Graduate & Professional Degrees

The Interprofessional Education Caregiving Certificate (IPECC) provides social work and health affairs students and professionals with interprofessional education and team-based care didactic and experiential experiences to prepare them to be collaborative practice ready with diverse caregivers. The certificate will enhance the health affairs workforce by preparing students and professionals to engage in interprofessional and interdisciplinary team-based care that is culturally responsive, evidence-based and trauma-informed. The certificate is geared toward health profession disciplines that will work in a myriad of health-related settings where they will provide team-based care with caregivers and their care recipient.  

Caregiving is an expected responsibility of an estimated 53 million Americans. The certificate will emphasize caregiving of the following vulnerable populations: older adults; veterans; individuals with chronic and life-threatening conditions; individuals with severe persistent mental illness; children and youth with special needs; victims of maltreatment, abuse, violence and exploitation; and immigrants and refugees. Health affairs students and professionals will learn and apply the core interprofessional education collaborative (IPEC) competencies to caregiving with vulnerable populations through a social justice and intercultural competence lens. Education incorporating social work values, concepts and methodologies is uniquely suited for interprofessional and interdisciplinary caregiving training. 

By the completion of the certificate, students and professionals will be able to understand and value contributions, roles and responsibilities of social work and allied health disciplines and professionals in caregiving and team-based care. In relation to caregiving and team-based care, students and professionals will collaborate with social work and allied health professionals, including those from nursing, pharmacy, dentistry, gerontology and medicine, and learn evidence-informed methods for engaging, assessing, treatment care planning and interventions with informal caregivers. They will be able to view and approach interprofessional practice through a social justice and intercultural competence lens. Students and professionals will be able to apply interprofessional team-based practice competencies to caregiving in general and particularly with vulnerable populations.

The graduate certificate in Interprofessional Education Caregiving requires a minimum of 12 units. 

Overview

The DMA in Jazz Studies consists of the following areas of study: the basic DMA curriculum, course work in the major, an academic field and two elective fields.

Degree Prerequisites

DMA applicants must complete the appropriate master of music degree program or its equivalent.

Admission

Admission to Thornton programs is granted through the USC admission process. Applicants are screened by appropriate faculty selection committees. Specific entrance requirements are reviewed on an annual basis and published online at music.usc.edu.

Grade Point Average Requirements

A minimum grade point average of 3.0 (A = 4.0) is required for all graduate course units in music. A grade of B or higher is required for all courses in the major field. For courses in academic and elective fields, the minimum passing grade is C.

Transfer Credit

The Degree Progress Department in the Office of Academic Records and Registrar determines whether course work taken elsewhere is available for transfer credit. A maximum of 30 units of transfer credit may be applied toward a doctoral degree in music. Whether such credit is applicable toward a specific requirement in a major or minor field is determined by the Thornton School department in which the subject is taught, pending approval by the dean of the Thornton School. Transfer credit petitions must be filed with the Thornton doctoral adviser during the first semester in residence. Transfer work must have been completed within 10 years of admission to the DMA program to be applied toward that degree.

Residence Requirement

A minimum of two years of full-time study beyond the Master of Music degree is required for the Doctor of Musical Arts. At least one year of full-time study beyond the master's degree (6 units or more per semester) must be in residence at USC.

Time Schedule

The time limit for completing the Doctor of Musical Arts degree is eight years. For students who earned an applicable master's degree within five years prior to admission to the doctoral program, the time limit for completing the Doctor of Musical Arts degree is six years. Progress is measured from the beginning of the first course at USC applied toward the degree. Extensions will be granted by petition to the Thornton School for only the most compelling reasons.

Music Graduate Entrance Exams

All students entering a graduate-level degree program (MA, MM, DMA and PhD) at USC Thornton, who have not previously completed a degree at USC Thornton, must take a series of entrance exams in core music subjects. These exams are called Music Graduate Entrance Exams (MGEEs). Information regarding which exams are required for specific majors is available from the Thornton Student Affairs office. Also see the Thornton School of MusicUSC Thornton School of Music section of this catalogue for specific policies relating to these exams.

Foreign Language

An academic reading knowledge of a language other than English is required of all Thornton doctoral students. This requirement can be met in any of the following ways:

• Completion of a prior degree, as verified on an official transcript, from an accredited institution of higher education at which the primary language of instruction is a language other than English.
• Completion of at least three semesters of college-level language instruction in a language other than English, as verified on an official transcript, at an accredited institution of higher education.
• Completion of one or more USC language course(s) (in a language other than English) as approved by the Thornton School.
• Earning a passing score on a written examination (in a language other than English) as approved by the Thornton School.

