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Program Requirements for Management (MS and PhD)

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2022-2023 academic year.

Management

John E. Anderson School of Management

Graduate Degrees

The John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Management, the Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree, the Master of Financial Engineering (M.F.E.) degree and the Master of Science in Business Analytics (M.S.B.A.) degree. In addition, there are a number of degree programs, offered in cooperation with other graduate and professional degree programs on campus, that lead to the M.B.A. and another degree. The school also offers the Executive M.B.A. Program (EMBA) and the M.B.A. for the Fully Employed (FEMBA).

Master of Science and Doctoral Program

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

There is currently no separate M.S. degree program. Doctoral students may earn a M.S. degree on their way toward their Ph.D. Students are advised by their area liaison and doctoral faculty adviser. The overall adviser of the program is the Senior Associate Dean, M.S./Ph.D. programs.

Students are required to submit Proposal of Study forms by the end of their second quarter. These forms list the courses students expect to take to fulfill the requirements of the program. The M.S./Ph.D. Program Office conducts a quarterly review of student progress, based on study forms and transcripts. Students who are having scholastic difficulty or who are not making sufficient progress are asked to discuss their situation with the Senior Associate Dean. All conversations with the Senior Associate Dean relating to progress are documented; copies are sent to the student’s adviser, and records are kept in the student’s file in the M.S./Ph.D. Programs Office.

Areas of Study

M.S. students are not required to select a major field. They may choose a broad selection of courses or any combination of courses from the following fields: Accounting; Behavioral Decision Making; Decisions, Operations and Technology Management; Finance; Global Economics and Management; Management and Organizations; Marketing; Strategy.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

A total of nine courses (and 36 units) are required for the M.S. degree under the Capstone and Thesis Plans. All courses must be at the graduate 200 level, and taken for letter grades. At least six courses must be in Management. The remaining three courses are elective, which may be 200-level courses in Management, or 200-level in a closely related discipline, e.g. Economics.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

The capstone plan culminates with a comprehensive examination, which is the same comprehensive examination administered to Ph.D. students after their second year of study.

This Ph.D. comprehensive exam is graded pass/fail, but the “fail” is broken into two subsets:

  1. M.S. pass. This is a comprehensive exam that is not of a quality to count as a pass for the Ph.D. exam, but is of a quality to count as a pass for the M.S. capstone.
  2. Fail. Not of a quality to count for a M.S. capstone.

Thesis Plan

Every master’s degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research.

The thesis must be finished within one year after all required course work is completed. A student lacking a strong prerequisite background nominates a thesis committee by the fifth quarter of study and presents a proposal for committee approval at the beginning of the sixth quarter.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree: six quarters.

DEGREE NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters) NORMATIVE TTD

MAXIMUM TTD
M.S. 6 6 7

Doctoral Degree

Advising

New doctoral students are initially advised by the doctoral adviser for their particular academic area. Students are urged to establish a working relationship with one or two faculty members early in their studies. Students are expected to have a close working relationship with at least one faculty member by the end of their first year in the program. Students are free to change their adviser whenever they wish during the course of their progress through the program. The overall adviser is the Senior Associate Dean, M.S./Ph.D. programs.

First-year students are reviewed by their respective academic areas following the spring quarter of their first year in the program. First-year grades and faculty evaluations are used in the review process. A final, written evaluation is forwarded to the Doctoral Program Office and is kept in the student’s file.

By the end of the first year in the program, students are required to submit Proposal of Study forms, which must be approved by the Senior Associate Dean. These forms list course work students plan to take to satisfy the program requirements. The Doctoral Program Office conducts a quarterly review of student progress based on program deadlines, study forms and transcripts. For students who are having scholastic difficulty, who appear not to be making sufficient progress, or who are approaching a program deadline, the major field adviser is contacted. The Senior Associate Dean, in consultation with the adviser, determines what action should be taken. A copy of all correspondence between the Senior Associate Dean, the student, and/or the student’s adviser is maintained in the student’s file.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Accounting; Behavioral Decision Making; Decisions, Operations and Technology Management; Finance; Global Economics and Management; Management and Organizations; Marketing; Strategy.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Research Preparation Requirement. The research preparation requirement consists of two parts: (1) a course requirement and (2) a research paper. Students are required to take five research courses which are not part of the major field area classes taught in the John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management. These courses must be at least 4 units, and letter-graded. These courses must be completed before taking the oral qualifying examination and may not be waived by prior graduate work. A summer research paper must be submitted to and accepted by the student’s faculty mentor before the start of Fall Quarter of the second year of study.

Breadth Requirement. The breadth requirement consists of eight courses which are clearly outside the major field area. These courses must be at least 4 units, and letter graded. Students should use these courses to become more knowledgeable about the basic elements of several other management disciplines and functional areas or to define a minor field of research and teaching proficiency. Three of these courses may be waived by prior course work from a previously earned master’s degree. They must be completed before taking the oral qualifying examination.

