Comprehensive Examination
To become candidates for a doctoral degree, students must pass a written comprehensive examination that tests their knowledge of core issues relating to research and theory in social psychology. This examination is normally scheduled to follow completion of the Master's degree requirements and the core coursework. A reading list is distributed by June 1 of the second year, allowing students the summer of their second year to read and prepare for the exam. The examination itself lasts a full day and follows a closed-book essay format. This exam takes place around September 15 of the student's third year. Students who enter with a Master's degree may be able to present evidence of having covered the field of social psychology in several graduate-level courses with exams. If the faculty approves, such a student may substitute a specialty exam or paper (written in the style of a Psychological Bulletin paper) for the comprehensive exam. From this foundation of knowledge, the comprehensive exam provides students with an opportunity to demonstrate the depth and breadth of their knowledge of the field.