Departments within the Thornton School may require additional language skills. All language requirements must be fulfilled before entering the third semester in the program. Students who have engaged in extensive study of one or more languages other than English that does not meet this requirement as described above may request an exception.

Course Requirements

Each student is required to complete four areas of concentration: the major field, an academic field and two elective fields.

Required courses for each major curriculum are listed in the description of major programs below. Required courses for any academic or elective field are determined for their respective fields by the faculty advisers on a student's DMA guidance committee.

A minimum of 65 graduate units beyond the bachelor's degree are required to complete a DMA degree. Fifty-five or more units must be in music, 12 of these beyond the master's level must be in the major. At least 40 of these must be at the 500 level or higher. All course work earned under these requirements for a doctoral degree is considered to be obsolete after 10 years from the date of completion of such work and may not be used to fulfill degree requirements.

Academic and Elective Fields

For the academic field students must choose one from Musicology, Theory and Analysis, Music Teaching and Learning, Choral Music or Sacred Music. For the elective fields students will choose two fields from among 50 possible areas, including Composition, Performance, Early Music, Jazz Studies, Music Teaching and Learning, Choral Music, Sacred Music, Conducting, Pedagogy, Electroacoustic Media, Music Industry, as well as areas outside of music. The fields comprise courses that are determined by the department in which they are administered. Eight to 10 units are taken in the academic field. Six to 8 units are taken in each elective field. The academic field may not duplicate a major or an elective field. No more than two of the four fields of concentration may be under the guidance of the same department within the Thornton School of Music, and at least one of the elective fields must culminate in a substantial written paper or examination. Students must apply to their chosen fields. Admission to academic and elective fields is determined by the appropriate department, prior to the Graduate Committee Interview. Individualized programs of study will be created in each field in consultation with a faculty adviser in each area.

Graduate Committee Interview

Before the completion of 16 units beyond the master's degree and before permission to present the second doctoral recital is requested, doctoral students must meet with the Graduate Advisory Committee of the Thornton School of Music to discuss their progress in the program and their goals for the future. In preparation for this interview, students must prepare a dossier according to specific instructions available from the Thornton doctoral adviser. The committee determines the student's continuation in the program, and approves both the student's individualized curriculum (including all fields of concentration) and the members of his or her DMA guidance committee.

DMA Guidance Committee

The DMA guidance committee is composed of at least five members: two faculty members from the major department, one of whom will serve as chair, and a faculty member from each of the three other areas of concentration. At least three members of a committee must be full-time faculty of rank in the Thornton School. The composition of the DMA Guidance Committee is proposed and approved as part of the Graduate Committee Interview.

The guidance committee administers the written and oral parts of the comprehensive examination. The committee continues to serve until the comprehensive examination has been passed, the dissertation topic approved (if applicable) and the student is admitted to candidacy (if applicable). For students in curricula that require recitals, the two major field advisers serve as the recital committee and are responsible for determining the approved format, content, scheduling, and presentation of these performances for credit toward the requirements of the degree.

Comprehensive Examination

The comprehensive examination for the DMA is administered by the student's guidance committee. This examination consists of written and oral components and is designed to assess the student's mastery of his or her fields of concentration and readiness for professional independence as a performer, composer, teacher, researcher and/or scholar. The student must obtain permission from the guidance committee to take the comprehensive examination and schedule it at least two months in advance to ensure the committee's availability. The examination must be taken after completion of all required course work for all fields of concentration, except (in some cases) a limited number of the required units of Individual Instruction in the major field. In degree programs that require the presentation of four major recitals, at least two major recitals must be presented prior to the administration of the comprehensive examination. Up to two required recitals may be presented after the comprehensive examination. The dissertation (if required) must be written after the comprehensive examination. Comprehensive examinations will not be scheduled during summer sessions except under extraordinary circumstances and only with the written approval of members of the guidance committee. All portions of the examination must be completed within one month.

The comprehensive examination is comprised of a substantial culminative work for each field of concentration, as well as an oral examination with the student's guidance committee. The culminative work for each field may be a written examination, paper, project or recital, as appropriate for the particular field. For the academic field and at least one elective field, this culminative requirement must be a substantial written examination or paper. Following the successful completion of all culminative requirements and the approval of each by the corresponding faculty adviser, the student will sit for a two-hour oral examination with the guidance committee. This oral examination covers in greater depth the topics discussed in the written examinations and other requirements for the fields of concentration. The oral examination may also cover new material as determined by the guidance committee.