Each of the eight academic areas have a different list of required major field courses (most of which are letter-graded, with the exception of workshops/seminars, which are S/U-graded) that is designed to prepare the student to pass the major field examination. In consultation with a major field adviser, this course of study may be modified on a case-by-case basis.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program. 

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Proficiency in the major field area is determined by a written examination, supplemented in some areas by an oral examination. The major field examination must be passed before the start of Fall Quarter of the third year of study.

Students are required to present the substance of their dissertation proposal in a formal seminar to which all Ph.D. students and faculty are invited.

When all the preliminary requirements have been fulfilled (course work, research paper, major field examination, seminar), students are eligible to take the University Oral Qualifying Examination and, if passed, to be advanced to candidacy. The oral qualifying examination must be passed and the student advanced to candidacy before the start of fall quarter of the student’s fourth year of study.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy and awarded the Candidate in Philosophy (C.Phil.) degree upon completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

The program is designed to take five years (15 quarters) from graduate admission to awarding of the degree. Completion of the degree cannot exceed seven and one-half years (23 quarters). Normative time-to-degree is 15 quarters.

DEGREE NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters) NORMATIVE TTD

MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D. 9 15 23

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

M.S. Program
The decision to recommend academic disqualification is made by the Senior Associate Dean in consultation with the faculty in the student’s area of specialization. A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification through a request to the Dean of the school to appoint a faculty committee to review it. The Dean decides whether such action is warranted.

Ph.D. Program
A student may be recommended for academic disqualification for any of the following reasons:

  1. As a result of conclusions of the major field area faculty’s first-year review.
  2. Failure to complete the first year summer paper before Fall Quarter of the second year of study.
  3. Failure to pass major field examinations, which are administered during the first and second years of study.
  4. Failure to pass the area comprehensive exam before Fall Quarter of the third year of study.
  5. Failure to pass the oral qualifying exam and advance to candidacy before Fall Quarter of the fourth year of study.

The minimum standard of performance of the school exceeds the University’s minimum grade point average of 3.00. In particular, if a student receives two or more grades of B, or if Incomplete grades are not removed within one quarter, the student’s record indicates serious scholastic deficiencies that require review by the appropriate academic unit and may be the basis for a recommendation for academic disqualification.

A student is given written notification of approaching deadlines. All deadlines are determined by the date of entry into the program.

The decision to recommend academic disqualification is made by the Senior Associate Dean in consultation with the faculty in the student’s area of specialization. A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification through a request to the Dean of the Doctoral Program and the UCLA Graduate Division.

Program Requirements for Management (MS and PhD)

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2023-2024 academic year.

Management

John E. Anderson School of Management

Graduate Degrees

The John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Management, the Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree, the Master of Financial Engineering (M.F.E.) degree and the Master of Science in Business Analytics (M.S.B.A.) degree. In addition, there are a number of degree programs, offered in cooperation with other graduate and professional degree programs on campus, that lead to the M.B.A. and another degree. The school also offers the Executive M.B.A. Program (EMBA) and the M.B.A. for the Fully Employed (FEMBA).

Master of Science and Doctoral Program

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

There is currently no separate M.S. degree program. Doctoral students may earn a M.S. degree on their way toward their Ph.D. Students are advised by their area liaison and doctoral faculty adviser. The overall adviser of the program is the Senior Associate Dean, M.S./Ph.D. programs.

Students are required to submit Proposal of Study forms by the end of their second quarter. These forms list the courses students expect to take to fulfill the requirements of the program. The M.S./Ph.D. Program Office conducts a quarterly review of student progress, based on study forms and transcripts. Students who are having scholastic difficulty or who are not making sufficient progress are asked to discuss their situation with the Senior Associate Dean. All conversations with the Senior Associate Dean relating to progress are documented; copies are sent to the student’s adviser, and records are kept in the student’s file in the M.S./Ph.D. Programs Office.

Areas of Study

M.S. students are not required to select a major field. They may choose a broad selection of courses or any combination of courses from the following fields: Accounting; Behavioral Decision Making; Decisions, Operations and Technology Management; Finance; Global Economics and Management; Management and Organizations; Marketing; Strategy.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

A total of nine courses (and 36 units) are required for the M.S. degree under the Capstone and Thesis Plans. All courses must be at the graduate 200 level, and taken for letter grades. At least six courses must be in Management. The remaining three courses are elective, which may be 200-level courses in Management, or 200-level in a closely related discipline, e.g. Economics.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

The capstone plan culminates with a comprehensive examination, which is the same comprehensive examination administered to Ph.D. students after their second year of study.

This Ph.D. comprehensive exam is graded pass/fail, but the “fail” is broken into two subsets:

  1. M.S. pass. This is a comprehensive exam that is not of a quality to count as a pass for the Ph.D. exam, but is of a quality to count as a pass for the M.S. capstone.
  2. Fail. Not of a quality to count for a M.S. capstone.

Thesis Plan

Every master’s degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research.

