
RESEARCH.
Any student conducting human subjects research for a thesis must first
receive approval of the project from the Institutional
Review Board (IRB) before
filing the Admission to Candidacy and Thesis Topic and Committee
Membership forms. A copy of that approval must accompany the
forms at time of submission.
If a Master’s student is doing a research
paper instead of a thesis, the project must be approved by the IRB only
if publication of the results is expected.
You should review the department’s official document, Graduate
Studies in Political Science Statement, on a regular basis.
Nothing in these guidelines for new M.A. students is intended to
supersede or contradict any information found in the department’s
official document of the Graduate College Bulletin in the year you
entered the program.
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Dale Hall Tower
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Department of Political
Science
205 Dale
Hall Tower
455 W.
Lindsey Street
Norman,
Oklahoma 73019
(405)
325-2061
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Copyright
© 2006 Department of
Political Science
Last
modified Fall 2006
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