The two major field advisers and the academic field adviser must be present at the oral examination and render a judgment on the acceptability of the comprehensive examinations as a whole. It is highly preferable that the faculty advisers for the two elective fields participate in the oral examination with the other members of the guidance committee. If, however, there are challenges with scheduling or other issues that are reasonably unresolvable, the participation of the faculty advisers for elective fields is not required for the oral examination if they feel that the candidate has demonstrated knowledge and mastery of material that is appropriate for an elective field in their disciplines.

The examinations will be reported as passing if there is no more than one dissenting vote on the committee. A student must pass both the written and oral portions to pass the comprehensive examination. A pass on the examination cannot be made contingent upon any form of additional work.

If a student fails the comprehensive examination, the guidance committee may permit the student to repeat it once at a mutually satisfactory time within a period of not less than six months nor more than one year from the date of the first oral examination. A student may not take the comprehensive examination more than twice.

The comprehensive examination serves as the qualifying examination for programs that require a dissertation.

Overview

The MM in Jazz Studies is a two-year, 30-unit program, focusing on individual jazz instruction, jazz composition, jazz improvisation and ensembles, coupled with traditional music history. Two graduate recitals and a comprehensive review are required.

Admission

Admission to Thornton programs is granted through the USC admission process. Applicants are screened by appropriate faculty selection committees. Specific entrance requirements are reviewed on an annual basis and published online at music.usc.edu.

Unit and Grade Requirements

Students must complete at least 26 semester units at USC, including the thesis or recital. A grade point average of not less than 3.0 (A = 4.0) is required for all graduate courses in music, and a grade of B or higher is required for all courses in the major department. Students who transfer credits must achieve this average on all combined transferred and residence units.

Transferred Credits

All credits transferred must be the equivalent of corresponding current work at USC. Course work completed at another institution that has been approved by the Thornton School for transfer credit must have been completed within seven years from the date of admission to a master's degree program to be applied toward that degree. Transfer credit petitions must be filed with the appropriate Thornton adviser during the first semester in residence.

Time Limit

The time limit for completing the Master of Music degree is five years. Progress is measured from the beginning of the first course at USC applied toward the degree. Extensions will be granted by petition to the Thornton School for only the most compelling reasons.

Music Graduate Entrance Exams

All students entering a graduate-level degree program (MA, MM, DMA, PhD) at USC Thornton, who have not previously completed a degree at USC Thornton, must take a series of entrance exams in core music subjects. These exams are called Music Graduate Entrance Exams (MGEEs). Information regarding which exams are required for specific majors is available from the Thornton Student Affairs office. Also see the Thornton School of Music Admission to Graduate Standing section of this catalogue for specific policies relating to these exams. 

Master's Recital

Two public recitals are required of all candidates for the Master of Music degree Jazz Studies, as indicated below. Candidates must apply for recital dates, according to the current guidelines of the Music Operations office. Some departments require that a candidate be prepared to play or conduct the recital program for the approval of a faculty committee in advance.

Comprehensive Review

Candidates for the Master of Music must pass a comprehensive review toward the end of their course of study, usually in the final semester. This review, which is administered by the faculty of the major department, consists of an oral or written examination, covering relevant aspects of musical performance, literature and/or technique.

The Graduate Certificate in Jewish Studies is offered by the School of Religion in USC Dornsife College. It is designed to give students pursuing research in areas related to Jewish Studies (including Judaism as a religion, the history of Jews, Jewish thought, etc.) a solid grounding in the field, as well as mentorship from Jewish Studies faculty.

Students interested in pursuing the program should meet with the adviser to apply for the program and plan a course of study. In addition to taking relevant course work, candidates must include research on a topic related to Jewish Studies in their PhD dissertation projects (generally the PhD dissertation, though potentially an MA thesis depending on the program); or take a concluding qualifying oral exam based on three seminar or research papers written in conjunction with their Jewish Studies course work.

Completion of the certificate requires 16 units of course work, including REL 560 Colloquium in Jewish Studies and three additional courses that may be pre-approved courses or courses requiring prior approval from the adviser. After consultation and with prior approval, additional appropriate courses taught at USC and HUC-JIR may count toward the certificate. All certificate courses must be at the 500-level or above, and at least 50 percent of their content must focus on Jewish Studies. Students may apply no more than 4 units of 590 Directed Research.