The thesis must be finished within one year after all required course work is completed. A student lacking a strong prerequisite background nominates a thesis committee by the fifth quarter of study and presents a proposal for committee approval at the beginning of the sixth quarter.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree: six quarters.

DEGREE NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters) NORMATIVE TTD

MAXIMUM TTD
M.S. 6 6 7

Doctoral Degree

Advising

New doctoral students are initially advised by the doctoral adviser for their particular academic area. Students are urged to establish a working relationship with one or two faculty members early in their studies. Students are expected to have a close working relationship with at least one faculty member by the end of their first year in the program. Students are free to change their adviser whenever they wish during the course of their progress through the program. The overall adviser is the Senior Associate Dean, M.S./Ph.D. programs.

First-year students are reviewed by their respective academic areas following the spring quarter of their first year in the program. First-year grades and faculty evaluations are used in the review process. A final, written evaluation is forwarded to the Doctoral Program Office and is kept in the student’s file.

By the end of the first year in the program, students are required to submit Proposal of Study forms, which must be approved by the Senior Associate Dean. These forms list course work students plan to take to satisfy the program requirements. The Doctoral Program Office conducts a quarterly review of student progress based on program deadlines, study forms and transcripts. For students who are having scholastic difficulty, who appear not to be making sufficient progress, or who are approaching a program deadline, the major field adviser is contacted. The Senior Associate Dean, in consultation with the adviser, determines what action should be taken. A copy of all correspondence between the Senior Associate Dean, the student, and/or the student’s adviser is maintained in the student’s file.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Accounting; Behavioral Decision Making; Decisions, Operations and Technology Management; Finance; Global Economics and Management; Management and Organizations; Marketing; Strategy.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Research Preparation Requirement. The research preparation requirement consists of two parts: (1) a course requirement and (2) a research paper. Students are required to take five research courses which are not part of the major field area classes taught in the John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management. These courses must be at least 4 units, and letter-graded. These courses must be completed before taking the oral qualifying examination and may not be waived by prior graduate work. A summer research paper must be submitted to and accepted by the student’s faculty mentor before the start of Fall Quarter of the second year of study.

Breadth Requirement. The breadth requirement consists of eight courses which are clearly outside the major field area. These courses must be at least 4 units, and letter graded. Students should use these courses to become more knowledgeable about the basic elements of several other management disciplines and functional areas or to define a minor field of research and teaching proficiency. Three of these courses may be waived by prior course work from a previously earned master’s degree. They must be completed before taking the oral qualifying examination.

Each of the eight academic areas have a different list of required major field courses (most of which are letter-graded, with the exception of workshops/seminars, which are S/U-graded) that is designed to prepare the student to pass the major field examination. In consultation with a major field adviser, this course of study may be modified on a case-by-case basis.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program. 

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Proficiency in the major field area is determined by a written examination, supplemented in some areas by an oral examination. The major field examination must be passed before the start of Fall Quarter of the third year of study.

Students are required to present the substance of their dissertation proposal in a formal seminar to which all Ph.D. students and faculty are invited.

When all the preliminary requirements have been fulfilled (course work, research paper, major field examination, seminar), students are eligible to take the University Oral Qualifying Examination and, if passed, to be advanced to candidacy. The oral qualifying examination must be passed and the student advanced to candidacy before the start of fall quarter of the student’s fourth year of study.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy and awarded the Candidate in Philosophy (C.Phil.) degree upon completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

The program is designed to take five years (15 quarters) from graduate admission to awarding of the degree. Completion of the degree cannot exceed seven and one-half years (23 quarters). Normative time-to-degree is 15 quarters.

DEGREE NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters) NORMATIVE TTD

MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D. 9 15 23

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

M.S. Program
The decision to recommend academic disqualification is made by the Senior Associate Dean in consultation with the faculty in the student’s area of specialization. A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification through a request to the Dean of the school to appoint a faculty committee to review it. The Dean decides whether such action is warranted.

Ph.D. Program
A student may be recommended for academic disqualification for any of the following reasons:

  1. As a result of conclusions of the major field area faculty’s first-year review.
  2. Failure to complete the first year summer paper before Fall Quarter of the second year of study.
  3. Failure to pass major field examinations, which are administered during the first and second years of study.
  4. Failure to pass the area comprehensive exam before Fall Quarter of the third year of study.
  5. Failure to pass the oral qualifying exam and advance to candidacy before Fall Quarter of the fourth year of study.

The minimum standard of performance of the school exceeds the University’s minimum grade point average of 3.00. In particular, if a student receives two or more grades of B, or if Incomplete grades are not removed within one quarter, the student’s record indicates serious scholastic deficiencies that require review by the appropriate academic unit and may be the basis for a recommendation for academic disqualification.

A student is given written notification of approaching deadlines. All deadlines are determined by the date of entry into the program.

The decision to recommend academic disqualification is made by the Senior Associate Dean in consultation with the faculty in the student’s area of specialization. A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification through a request to the Dean of the Doctoral Program and the UCLA Graduate Division.

