Ph.D. Candidacy

Students admitted with a B.A. only are evaluated by the graduate faculty during the Autumn Quarter of their second year at Stanford. The evaluation is based on written work and at least a portion of the M.A. thesis or translation. If the faculty has serious doubts about a student's ability to work for the Ph.D., they will convey this to the student. During the subsequent Spring Quarter, the faculty formally decides whether a student should be admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. or be terminated. In the case of a student who already has an M.A. in Chinese or Japanese when admitted to the department, the evaluation takes place in the Spring Quarter of the student's first year. If a student goes to the Taipei or Yokohama centers during his or her first two years, the department will consider an extension for admission to candidacy. The timing of the evaluation of a student admitted with an M.A. in East Asian Studies is decided on an individual basis. Admission to candidacy does not mean that the student has fulfilled all requirements for the degree except the dissertation, but that the department faculty consider the student qualified to pursue a program of study leading to the Ph.D. and that, subject to continued satisfactory progress, the student's status in this department is secure.

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