The certificate program requires students to complete a 3-unit course in the summer and then complete 17 units during the fall semester, for a total of 20 units.

Studies toward the Master of Science in Journalism require 36 units of prescribed courses and approved electives in the student's field of study. No more than 12 units of 400-level course work may be applied toward the Master of Science in Journalism.

Students who earn a GPA of below 3.0 will be placed on academic probation and must improve according to established terms if they are to remain in the school. In the case of courses offered on Credit/No Credit (CR/NC) basis, faculty review of competence will be substituted for grades.

Residence

Students in the Master of Science in Journalism can complete the program in eleven months by enrolling in the seven-week summer immersion course and enrolling in 14 units in the fall and spring semesters. The School of Journalism will accept only 4 units of approved transferred graduate credit.

Students may waive JOUR 560 if they have taken a similar course at their undergraduate institution. A syllabus must be turned in and approved by the graduate director. 

Foreign Language/Research Tool Requirements

There is no foreign language or research tool requirement for the master's degree, but fluency in the English language is needed for success in the program.

Grammar, Spelling and Punctuation (GSP)

Journalism students are required to complete an online tutorial about Grammar, Spelling and Punctuation (GSP) and pass the GSP test before the end of the spring semester. Students who fail to complete the GSP tutorial and pass the test will not receive a degree from the School of Journalism.

Note: Students with disabilities may register with the Office of Student Accessibility Services (OSAS) so the OSAS staff can assess the nature of the students' disabilities and recommend the appropriate accommodations to be provided for each student.

Capstone Project

MS in Journalism students must enroll in JOUR 598 (4 units) in order to graduate. Completed projects are judged by a committee appointed by the director of the School of Journalism and degrees are conferred based on the committee's review.

Admission Requirements

Admission to the dual PharmD/JD program is competitive, and involves meeting admission requirements and gaining acceptance to both the School of Pharmacy and the law school. Students will not be given special consideration for admission to either program because they are applying for the dual degree. Students that have a baccalaureate degree may apply to the dual PharmD/JD degree program in two ways. First, they may apply at the time they submit their PharmD application by concurrently submitting applications to both schools. Students who elect this approach must identify themselves on their PharmD applications as potential dual PharmD/JD degree students. Students who are admitted to both schools will be offered admission to the dual degree contingent on passing all courses in their first year of the PharmD with a minimum 3.0 GPA.

Students pursuing the dual PharmD/JD degree must notify the law school in a timely fashion that they will be enrolling in the dual PharmD/JD degree program and will not matriculate at the law school until the following year. Students who are accepted only by one school may choose to attend that school but will not be eligible for the dual degree. Second, students can apply to the dual degree by submitting an application to the law school during their first year of enrollment in the PharmD program prior to the law school's published application deadline. Students who elect this approach must apply through the School of Pharmacy. Students admitted to the law school using this approach would be offered admission to the dual degree contingent on passing all courses in their first year of the PharmD with a minimum 3.0 GPA. See the admissions section of the School of Pharmacy and the law school for specific requirements.

Degree Requirements

The professions of pharmacy and law are distinctly different, yet pharmacists are often involved in legal issues and lawyers frequently deal with pharmacy, drug, health care, product development and toxin-related matters. This dual degree program provides qualified students with an efficient mechanism for obtaining the expertise and professional credentials that will enable them to develop professional practices that bring together expertise in both areas.

Overall Requirements

A student is required to complete all work for both degrees within six years of the date of matriculation at the School of Pharmacy (PharmD) and five years of matriculation at the law school (JD). The entire dual degree program will take six years to complete. Dual degree students will be allowed to use 12 units of approved JD course work (elective or required) to meet 12 units of PharmD electives and 12 units of approved PharmD course work (elective or required) to meet 12 units of JD electives. A faculty qualifying exam committee will determine the exact program for each student, including the appropriateness of courses in one program used to meet elective requirements for the other program. A total of 212 units is required for the dual degree.

PharmD Requirements

Dual degree students must successfully complete 148 units of PharmD and acceptable JD units to receive the PharmD degree. The 148 units must include 136 units of required and elective pharmacy course work plus 12 units of JD course work deemed acceptable to meet PharmD elective requirements. Dual degree students should graduate with their PharmD degrees at the completion of the first semester of the sixth academic year of the dual degree program. Students will be eligible to sit for the Pharmacy Board Exams after completion of the PharmD degree requirements. However, dual degree students will not actually be awarded their PharmD degrees until they complete requirements for both degrees.