Program Requirements for Management (MS and PhD)

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2024-2025 academic year.

Management

John E. Anderson School of Management

Graduate Degrees

The John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Management, the Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree, the Master of Financial Engineering (M.F.E.) degree and the Master of Science in Business Analytics (M.S.B.A.) degree. In addition, there are a number of degree programs, offered in cooperation with other graduate and professional degree programs on campus, that lead to the M.B.A. and another degree. The school also offers the Executive M.B.A. Program (EMBA) and the M.B.A. for the Fully Employed (FEMBA).

Master of Science and Doctoral Program

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

Advising

There is currently no separate M.S. degree program. Doctoral students may earn a M.S. degree on their way toward their Ph.D. Students are advised by their area liaison and doctoral faculty adviser. The overall adviser of the program is the Senior Associate Dean, M.S./Ph.D. programs.

Students are required to submit Proposal of Study forms by the end of their second quarter. These forms list the courses students expect to take to fulfill the requirements of the program. The M.S./Ph.D. Program Office conducts a quarterly review of student progress, based on study forms and transcripts. Students who are having scholastic difficulty or who are not making sufficient progress are asked to discuss their situation with the Senior Associate Dean. All conversations with the Senior Associate Dean relating to progress are documented; copies are sent to the student’s adviser, and records are kept in the student’s file in the M.S./Ph.D. Programs Office.

Areas of Study

M.S. students are not required to select a major field. They may choose a broad selection of courses or any combination of courses from the following fields: Accounting; Behavioral Decision Making; Decisions, Operations and Technology Management; Finance; Global Economics and Management; Management and Organizations; Marketing; Strategy.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

A total of nine courses (and 36 units) are required for the M.S. degree under the Capstone and Thesis Plans. All courses must be at the graduate 200 level, and taken for letter grades. At least six courses must be in Management. The remaining three courses are elective, which may be 200-level courses in Management, or 200-level in a closely related discipline, e.g. Economics.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

The capstone plan culminates with a comprehensive examination, which is the same comprehensive examination administered to Ph.D. students after their second year of study.

This Ph.D. comprehensive exam is graded pass/fail, but the “fail” is broken into two subsets:

  1. M.S. pass. This is a comprehensive exam that is not of a quality to count as a pass for the Ph.D. exam, but is of a quality to count as a pass for the M.S. capstone.
  2. Fail. Not of a quality to count for a M.S. capstone.

Thesis Plan

Every master’s degree thesis plan requires the completion of an approved thesis that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research.

The thesis must be finished within one year after all required course work is completed. A student lacking a strong prerequisite background nominates a thesis committee by the fifth quarter of study and presents a proposal for committee approval at the beginning of the sixth quarter.

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree: six quarters.

DEGREE NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters) NORMATIVE TTD

MAXIMUM TTD
M.S. 6 6 7

Doctoral Degree

Advising

New doctoral students are initially advised by the doctoral adviser for their particular academic area. Students are urged to establish a working relationship with one or two faculty members early in their studies. Students are expected to have a close working relationship with at least one faculty member by the end of their first year in the program. Students are free to change their adviser whenever they wish during the course of their progress through the program. The overall adviser is the Senior Associate Dean, M.S./Ph.D. programs.

First-year students are reviewed by their respective academic areas following the spring quarter of their first year in the program. First-year grades and faculty evaluations are used in the review process. A final, written evaluation is forwarded to the Doctoral Program Office and is kept in the student’s file.

By the end of the first year in the program, students are required to submit Proposal of Study forms, which must be approved by the Senior Associate Dean. These forms list course work students plan to take to satisfy the program requirements. The Doctoral Program Office conducts a quarterly review of student progress based on program deadlines, study forms and transcripts. For students who are having scholastic difficulty, who appear not to be making sufficient progress, or who are approaching a program deadline, the major field adviser is contacted. The Senior Associate Dean, in consultation with the adviser, determines what action should be taken. A copy of all correspondence between the Senior Associate Dean, the student, and/or the student’s adviser is maintained in the student’s file.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Accounting; Behavioral Decision Making; Decisions, Operations and Technology Management; Finance; Global Economics and Management; Management and Organizations; Marketing; Strategy.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Research Preparation Requirement. The research preparation requirement consists of two parts: (1) a course requirement and (2) a research paper. Students are required to take five research courses which are not part of the major field area classes taught in the John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management. These courses must be at least 4 units, and letter-graded. These courses must be completed before taking the oral qualifying examination and may not be waived by prior graduate work. A summer research paper must be submitted to and accepted by the student’s faculty mentor before the start of Fall Quarter of the second year of study.

Breadth Requirement. The breadth requirement consists of eight courses which are clearly outside the major field area. These courses must be at least 4 units, and letter graded. Students should use these courses to become more knowledgeable about the basic elements of several other management disciplines and functional areas or to define a minor field of research and teaching proficiency. Three of these courses may be waived by prior course work from a previously earned master’s degree. They must be completed before taking the oral qualifying examination.

