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• I. Program Description
• II. Fields, Exams, and Dissertations
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II. Preparation of Fields, Preliminary Examinations, and the Dissertation

Graduate students in American Civilization are expected to prepare four interrelated "fields" of study, and to pass an oral examination in these fields by the end of the fifth semester (by the end of the fourth semester if the student enters with an M.A. and chooses the "fast track".) For each field the student will have a faculty field advisor who will guide him or her in the development of the field and who will serve on the student's oral examination board. A major purpose of the fields is to provide breadth of knowledge of American Civilization and competency in teaching in related areas.

A. What is a Field?

A Field is broadly defined as a coherent or unified body of learning. "Coherence" may be demonstrated in a number of ways.

The field may center around a division of subject matter that is recognized within the established departments. Examples: early American history; nineteenth-century painting; modern poetry.

The field may be built around a synthesizing idea or a set of ideas that can account for a unity in the works being studied. Examples: gender in American society; the midwestern imagination.

The field may depend on a single "methodology" that examines subject matter from a new and unifying perspective. A methodology is understood to be system of methods, principles, and rules for analysis and evaluation that has usually arisen from a particular discipline, but that the student may wish to apply in a new way. Thus he or she may use a methodology of history (example: a history of ideas), of theology (example: hermeneutics) of anthropology (example: cognitive anthropology), of literature (example: myth criticism), and so on, to illuminate materials that may exceed or depart from those disciplinary boundaries.

The graduate advisor of the program can make available copies of the field proposals that have been accepted by the Faculty in the past.

B. Identifying the Fields and Choosing Field Advisors

By the end of the third semester, students are expected to have chosen four field advisors from among the Brown faculty; to have obtained their consent and discussed the fields with them, at least in a preliminary way; and to have informed the graduate advisor of their names. If there is no American Civilization faculty member among the advisors, or if any of the advisors have not previously worked with American Civilization graduate students, the student should so inform the Graduate Advisor. The Graduate Advisor will then speak with the advisors to answer any questions they might have. It should be noted that no more than two fields may be in the same general discipline. (see I.C.4. above)

Field advisors must be members of the Brown or RISD faculties who hold a Ph.D. In rare circumstances where a student has worked with a faculty member who has left Brown, such a person may serve as a field advisor. With permission of the faculty, students may design one field shared by two advisors. But students must clearly explain why this is necessary and be aware of the difficulty of such "split" fields. A Brown or RISD faculty member not holding the Ph.D. may be included only in a "split" field paired with a member of the faculty who does have such a degree.

C. Writing and Submitting Field Proposals

During the second year, students develop their fields under the supervision of four field advisors who constitute the student's examination committee. Students should seek approval of their committees from the Graduate Advisor (who may refer the matter to the American Civilization Faculty) in the beginning of the semester in which they plan to present their field proposals.

The student produces a field essay and a bibliography for each field and a short overall essay for submission at the end of the fourth semester (third semester for "fast track" students).

Field proposals contain five parts:

1. a brief introductory statement explaining how the four fields form a coherent unit; are interdisciplinary; and prepare the student to teach and do research and,
2. four individual, complete, and signed field essays accompanied by bibliographies.
   The exact sequence of events in working out the individual field essays and bibliographies must, of course, be determined by the student with each of his or her advisors, but it will almost certainly include the following:
3. meeting with the field advisor as often as either party may request or find it necessary.
4. a reading course or courses with the advisor.
5. one or more drafts of the essay and of its bibliography. Several drafts may be necessary before the student and the advisor are satisfied as to the depth, scope, and coherence of the field.

When a satisfactory field essay and bibliography are produced, it is initialed and signed by the field advisor.

The American Civilization Faculty will determine the deadline for submission of the field proposals each semester and the Graduate Advisor will communicate the deadline to the graduate students.By the deadline for consideration students should submit to the Departmental office their field proposals (see above for what should be included).Each faculty member will receive a copy of the proposal and each proposal will be discussed at the Faculty Meeting.The Faculty will decide if the proposal is of sufficient coherence, scope, depth and breadth for an interdisciplinary program.The Faculty can decide that the proposal 1) is acceptable; 2) is acceptable provided minor changes are made; or 3) needs one or more of the fields substantially revised and resubmitted for another review. The Graduate Advisor will communicate the Faculty's decision to the student.

D. The Preliminary Examination

1. Scheduling the Examination:

The preliminary oral examination ordinarily is taken by the end of the student's fifth semester if the student enters with a B.A. and by the end of the fourth semester if the student enters with an M.A. and chooses the "fast track." Preliminary examinations are normally given only in October, December, and May.

Students wishing to postpone preliminary examinations beyond their fifth semester (fourth semester for "fast track" students) must petition the Faculty reasonably in advance of the examination date.

The candidate should agree with the field advisors on a target date at least a month in advance of the examination. The Graduate Advisor, in conjunction with the Department Secretary, arranges the precise time and place of the examination in consultation with the field advisors, and notifies the student, the Examination Committee, and other interested parties.

