New Curriculum Pathway

The Program Pathway below provides a guide for PhD students through their graduate education in Cultural Anthropology. You'll find a typical coursework plan, milestone examinations and a list of action items, broken down by year. 

Year 1

Coursework & Service:

see Coursework Requirements and Departmental Service for more information

Milestone:

• Comprehensive Theories Exam (late April); see Milestones

Other:

• By mid-January — Begin IRB process for summer research
• By mid-March — Apply for Summer Research Fellowship; see Summer Funding, Internal Fellowships and Grants
• By late March — Submit Plan of Study; see Plan of Study
• By late April — Complete IRB process for Summer Research
• By late April — Identify at least one committee member; see Committee Requirements & Registration

Summer Term:

• Preliminary Fieldwork
• Preliminary preparation for reading lists (reading for lists does not need to begin in Summer)

Year 2

Coursework & Service:

see Coursework Requirements and Departmental Service for more information

Milestone:

• Preliminary Exam (April); see Milestones

Other:

• By first day of Fall semester — Submit Summer Field Report; see Summer Field Reports
• By end of Fall semester — Complete critical review essay for first (of two) reading lists; see Milestones
• By end of Fall semester — Identify remainder of Ph.D. committee; see Committee Requirements & Registration
• By mid-January — Begin IRB process for summer research
• By late January — Apply for graduation in DukeHub to receive en passant M.A. after successful completion of Preliminary Exam; see En Passant M.A.
• By Spring break — Finalize date and time for Preliminary Exam; see Milestones
• By mid-March — Apply for Summer Research Fellowship; see Summer Funding, Internal Fellowships and Grants
• By late-March — Submit Plan of Study; see Plan of Study
• By late April — Complete IRB process for Summer Research
• By end of Spring semester — Complete critical review essay for second (of two) reading lists; see Milestones

Summer Term:

• Preliminary Fieldwork in preparation for Grant Writing in Fall

Year 3

Coursework & Service:

see Coursework Requirements and Departmental Service for more information

Milestone:

• Dissertation Proposal Workshop (November or early December); see Milestones

Other:

• By first day of Fall semester — Submit Summer Field Report; see Summer Field Reports
• By early September — Begin IRB process for dissertation research
• By Fall break — finalize date and time for Dissertation Proposal Workshop; see Milestones
• By mid-November — Apply for Summer Research Fellowship; see Summer Funding, Internal Fellowships and Grants
• By mid-November — Apply for internal dissertation fieldwork grants; Internal Fellowships and Grants
• Varying deadlines in November, December — Apply for external dissertation fieldwork grants
• By late November — Complete IRB process for dissertation research
• By end of Fall semester, at least two weeks prior to Portfolio Review — Expand grant applications into Dissertation Proposal; see Milestones
• By end of Fall semester, at least two weeks prior to Portfolio Review — Create a syllabus for a class you could teach; see Milestones
• By late March — Submit Plan of Study; see Plan of Study
• Varying deadlines — Apply for second round of external grant applications for dissertation fieldwork

Summer Term:

• Begin Dissertation Fieldwork (early January)

Year 4

Coursework & Service if staying in the field two semesters:

Coursework & Service if staying in the field three semesters:

see Coursework Requirements and Departmental Service for more information

Other:

• By mid-November — Apply for Summer Research Fellowship; see Summer Funding, Internal Fellowships and Grants
• By late-March — Submit Plan of Study; see Plan of Study

Summer Term:

• Dissertation research (if staying in the field 3 semesters)
• Students returning in the Fall of Year 5 are expected to continue research through the end of July at the earliest

Year 5

Coursework & Service:

see Coursework Requirements and Departmental Service for more information

Other:

• IMPORTANT: If defending your dissertation, review the Dissertation & Defense section of Milestones by the start of the semester in which you intend to defend, and follow the procedures and timeline provided there.
• By mid-November — Apply for Summer Research Fellowship; see Summer Funding, Internal Fellowships and Grants
• By mid-November — Apply for 6th year funding; see Internal Fellowships and Grants
• By early October — Confer with DGS and DUS to teach a course Summer Term; see Summer Funding
• Varying Spring deadlines — Apply for 6th year funding; see Internal Fellowships and Grants
• By late-March — Submit Plan of Study; see Plan of Study

Summer Term:

• Continue dissertation write-up 

Years 6+

Coursework & Service:

see Coursework Requirements and Departmental Service for more information

Other:

• IMPORTANT: If defending your dissertation, review the Dissertation & Defense section of Milestones by the start of the semester in which you intend to defend, and follow the procedures and timeline provided there.
• By early October — Optional: confer with DGS and DUS to teach a course Summer Term
• By mid-November — If not defending by Spring, apply for Summer Research Fellowship; see Summer Funding
• By mid-November — If not defending by Spring, apply for 7th year funding; see Internal Fellowships and Grants
• Varying Spring deadlines — If not defending by Spring, apply for 7th year funding; see Internal Fellowships and Grants
• By mid March — 7th year students, if not defending by Spring, submit a Memorandum of Understanding to the Graduate School.
• By late-March — Submit Plan of Study; see Plan of Study

Summer Term:

• If not defending by Spring, Continue dissertation write-up