Each of the eight academic areas have a different list of required major field courses (most of which are letter-graded, with the exception of workshops/seminars, which are S/U-graded) that is designed to prepare the student to pass the major field examination. In consultation with a major field adviser, this course of study may be modified on a case-by-case basis.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program. 

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Proficiency in the major field area is determined by a written examination, supplemented in some areas by an oral examination. The major field examination must be passed before the start of Fall Quarter of the third year of study.

Students are required to present the substance of their dissertation proposal in a formal seminar to which all Ph.D. students and faculty are invited.

When all the preliminary requirements have been fulfilled (course work, research paper, major field examination, seminar), students are eligible to take the University Oral Qualifying Examination and, if passed, to be advanced to candidacy. The oral qualifying examination must be passed and the student advanced to candidacy before the start of fall quarter of the student’s fourth year of study.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy and awarded the Candidate in Philosophy (C.Phil.) degree upon completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

The program is designed to take five years (15 quarters) from graduate admission to awarding of the degree. Completion of the degree cannot exceed seven and one-half years (23 quarters). Normative time-to-degree is 15 quarters.

DEGREE NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters) NORMATIVE TTD

MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D. 9 15 23

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

M.S. Program
The decision to recommend academic disqualification is made by the Senior Associate Dean in consultation with the faculty in the student’s area of specialization. A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification through a request to the Dean of the school to appoint a faculty committee to review it. The Dean decides whether such action is warranted.

Ph.D. Program
A student may be recommended for academic disqualification for any of the following reasons:

  1. As a result of conclusions of the major field area faculty’s first-year review.
  2. Failure to complete the first year summer paper before Fall Quarter of the second year of study.
  3. Failure to pass major field examinations, which are administered during the first and second years of study.
  4. Failure to pass the area comprehensive exam before Fall Quarter of the third year of study.
  5. Failure to pass the oral qualifying exam and advance to candidacy before Fall Quarter of the fourth year of study.

The minimum standard of performance of the school exceeds the University’s minimum grade point average of 3.00. In particular, if a student receives two or more grades of B, or if Incomplete grades are not removed within one quarter, the student’s record indicates serious scholastic deficiencies that require review by the appropriate academic unit and may be the basis for a recommendation for academic disqualification.

A student is given written notification of approaching deadlines. All deadlines are determined by the date of entry into the program.

The decision to recommend academic disqualification is made by the Senior Associate Dean in consultation with the faculty in the student’s area of specialization. A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification through a request to the Dean of the Doctoral Program and the UCLA Graduate Division.

Program Requirements for Management (MS and PhD)

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2025-2026 academic year.

Management

John E. Anderson School of Management

Graduate Degrees

The John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Management, the Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree, the Master of Financial Engineering (M.F.E.) degree and the Master of Science in Business Analytics (M.S.B.A.) degree. In addition, there are a number of degree programs, offered in cooperation with other graduate and professional degree programs on campus, that lead to the M.B.A. and another degree. The school also offers the Executive M.B.A. Program (EMBA), the Global EMBA for Asia Pacific, and the M.B.A. for the Fully Employed (FEMBA).

Master of Science and Doctoral Program

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

There is no separate M.S. degree program. Students are only admitted with Ph.D. as their degree objective. Under certain circumstances, students exiting the doctoral program prior to completing Ph.D. requirements may earn a terminal M.S. degree. The M.S. degree is offered on a terminal basis only and students are not eligible to earn an M.S. degree en route to Ph.D.

Advising

The Doctoral Program Office conducts a quarterly review of student progress. Students who are having scholastic difficulty or who are not making sufficient progress are asked to discuss their situation with their faculty area liaison and the Associate Dean. All conversations with the Associate Dean relating to progress are documented; copies are sent to the student’s adviser, and records are kept in the student’s file in the Doctoral Program Office.

Areas of Study

There are eight areas of study: Accounting; Behavioral Decision Making; Decisions, Operations and Technology Management; Finance; Global Economics and Management; Management and Organizations; Marketing; Strategy.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

A total of nine courses (36 units) are required for the M.S. degree under the Capstone and Thesis Plans. All courses must be at the graduate 200 level and taken for letter grades. At least six courses must be in Management. The remaining three courses are elective, which may be 200-level courses in Management, or 200-level in a closely related discipline, e.g. Economics. These nine courses may not be shared with those required from any other degree at UCLA.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

The capstone may be either a student’s first year summer paper or their second-year comprehensive examination, if it meets the faculty requirements. If the student has not produced a satisfactory first year paper or second year comprehensive examination, a capstone paper or literature review may be required to serve as the capstone.

The Ph.D. comprehensive examination is graded pass/fail, but the “fail” is broken into two subsets:

  1. M.S. pass. This is a comprehensive examination that is not of a quality to count as a pass for the Ph.D. examination, but is of a quality to count as a pass for the M.S. capstone.
  2. Fail. Not of a quality to count for an M.S. capstone.