2. The Examination Committee:

The Examination Committee is made up of the four field advisors, one of whom the student designates to serve as chair. The chair presides at the examination and reports the decision of the Examination Committee, in writing, to the Department Chair immediately following the examination.

If none of the field advisors is a member of the American Civilization program, or if one or more of the advisors is a member but lacks experience in such examinations at Brown, the candidate may also designate a member of the American Civilization Faculty who has had such experience to act as an ex-officio member of the Examination Committee. This person assists the chair, and provides relevant information to the Examination Committee about the student's performance in the Department.

3. Procedure of the Examination:

At the beginning of the preliminary examination, students are allowed to give a five-to-ten minute presentation which demonstrates their interdisciplinary capabilities and shows how their four fields are interrelated. This statement may take the form of a broad overview of the relationship between the four fields, or it may be a discussion of some issue that touches on material from all four fields.

Whether or not the student chooses to give the optional presentation, he or she will be examined for a half hour by each field advisor, within the scope of the field prepared. Although the examiners may respond to the student's presentation, it is understood that it is the field advisor's prerogative to ask questions during the examination upon any aspect of the field as originally agreed upon and approved. The student, however, is permitted to designate the order in which he or she will be examined by the field advisors.

Copies of the candidate's field proposals are given to all members of the Examination Committee by the Graduate Advisor before the examination, and are present during the examination.

4. Evaluation of the Candidate's Performance in the Examination:

Immediately following the examination, the examiners decide whether the student has passed or failed.

While relying primarily on the judgment of the appropriate examiners in regard to the four individual fields, the entire membership of the Examination Committee is expected to reach a consensus as to the student's interdisciplinary mastery of the fields as a whole. If one examiner is unsatisfied, the committee will determine the appropriate measures to be taken. If two or more examiners are unsatisfied, the whole examination is a failure.

As soon as a decision is reached, the student is recalled to the examining room and informed of the results.

In case of a vote of failure, the student is entitled to a second examination at a later date to be agreed upon by the Examination Committee. Failure on a second examination terminates the student's enrollment in the Department. E. Dissertation Proposals and Defense of the Dissertation

E. Dissertation Proposals and Defense of the Dissertation

A student is expected to produce a dissertation proposal within one semester after passing the preliminary examination. Guidelines for preparing the proposal are available in the Department office. Since the dissertation usually grows out of work done for the preliminary examination, it is expected that such a proposal will have an interdisciplinary dimension. In the dissertation proposal, the candidate should discuss explicitly both the interdisciplinary character of the proposed work and the methodology (ies) to be employed.

Students should seek approval of their committees from the Graduate Advisor (who may refer the matter to the American Civilization Faculty) in the beginning of the semester in which they plan to present their dissertation proposals. In no case will all three readers be specialists in a single general discipline (see I.C.4 for the definition of "discipline"). All members of the dissertation committee must be members of the Brown or RISD faculty, with only two exceptions. A student may request an outside advisor or reader if the advisor and student have worked together previously, preferably at Brown. With faculty approval, the student may add a fourth reader from outside the University. The Department, however, cannot fund travel or honoraria for outside readers or advisors.

The American Civilization Faculty will determine deadlines for the submission of the dissertation proposals each semester. Students wishing to delay submission of dissertation proposals must receive permission from the American Civilization Faculty which will be granted only on the basis of genuine extenuating circumstance. Students will present copies of the dissertation proposal to each committee member, all members of the American Civilization Faculty, the Graduate Advisor and the Chair.

The dissertation committee gives final approval of the dissertation proposal in a meeting attended by the Graduate Advisor or the Chair (who will convey to the students any comments or suggestions of the American Civilization Faculty regarding the proposal). The student should go about setting up the meeting to approve the dissertation proposal in the same way he or she did in the case of the field proposals and the preliminary examination. A month before the deadline, the student should be in touch with the dissertation committee and set a target date. The Department Secretary will then arrange the precise time and place of the conference in consultation with the field advisors, and notify the student, the dissertation committee, the Graduate Advisor and the Departmental Chair. In addition to providing final approval of the proposal, the meeting should give the student and the committee a chance to review the proposal and thank about how to begin work on the dissertation.

All changes in dissertation proposals, either in terms of content or committee composition or roles, must be approved formally by all members of the committee and by the American Civilization Faculty. All changes must be made and approved before the submission of chapters begins.

A dissertation will normally require approval by the advisor and the two readers before it can be accepted for the degree. If there is disagreement among the readers regarding approval, the matter may come before the American Civilization Faculty, which may make appropriate recommendations. If the matter can not be resolved at this point, it will be referred to the Dean of the Graduate School and the Graduate Council for further action.

The defense of the dissertation consists of an oral presentation and/or examination of not more than two hours conducted by the advisor and the readers. The candidate is held responsible for defending the content, methodology, and substance of the dissertation. All members of the Faculty are invited to attend and participate. The defense may be waived upon petition of the candidate to the Graduate School. Grounds for such a waiver might include hardship for a candidate who would have to travel a great distance.