Overview
The Caspersen School is devoted to advanced study in the humanities. In particular, it has developed scholarly traditions in English literature, modern history and literature, religion and literature, religion and society, liturgical studies, theological and philosophical studies, historical studies, women's studies, arts and letters, and medical humanities. Its programs leading to the M.A., M.Litt., M.M.H., M.Phil., D.Litt., D.M.H., and Ph.D. degrees are all designed to encourage a high concern for disciplinary interaction. Its faculty and student body represent a wide variety of points of view, a diversity of ethnic and cultural identities, and many different vocational pursuits.
Students who form the highly select student body are most often persons possessed of a strong sense of the value of well-disciplined scholarly pursuit. They are sufficiently secure in their own self-consciousness that they are able to enter into colloquy without feeling intimidated. In research, they are able to employ diverse methods as they are appropriate to distinct academic tasks. They are capable of doing their research without constant direction from others. In general, they are a serious but happy lot who like their work and enjoy the camaraderie of student and faculty life.
Since 1912 graduate study has had a distinguished history at Drew. A significant part of the national and international reputation of the Theological School derived first, in fact, from the lives and work of those who earned degrees at Drew and who later taught in graduate programs. In 1955 the Graduate School was established to take responsibility for graduate studies in religion and in new graduate programs based upon recognized strengths of the College of Liberal Arts and Theological School faculties, and resources of the University Library. In 1999, to honor the generous gift made by Dr. Barbara Caspersen (G'86, '90) and Finn Caspersen, the school was renamed the Caspersen School of Graduate Studies.
The founding of the Graduate School was seen as a very particular, purposeful blending of a strong commitment to education in the humanities along with a realistic recognition that our resources would enable us to carry on high quality work in a sharply limited number of areas. There are tasks that we do not undertake. What we do offer is cast in an uncompromising dedication to excellence.
Students attend the Caspersen School for many reasons. Some are primarily concerned with their own cultural enrichment. Far more see their work here as preparation for careers in teaching, ministry, public service, human relations, or writing.
Major characteristics of the Caspersen School are its size and style. From the beginning it has determined to remain small. A small number of programs, a small faculty, and a small student body make possible the development of close personal and scholarly ties. Style is not easy to define. The style of the Caspersen School grows out of its patterns of tutorial and seminar instruction, its small classes, the spirit of the Thompson Graduate Commons Room, and the vitality of the Graduate Student Association.
The Caspersen School 's interdisciplinary rather than departmental emphasis appears at every level, formally and informally. While in most graduate programs students concentrate their course work and research in narrow areas of study to develop expertise in highly specialized fields, Drew's goal is to produce broadly educated people who have expertise in a field of thought but who are also articulate in a range of disciplines. Thus, students from one discipline are conversant with students and faculty from other areas.
The Graduate Student Association, with a steering committee composed of representatives from all program areas, schedules events that are socially and intellectually interdisciplinary. Similarly, students are encouraged to cross-register for classes outside of their own areas, and it is not unusual for a student to take a comprehensive examination in a field outside of his or her major field.
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Accreditation
The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools has accorded Drew University full accreditation, and the Theological School is accredited additionally by the Association of Theological Schools in the United States and Canada. All University programs are accredited by the University Senate of the United Methodist Church.
The University is a member of the American Council on Education, the Council of Graduate Schools, the National Association of Schools and Colleges of the United Methodist Church, Association of American Colleges, Middle States Association, National and New Jersey Associations of Independent Colleges and Universities, Council for Advancement and Support of Education, Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, Research and Development Council of New Jersey, Phi Beta Kappa, and other regional and national organizations.
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The University Library
Library collections and services are housed in a spacious complex that includes the Rose Memorial building and the Learning Center, which also houses the Lena C. Coburn Media Resource Center. Across the courtyard is the national United Methodist Archives and History Center administered by the United Methodist Commission on Archives and History.
The library provides reference assistance, instruction in use of the library, and individual guidance to students. The library employs an open-stack system, which permits users direct access to the collection. An online catalog is accessible to all users of the campus intranet.
The collection includes some 558,000 bound volumes, more than 378,000 microforms, and about 2,700 periodical subscriptions in paper form. The library also provides a wide and growing range of electronic resources including full-text sources and access to more than 10,000 periodical titles by way of electronic database subscriptions. Since 1939, the library has been a selective depository for U.S. government publications and it also collects the official documents of the United Nations and the state of New Jersey. There are over 400,000 documents in the collection.
A substantial reference collection specializes in bibliographies that enable users to tap the library resources of the whole New York-New Jersey region. Periodical holdings-American and international -span numerous subject fields. A special collection of chemistry reference materials and periodicals, for use in conjunction with laboratories and research, is housed in the Hall of Sciences.
The library houses numerous special collections, including the University archives and the Methodist Center. The University archives maintains selective files which document the history of the University and its three schools. An extensive photograph collection provides researchers with historical and current images of the University. The Methodist Center contains one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of Methodist materials in the world and is a rich repository for primary source documents and artifacts on religious and cultural history of England and America in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
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Academic Program
The course of study in the Caspersen School includes seminars, lecture courses, tutorial work, special lectures, colloquia, foreign language use, comprehensive examinations (Ph.D.), and a thesis or dissertation with an oral defense. The student's program is under the joint supervision of an appointed faculty adviser and the dean of the Caspersen School.
As scholars-in-training, students in the Caspersen School are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic honesty and scholarly integrity. Students are strongly advised to consult the statements concerning academic standards and responsibilities set forth in the Regulations of the Caspersen School which are available in the Caspersen School Dean's Office.