Thesis Plan

None

Time-to-Degree

From graduate admission to award of the degree: six quarters.

DEGREE NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters) NORMATIVE TTD

MAXIMUM TTD
M.S. 6 6 7

Doctoral Degree

Advising

New doctoral students are initially advised by their faculty area liaison. Students are urged to establish a working relationship with one or two faculty members early in their studies. Students are expected to have a close working relationship with at least one faculty member by the end of their first year in the program. Students are free to change their adviser whenever they wish during the course of their progress through the program. The overall adviser is the Associate Dean of the Ph.D. Program.

First-year students are reviewed by their respective academic areas following the spring quarter of their first year in the program. First-year grades and faculty evaluations are used in the review process. A final, written evaluation is forwarded to the Doctoral Program Office and is kept in the student’s file.

By the end of the first year in the program, students are required to submit Proposal of Study forms, which must be approved by the Associate Dean. These forms list course work students plan to take to satisfy the program requirements. The Doctoral Program Office conducts a quarterly review of student progress based on program deadlines, study forms and transcripts. For students who are having scholastic difficulty, who appear not to be making sufficient progress, or who are approaching a program deadline, the major field adviser is contacted. The Associate Dean, in consultation with the adviser, determines what action should be taken. A copy of all correspondence between the Associate Dean, the student, and/or the student’s adviser is maintained in the student’s file.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Accounting; Behavioral Decision Making; Decisions, Operations and Technology Management; Finance; Global Economics and Management; Management and Organizations; Marketing; Strategy.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

Research Preparation Requirement. The research preparation requirement consists of two parts: (1) a course requirement and (2) a research paper. Students are required to take five research courses which are not part of the major field area classes taught in the John E. Anderson Graduate School of Management. These courses must be at least 4 units, and letter-graded. These courses must be completed before taking the oral qualifying examination and may not be waived by prior graduate work. The “first year summer paper” must be submitted to and accepted by the student’s faculty mentor before the start of Fall Quarter of the second year of study.

Breadth Requirement. The breadth requirement consists of eight courses which are clearly outside the major field area. These courses must be at least 4 units, and letter graded. Students should use these courses to become more knowledgeable about the basic elements of several other management disciplines and functional areas or to define a minor field of research and teaching proficiency. Three of these courses may be waived by prior course work from a previously earned master’s degree. They must be completed before taking the oral qualifying examination.

Each of the eight academic areas have a different list of required major field courses (most of which are letter-graded, with the exception of workshops/seminars, which are S/U-graded) that is designed to prepare the student to pass the major field examination. In consultation with a major field adviser, this course of study may be modified on a case-by-case basis.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass university written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations, the University Oral Qualifying Examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to university requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program. 

All committee nominations and reconstitutions adhere to the Minimum Standards for Doctoral Committee Constitution.

Proficiency in the major field area is determined by a written examination, supplemented in some areas by an oral examination. The major field examinations (also called the “Comprehensive Exam”) must be passed before the start of Fall Quarter of the third year of study.

When all the preliminary requirements have been fulfilled (course work, research paper, major field examination, seminar), students are eligible to take the University Oral Qualifying Examination (OQE) and, if passed, to be advanced to doctoral candidacy. The oral qualifying examination must be passed and the student advanced to candidacy before the start of fall quarter of the student’s fourth year of study.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy and awarded the Candidate in Philosophy (C.Phil.) degree upon completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

The program is designed to take five years (15 quarters) from graduate admission to awarding of the degree. Completion of the degree cannot exceed seven and one-half years (23 quarters). Normative time-to-degree is 15 quarters.

DEGREE NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters) NORMATIVE TTD

MAXIMUM TTD
Ph.D. 9 15 23

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.0) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include unsatisfactory performance of first year summer paper, failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.0) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

Ph.D. Program
A student may be recommended for academic disqualification for any of the following reasons:

  1. As a result of conclusions of their area faculty first-year review.
  2. Failure to complete a satisfactory first year summer paper before Fall Quarter of the second year of study.
  3. Failure to pass the area comprehensive examinations (also called “Major Field Exams”) before Fall Quarter of the third year of study.
  4. Failure to pass the oral qualifying examination and advance to candidacy before Fall Quarter of the fourth year of study.
  5. Failure to maintain both a term and cumulative GPA minimum of 3.0.

The minimum standard of performance of the school is the University’s minimum grade point average of 3.0. If a student falls below a 3.0 term or cumulative GPA, or if Incomplete grades are not removed within one quarter, the student’s record indicates serious scholastic deficiencies that require review by the appropriate academic unit and may be the basis for a recommendation for academic disqualification.

A student is given written notification of approaching deadlines. Deadlines are based on quarters after matriculation.

The decision to recommend academic disqualification is made by the Associate Dean in consultation with the faculty liaison in the student’s area of specialization. A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification through a request to the Associate Dean of the Ph.D. program and the UCLA Division of Graduate Education.

