http://www.utdallas.edu/dept/socsci/
Professors: Brian J. L. Berry, Ronald Briggs, Alexander L. Clark
(emeritus), Lloyd J. Dumas, Euel Elliott, Donald A. Hicks, Irving J. Hoch
(emeritus), Murray J. Leaf, Kimberly Kempf Leonard, Lawrence J. Redlinger,
Richard K. Scotch, Paul Tracy,
Associate Professors: Bobby C. Alexander, Sheila Amin Guti�rrez De
Pi�eres, Kurt J. Beron, Pamela Brandwein, Marie Isabelle Chevrier, Simon Fass, Paul
Jargowsky, Susan McElroy,
Assistant Professors� Roxanne
Ezzet-Lofstrom, Jennifer Smith Holmes, Melinda D. Kane, Sheryl Skaggs
The Ph.D. degree in Public Policy and Political Economy is an
interdisciplinary, research degree in public policy. It emphasizes rigorous
education in public policy analysis and the methods of economic, social and
political research, and to develop professional competence in a substantive
field of public policy. Graduates will be prepared to teach and conduct
interdisciplinary research at both graduate and undergraduate levels in public
policy and public affairs, public or business administration, urban affairs and
planning programs and applied Economic, Political and Policy Sciences.. They are also well prepared for
demanding analytical and administrative posts in international and domestic
research and policy institutions, and in the private sector.
Students have access to the computing faculties in the
The University�s general admission requirements are discussed here.
The PhD. in Public Policy and Political Economy seeks applications from
students with a baccalaureate degree from an accredited university or college.
An undergraduate grade point average of at least 3.2, and a combined verbal and
quantitative GRE score of 1200, or equivalent score on the GMAT, are desirable
for direct admission. Students may also wish to consider submitting their score
from the writing component of the GRE test as additional evidence of their
writing skills. Standardized test scores are only one of the factors taken into
account in determining admission. For example, a student also may be admitted
to the Ph.D. program after being accepted by a master�s program and achieving
at least a 3.3 grade point average in several core courses. Students should
also submit all transcripts, three letters of recommendation, and a one-page
essay outlining the applicant�s background, education and professional
objectives.
While there are no specific course prerequisites, entering students will
benefit from �exposure to undergraduate
courses in the Economic, Political and Policy Sciences, college algebra, and research design.
Students who have previous graduate work pertinent to the requirements of
the Ph.D. may be given up to 45 hours of transfer credit, and the hours of
coursework required for the degree will be reduced accordingly. Students
desiring to transfer graduate courses thought to be equivalent to core courses
may be required to demonstrate competency through examination. The award of
such transfer credit must be consistent with the University�s �Transfer of
Credit� policy.
The University�s general degree requirements are discussed here.
The PhD in Public Policy and Political Economy requires a minimum of 90
post-baccalaureate graduate credit hours. students must maintain a grade point
average (GPA) of 3.0 in order to graduate. A student is required to complete
six program components:
The requirements are outlined in further detail below:
Students complete a core sequence of courses as follows:
POEC 5303 Public Policymaking and Institutions
POEC 5308 Ethics, Culture and Responsibility
POEC 5307 Economics for Public Policy
POEC 6301 Political-Economic Theories
POEC 6312 Social Economic Theories
POEC 5313 Descriptive and Inferential Statistics
POEC 5316 Advanced Regression Analysis for the Economic, Political and Policy Sciences
Students will also take at least three additional courses from a set
approved by the relevant graduate program committee. Students may obtain a list
of those courses from the program office.
Students take a two course introductory sequence in two of the following
five fields.� The fields and required
courses are as follows:
Business and Public
Policy
ECO
6342 Economic Regulation of Business
POEC
7321 Seminar in Business and Government
Criminology
POEC
6300 Crime, Criminals and Societal Responses
POEC
6305 Law and Social Control
Development
POEC
6354 Theories and Issues of Development (Required), and:
Select
one of the following:
ECO
6364 Development Economics
POEC
6360 World Political Economy
POEC
6362 Political Development
POEC
6318 Population and Development
International Political
Economy
POEC
6360 World Political Economy
PSCI
5301 Proseminar in Democratization, Globalization and International Relations
Social Policy
SOC
6350 Social Stratification
POEC
7340 Domestic Social Policy
In certain cases, students may substitute alternative courses in a particular field
with the approval of the program director.
To advance to the dissertation stage of the program, students are evaluated
by the Program Committee based on (1) a Qualifying Examination in Methodology and
(2) a portfolio consisting of papers written in core and field courses:
This examination will evaluate the students� methodological skills in areas
covering probability, statistics, regression analysis and research design. The
exam will be graded by the Methods Examination Committee as Unsatisfactory,
Satisfactory or Excellent. The exam will be administered early in the fall semester
of a full time student�s third year, or the equivalent point in a part time
student�s career. A student receiving a grade of unsatisfactory may take the
exam for a second time at the end of the fall semester of the third year.
a) Two literature reviews written in the field survey courses;
b) Two empirical and/or methodological papers written in the core methods
courses;
c) One research design project
The program committee will review the portfolios annually, and advise
students of any deficiencies or potential problems. Upon completing the core
courses and achieving a grade of Satisfactory or Excellent on the Qualifying
Examination, the program committee will make a final evaluation of the
student�s total portfolio. The committee will assess whether the candidate�s
portfolio demonstrates the student has the skills and knowledge necessary to
attempt to write a dissertation. If all of the items in the portfolio are
satisfactory, the student is designated as doctoral level. Alternatively, the
committee could recommend remedial or additional work in a specific area and
specify a time frame for the completion of such work.� A
detailed discussion of the portfolio requirements can be found in the Public
Policy Advising Guide.� Students are
urged to read and make sure they understand what is expected of them. The
Advising Guide is available through the Public Policy and Political Economy
program office.
If, in the judgment of the committee, the student is not prepared to write a
dissertation or the student, the student will either �be asked to complete remedial work or will be designated
as Masters level. Receipt of a Masters level designation means the student is
not allowed to proceed to the doctoral stage. The student may continue taking
courses and may pursue one of the school�s Masters programs by completing the
appropriate degree requirements (see previous page).
Students must register for POEC 8398 Dissertation Seminar for a minimum of
one semester. The aim of the Dissertation Seminar is to assist students in the
formulation of a dissertation topic, and prepare a dissertation topic for
submission to a dissertation Committee and defense of the proposal before the
committee.
The student takes six to nine hours of additional coursework in one of the
field areas as defined above. The specific required courses are designated by
the faculty associated with that area of concentration and may be obtained from
the program office. Students may request to the Associate Dean of Graduate
Education that they be allowed to switch to a different field, however the
student would be required to begin with the two semester basic sequence unless
this requirement is waived. The student completes a dissertation in the area of
specialization and must successfully defend the dissertation before a duly
constituted dissertation committee, in accordance with the requirements of the
University and the UT System.
Students take free electives in areas of interest to fulfill the 90-hour PhD
requirement.
Ph.D. students should note that they are eligible to receive Master�s
degrees offered by the