Art Education
College of Arts and Architecture
School of Visual Arts
The Candidacy Examination provides an opportunity for you and the members of your temporary committee to reflect upon your work to date, to discuss the direction of your research, and to discuss future course work that will support your research direction. Therefore you should schedule your candidacy examination before the end of your first year of graduate study.
The Candidacy Packet is prepared and distributed to members of your temporary committee at least two weeks prior to the examination and should include:
- A current C.V.
- A current statement of research interests and directions
- Plan of study showing course work taken to date of candidacy and planned course work
- Examples of scholarly work from Penn State. This could include papers written for classes, CD-ROMs, slides of artworks, videos, etc. (Note: It is not necessary to revise these papers for the purpose of the candidacy exam.) If your packet consists primarily of examples of scholarship in forms other than writing, include a preface reflecting upon the way in which the alternative media were chosen and how they relate to your research plan. All of these materials should be bound together in a convenient format and one copy must be given to each member of your temporary committee. If you have any questions about putting together your candidacy packet, please consult with the chair of your temporary committee and your committee members.
The Candidacy Examination itself will be a two-hour oral examination addressing the scope and quality of the materials presented and the proposed research questions. The examination should be scheduled for when you and all the members of your temporary committee are available. Scheduling the examination is your responsibility and should be done well in advance of the anticipated date of the examination. Remember that faculty members have other commitments and responsibilities so the farther in advance you can schedule your examination, the easier the scheduling process will be. Once you have scheduled your examination, the Art Education Office staff can assist with reserving a room for the examination.
After passing the Candidacy Exam you become a candidate for the Ph.D. degree. You will receive a letter from the chair of your temporary committee that outlines any recommendations that the committee has for you as you continue your doctoral study.
With the passing of the Candidacy Examination, your temporary committee is dissolved and you can begin the process of choosing your permanent doctoral committee. Your doctoral committee must consist of at least four members of the graduate faculty. The chair of your committee (also your thesis advisor) must be a member of the art education graduate faculty. Typically the committee consists of two additional art education faculty members and must include one graduate faculty member from outside the School of Visual Arts. Your permanent doctoral committee plays an integral role in your doctoral research. Therefore, you should make an effort to talk to art education faculty members about your research interests during the period between passing the candidacy examination and choosing your permanent committee.