Program Requirements for Information Studies (Information Studies)

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2014-2015 academic year.

Information Studies

School of Education and Information Studies

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Information Studies offers the Master of Library and Information Science (M.L.I.S.) degree and the Doctoral of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree in Information Studies.

Information Studies

Doctoral Degree

Admissions Requirements

Advising

Upon admission to the school, a faculty adviser is assigned based on the evidence in the student’s statement of interest at the time of application and on the general commitments of the faculty. Students may change advisers with agreement of faculty. The adviser has the responsibility to assist the student in planning a program of study that meets the requirements of the Ph.D. program and to guide the student in the dissertation research. Until advancement to candidacy, there are yearly formal evaluations of progress that involve the student, the chair, the faculty adviser, and other faculty. After advancement to candidacy, the evaluation of progress is the responsibility of the formal doctoral committee.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

The courses offered in the doctoral program cover a range of areas of inquiry in the theory and methodology of information studies, focusing on information-related artifacts (e.g., documents, texts, images, records, collections), agents (e.g., producers, managers, seekers), contexts (e.g., cultural, economic, legal, social, technological), institutions (e.g., organizations, professions, disciplines), practices (e.g., production, design, recording, representation, organization, replication, preservation, retrieval, communication, management, interpretation, use, destruction, policymaking), properties (e.g., authenticity, authorship, identity, reliability, trustworthiness, truth), values (e.g., aesthetic, ethical, functional), and related phenomena (e.g., data, evidence, heritage, knowledge, memory, and misinformation).

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

A minimum of 72 units of coursework is required.

Students are required to take six core courses in the theory and methodology of information studies: Information Studies  291A, 291B, 291C, 298A, 298B, and 298C. Students also are required to take three elective courses chosen from graduate courses offered in this department, and three elective courses chosen from graduate courses offered outside of this department.

In addition to the course requirements listed above, doctoral students are required to participate in the Doctoral Research Colloquium, to participate in research apprenticeship activities by enrolling Information Studies 596 for three quarters, and to be reviewed annually by the Doctoral Program committee until advancement to candidacy.

Teaching Experience

Not required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass University written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations the University oral qualifying examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to University requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

Students are required to pass a written qualifying examination on the theory and methodology of information studies.

After passing the written qualifying examination, the student is required to pass the University Oral Qualifying Examination, which is based on the oral defense of the dissertation proposal. The dissertation proposal and oral defense should be completed within one year after passing the written examination. The oral examination covers the significance of the chosen topic of research, the methodology and feasibility of the research, and the depth of the student’s knowledge in the specific field of the dissertation research.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

(1) From graduate admission to the written qualifying examination: Expected – one to six quarters.

(2) From graduate admission to the oral qualifying examination: Expected – one to nine quarters.

(3) From graduate admission to the final oral examination: Expected – one to fifteen quarters.

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

In addition to the standard reasons outlined above, a student may be recommended for termination for failure of the comprehensive examination on two successive tests. A recommendation for termination is made by the Executive Committee of the faculty based on the advice of the faculty adviser and the chair. The chair notifies the student in writing of the decision. The student may appeal the decision through formal petition to the faculty.

Program Requirements for Neuroscience

Applicable only to students admitted during the 2014-2015 academic year.

Neuroscience

Interdepartmental Program
School of Medicine

Graduate Degrees

The Neuroscience Program offers the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree in Neuroscience.

Admissions Requirements 

Master’s Degree

None.

Doctoral Degree

Advising

The Neuroscience program provides a comprehensive system of advising for students throughout their graduate studies. During orientation the advising committee and program chair meet with new students to review the first-year requirements in general terms. Throughout the term, students are expected to meet individually with the chair or other members of the advising committee to identify faculty whose research is closest to their own interests and who would be most appropriate for laboratory rotations. At the end of the fall term, the entire advising committee meets informally with the first-year students to field questions that have come up after their initial entry into the program. In subsequent quarters, students’ enrollment and performance in core courses and laboratory rotations are closely monitored and, as the need arises, students are counseled individually by the advising chair. At the end of Spring Quarter of the first year, students are required to submit a Faculty Mentor Approval Form (co-signed by the mentor) to the advising committee, which meets to consider the choice of mentor and the ability of the faculty to serve in this capacity.

The advising program continues after each student has chosen a faculty research mentor. Every year students receive a memorandum outlining current requirements (for example, course electives, the written and oral qualifying examinations and midstream seminar). The advising committee also meets every year to discuss the progress of all students and identify potential problems. The committee then sends each student a letter that assesses their current progress in the program and makes specific recommendations as needed. An overall assessment of student progress is also made annually to the neuroscience committee. In addition to the formal advising procedures outlined above, students are repeatedly encouraged to seek advice on career development from faculty members in the UCLA neuroscience community. Finally, an annual retreat serves the purpose of allowing informal and organized contacts between faculty and students, which provides further opportunity for advising.