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Degrees Awarded
The Master of Arts Degree
Course Requirements
Six courses (18 credits) are required for the Master of Arts degree. The normal course load for full-time study is three courses per semester. Up to two courses of master's degree work taken at another institution may be counted toward the course requirements at Drew on recommendation by the area concerned and approval by the Committee on Academic Standing and Curriculum.
All requirements for the M.A. degree must be completed within a period of five years.
Students accepted into an M.A. program on the basis of their general ability, but whose prior preparation in their fields of study is deficient, may be required to complete additional course work preparatory to or beyond the one full year of course work at the master's level normally required.
Language Requirements
One foreign language is required for all M.A. programs.
Thesis and Oral Examination
A thesis demonstrating the ability to organize and creatively interpret material in the major field is required of all M.A. candidates. In all areas, an oral examination over the thesis and the student's program of study as a whole is required. The completed thesis must be deposited with the registrar no later than May 1.
Translation to Ph.D. Candidacy
Students admitted to candidacy for the M.A. degree may petition their area for translation to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree in the same area. However, this translation is neither automatic nor guaranteed. All areas require the petitioner to be considered as a new applicant along with other applicants. Students petitioning for the translation must have satisfied the M.A. language requirement and demonstrated superior academic ability by at least one semester of full-time course work.
The Terminal Master of Arts (M.A.) from Ph.D. Candidacy
A Terminal Master of Arts degree may be conferred in all areas if, in the judgment of the Committee on Academic Standing, a student's doctoral candidacy is no longer sustainable.
- The student's area may recommend to the Committee on Academic Standing and Curriculum that the student be given terminal M.A. status.
- The Committee on Academic Standing and Curriculum may initiate the action itself in consultation with the area and student involved.
- The student may request the area to recommend the action.
- The requirements for the terminal M.A. shall be:
- Completion of six courses with a grade point average of 3.0 or better. The thesis tutorial (3 credits) may be included as one of these courses.
- A successful demonstration of a scholar's reading competence in an approved foreign language. This condition may be modified at the discretion of the area and with the approval of the Committee on Academic Standing and Curriculum.
- A thesis of 50-100 pages of scholarly research.
- Students given terminal M.A. status and/or receiving a terminal M.A. shall not be eligible to apply for admission to a Ph.D. program in the Caspersen School.
The Master of Philosophy Degree
The degree Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.) is awarded, upon application, to candidates for the Doctor of Philosophy degree who have completed all of the degree requirements except those relating directly to the dissertation and have been judged qualified to proceed to the dissertation.
The Master of Philosophy degree is not a distinct degree in course. There is no candidacy for this degree apart from matriculation in the Ph.D. program.
The Master of Letters Degree
See Course Listings.
The Doctor of Letters Degree
See Course Listings.
The Master of Medical Humanities Degree
See Course Listings.
The Doctor of Medical Humanities Degree
See Course Listings.
The Doctor of Philosophy Degree
Residence Requirements
The residence requirement for the Ph.D. degree is defined as at least three years of full-time study of which two or two-and-one-half are normally spent in course work and the third in preparation of the dissertation. During the dissertation year, the student registers for Dissertation Research (course number 999). Students may petition to have work taken at other institutions accepted for advanced standing toward the residence requirements, in accordance with the Regulations of the Caspersen School.
Language Requirements
Two foreign languages are required in all areas except the American religion and culture track in the theological and religious studies area.
Comprehensive Examinations
Resident study in the doctoral program leads to a series of intensive examinations in several aspects of the field of concentration. Areas of examination vary according to the field of study. The examination subjects, chosen by the student in consultation with the faculty adviser, must be submitted, with the endorsement of the area, through the Caspersen School office, for approval by the Committee on Academic Standing and Curriculum well in advance of the anticipated time of writing. Examinations are administered three times during the year - August, January, and April - and are normally taken at the completion of the two years of residence course work.
Prospectus
Although a student may begin informal exploration of possible dissertation subjects at any time, the prospectus is not submitted until the student has completed all the comprehensive examinations. The student must have a constituted dissertation committee before seeking approval of the prospectus.
Dissertation
A dissertation demonstrating the student's ability to perform and creatively interpret advanced research is an essential requirement of the doctorate and ordinarily is done in the third full year of residence. The student should allow at least a year of full-time work for his/her dissertation.
Dissertation Committee
A dissertation committee of three is selected by the student and the professor most likely to be the dissertation chair. If the area approves the committee, it is sent to the dean of the Caspersen School for final approval. The student prepares the prospectus and the dissertation in consultation with the committee.
Final Reading and Oral Examination
The student submits three copies of the dissertation in final form to the administrative assistant, who forwards the copies to the dissertation committee for the final reading. If the three members of the dissertation committee agree that the dissertation is ready for examination, the administrative assistant proceeds to make arrangements for an oral defense. If the committee does not agree that the dissertation is ready for defense, it gives the student directions for changes. For May commencement, the deadline for submission to the committee is the last Friday of April; for October graduation, September 15.
After the oral defense, the committee, by majority vote, judges the dissertation and defense as Pass with distinction, Pass, Pass with major revisions, Fail, or final Fail.
A 350-word abstract of the dissertation is to be submitted in three copies no later than the time of the oral defense.
Degree Conferral Requirements
For the degree to be conferred, the student must 1) submit to the Caspersen School office two copies of the dissertation, which fully comply with the Regulations of the Caspersen School and the "Dissertation Guidelines"; 2) sign the contract with University Microfilms for microfilming the dissertation and including the abstract in Dissertation Abstracts; 3) pay all fees. At the time of this catalog publication, the microfilming charge is $55; the optional copyright service is $45.
Time Limits
All requirements for the Ph.D. degree must be completed within a period of seven years.
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