Juris Doctor Requirements

Dual degree students must successfully complete 88 units of JD and acceptable PharmD course work during the second to sixth years of the dual degree program to receive the JD degree. The 88 units must be composed of 76 units of JD course work, including satisfaction of the upper-division writing requirement and any other substantive requirements, plus 12 units of PharmD course work deemed acceptable to meet JD elective requirements. No JD credit will be awarded for PharmD course work completed prior to matriculation in the law school. Students cannot receive the JD degree under requirements for the dual degree program without prior or simultaneous completion of the PharmD degree.

Both professions require passing a state board or bar exam to practice the respective professions. Neither of these degrees requires a thesis or comprehensive final exam.

Recommended Program

PharmD/JD dual degree students will begin with the first year of the PharmD curriculum (36 units). During the second year, students will take the first year law core (30 units), plus 3–5 PharmD units. Due to the rigor of the law school core, pharmacy courses during the first year of law school are limited to non-science courses. The third through fifth years of the program focus on PharmD courses with sufficient law courses to maintain students' educational momentum in law. Students should complete their PharmD requirements during the fall of their sixth year of the program and their law course work also during the sixth year. Students must complete both degree requirements by the end of the sixth year of the program.
 

Application deadline (for PhD): December 1

The Political Science and International Relations program and the USC Gould School of Law jointly offer a dual degree program leading to the JD/PhD degree. Applicants must apply to the Political Science and International Relations program and the law school and meet the requirements for admission to both. 

In the first year students take 30 units of course work in the law school exclusively. The second and third years include a total of 40 units of courses in political science and international relations and 46 units of law. To earn the JD, all students (including dual degree students) must complete 37 numerically graded law units at USC after the first year. Students must complete a five-course core theory and methodology sequence. They must include a classics-oriented, two-semester political, social, comparative and international theory sequence (currently POIR 600), a multivariate statistics course (such as POIR 611) and a philosophies/methodologies in social inquiry course (POIR 610). Finally in their second, third or fourth year, they must take an approved advanced research methods course.

To obtain a PhD in Political Science and International Relations, students must pass the screening process. After the completion of required field course work with a grade of B or better, a substantive paper or USC MA thesis relevant to the program, students must take a PhD qualifying examination in two of their three fields of concentration. The third field will be completed by taking at least three courses and passing each with a grade of B or better. The final requirement, following successful completion of the qualifying examination, is a doctoral dissertation.

Students must complete 24 units in the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts, and Science Department of Philosophy and 76 units in the USC Gould School of Law.

First Year: Required law school curriculum.

Second and Third Years: The Department of Philosophy prefers that students take at least one philosophy course each semester. During the four semesters, students must take at least 16 units at the 500 level, including PHIL 450 The Limits of Logic or PHIL 510 Philosophical Logic and PHIL 500 Introduction to Contemporary Philosophical Literature and PHIL 503 Introduction to Contemporary Philosophical Literature on Value; one 400- or 500-level course in ethics or social/political philosophy or aesthetics or philosophy of law; one 400- or 500-level course in metaphysics or epistemology or philosophy of language or philosophy of science or philosophy of mind; one 400- or 500-level course in the history of ancient or early modern philosophy; passage of the second year review, which shall include a research paper based on a completed seminar paper and completion of a publishable research paper. Students must also complete 46 additional law units.

The Marshall School of Business in conjunction with the USC Gould School of Law offers a program leading to the degrees of Juris Doctor/Master of Business Administration.

Application

Applicants to this program must apply to both schools individually and take both the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) or the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) and the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). Applicants should apply either simultaneously to both programs or during the first year in the USC Gould School of Law. Certification for eligibility for the dual degree program must be provided by the Law School prior to admission to the dual degree program by the Marshall School of Business.

Program Requirements

The total number of units required for the MBA portion of the program is 48. Dual degree program students may not count courses taken outside the Marshall School of Business toward the 48 units.

The total number of Law units required for the JD portion of the program is 76. Further requirements are detailed in the JD Student Handbook. Dual degree program students may not count courses taken outside the Gould School of Law toward the 76 units.

First Year: Required Law School courses.

Second Year: Required MBA courses and graduate business electives.

Third and Fourth Years: Law courses sufficient to bring the total units completed in the Gould School of Law to at least 76 and graduate business electives sufficient to bring the total units completed in the Marshall School of Business to at least 48.

The JD and MBA degrees are awarded simultaneously upon completion of all program requirements.

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