Major Fields or Subdisciplines

Several subdisciplines are represented by large groups of faculty with common interests who closely interact with each other in a collaborative manner. A number of these clusters of faculty are represented as an area of specialty within the program, which we call a Focused Area of Research (FAR). The FARs currently available in the program are Addiction; Learning & Memory; Neural Development, Degeneration & Repair; Neuroendocrinology; Neurogenetics; Neuroimaging/Cognitive; and Synapses, Cells & Circuits.

Foreign Language Requirement

None.

Course Requirements

First-year students take four core courses: Neuroscience M201, M202, M203 and 205. First-year students participate in at least two laboratory rotations. Students also attend a Meet the Professors presentation series.  In the first or second year, students take a course in scientific ethics, Neuroscience 207.

Second-year students take at least one quarter of biostatistics or biomathematics selected from a departmental list of courses, as well as two courses from a menu of advanced neuroscience courses.

In the first, second and/or third years students enroll in 12 units from a selection of seminar courses.

Neuroengineering

First-year students take Neuroscience M202, M203 or M204, 205, and M206. First-year students participate in at least two laboratory rotations, one in neuroscience and one in engineering. Students also attend a Meet the Professors presentation series.

In the first and second year students enroll in six courses from a menu of seminar courses. In the first or second year, students take a course in scientific ethics, Neuroscience 207.

Second-year students take at least one quarter of biostatistics or biomathematics from a departmental list as well as two courses from a menu of advanced neuroscience and engineering courses.

Teaching Experience

One quarter of teaching experience is required.

Written and Oral Qualifying Examinations

Academic Senate regulations require all doctoral students to complete and pass University written and oral qualifying examinations prior to doctoral advancement to candidacy. Also, under Senate regulations the University oral qualifying examination is open only to the student and appointed members of the doctoral committee. In addition to University requirements, some graduate programs have other pre-candidacy examination requirements. What follows in this section is how students are required to fulfill all of these requirements for this doctoral program.

A written qualifying examination is required following completion of the core requirements, generally by the beginning of the second year. The objective of this examination is to test basic knowledge and ability to relate knowledge in different neuroscience areas, to locate and interpret literature, and to apply research problems.

After passing the written qualifying examination, and after completion of a degree audit, students, in consultation with the adviser, choose the doctoral committee to administer the University Oral Qualifying Examination. For the examination students are expected to write a research proposal and orally present the outline of the proposal to their doctoral committee. This presentation usually takes between one-and-one-half and three hours. The eight- to 10-page proposal should follow the basic format of an NIH grant proposal focusing on an important question pertinent to the student’s field of study, with well-defined Specific Aims, Methods, and Experimental Design. Students should not have completed significant portions of the dissertation project at the time of the examination. Instead, the purpose of the exercise is for students to 1) formulate their plans in their own words; (2) become acquainted with the faculty committee; and (3) familiarize the committee with their projects at an early stage.

Doctoral Committee Meetings

Students also are expected to hold doctoral committee meetings each year after the University Oral Qualifying Examination. The yearly doctoral committee meetings provide additional interaction between the committee and the student and serve as an important barometer for the progress of the student’s research proposal since the University Oral Qualifying Examination. Each yearly meeting requires a written progress report (prepared jointly by the doctoral committee chair and the student) to monitor and track the student’s progress in their dissertation research and time-to-degree. Furthermore, at least one of these yearly meetings is required to include a formal presentation of the student’s research before the final defense. This presentation also helps to identify the critical experimental areas that students needs to complete prior to the final defense of the dissertation.

Advancement to Candidacy

Students are advanced to candidacy upon successful completion of the written and oral qualifying examinations.

Doctoral Dissertation

Every doctoral degree program requires the completion of an approved dissertation that demonstrates the student’s ability to perform original, independent research and constitutes a distinct contribution to knowledge in the principal field of study.

Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation)

Required for all students in the program.

Time-to-Degree

In general, overall progress toward the degree is accomplished with completion of the written qualifying examination by the beginning of the second year. It is recommended that students complete the University Oral Qualifying Examination by the end of Spring Quarter of the second year, and the examination must be completed no later than Spring Quarter of the third year. Students must hold doctoral committee meetings each year after the University Oral Qualifying Examination and before the Final Oral Examination (defense of the dissertation). The approved normative time-to-degree is 18 quarters.

Termination of Graduate Study and Appeal of Termination

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing termination of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

A student must receive at least a B- in each core course or repeat the course. A student who receives three B- grades in the core courses, who fails all or part of the written or oral qualifying examinations two times (if the student fails all or part of the written qualifying examination the Written Qualifying Examination Committee determines the form of reexamination), or who fails to maintain minimum progress may be recommended for termination by vote of the entire interdepartmental degree committee. A student may appeal a recommendation for termination in writing to the interdepartmental degree committee and may personally present additional or mitigating information to the committee, in person or in writing.