Marine Policy Degree Programs

Highly qualified students who already hold an advanced degree in marine policy or a related subject and who generally have some experience in policy research or management may be admitted to pursue a PhD degree in Marine Studies with a concentration in Marine Policy.

Students in the PhD in Marine Studies with a concentration in Marine Policy are required to complete a minimum of 42 graduate credits. The Ph.D. requires a minimum of 36 course credit hours and a minimum of 9 research credits and 9 dissertation credits. Students must meet a campus residency requirement of at least one continuous academic year. If a student has earned a Master's degree at the University of Delaware, this can be used to fulfill the residency requirement. Written and oral qualifying examinations are required before students are admitted to candidacy for the PhD degree. A written dissertation and oral defense of it are also required for the PhD.

• MAST 660 International and National Ocean Policy
• MAST 663 Decision Tools for Policy Analysis
• MAST 675 Economics of Natural Resources
• MAST 676 Environmental Economics
• MAST 873 Marine Policy Seminar (3 semesters)
• Research Methods: 6 or more credits in statistics, survey research and/or case study methods
• Science Elective: One 3 credit course in an SMSP Science Program
• Elective Credits: 9 or more credits in policy/science/economics/law (PSEL) electives
• MAST 969 Doctoral Dissertation (9 credits)

At least 3 of the required credits should be taken in another SMSP program area and other electives may include significant components from other departments. Required courses include courses in advanced research methods and quantitative analysis designed to insure that Ph.D. candidates have advanced skills needed to design and lead original Marine Policy research.

The course work provides a solid foundation for original research in the fields of study and extends the student’s knowledge beyond mastering a primary set of knowledge and skills. Students will work with their advisors to determine what additional coursework must be completed and how many research credits must be taken to account for the remaining credit hours needed for a minimum total of 42 credits. All courses in the program are selected with the approval of the student's advisor.

Students matriculating from other universities may petition to have these courses waived if their course of study included equivalent courses. For students holding a Master's degree in an appropriate field of study, the coursework from the Master's degree will be taken into account in the design of the doctoral program. Outstanding MMP students may petition to bypass to the Ph.D. program within the first two semesters, subject to recommendation by their advisor and approval by the School Directors.

Each doctoral committee shall consist of not less than four and or more than six members. The selection of members of the doctoral committee is made by the student and the advisor. This is forwarded via the School Director (or Marine Policy program director) and respective college deans to the Office of Graduate Studies. The doctoral committee is composed of the student's advisor, who is also the chair of the committee, members from the SMSP faculties, and one member from an outside academic or research unit. At least two committee members, one of which is the committee's chairperson, represent the major field of interest.

There are two milestone requirements for a student to be entered into candidacy for the terminal degree. First, a dissertation proposal is required to obtain admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. Satisfactory completion of dissertation proposal is at the discretion of the advisor in consultation with the student’s advisory committee. Second, a qualifying examination must be successfully completed.

A qualifying examination is required to obtain admission to candidacy for the Ph.D.  In order to take the examination, each student must be in good academic standing and have approval of the advisory committee. This examination is usually taken near the completion of the required credits of course work beyond the bachelor's degree. Doctoral students must demonstrate to their doctoral committee that they have acquired a comprehensive grasp of their field of study through a qualifying examination (written and oral) before they are admitted to formal candidacy.  A research proposal is ordinarily required before a student takes the qualifying examination.      
The qualifying examination must include both oral and written parts. The examination is prepared and administered by the advisor in consultation with the student’s advisory committee.  At least 60 days prior to the examination, the advisor must inform the student of the areas to be examined and the format of the written and oral parts of the examination.  If the student is not notified with at least 60 days’ notice, the student has the option to petition the School Director for a postponement of the qualifying examination.  
The student must be informed of success or failure of the written portion of the qualifying examination within two weeks of completion and if the written component is not successfully satisfied the oral may not be administered.  Once the written component is satisfied, the oral component may be administered.  The student must be informed of success or failure of the oral portion of the qualifying exam within two weeks of completion.  
A student who fails either part of the qualifying examination is entitled to only one re-examination, which must be taken within six months of the first examination.  A student who fails either part of the second qualifying examination may be considered for reclassification as a Master’s student only after advisory committee consultation with the School Director.  If a student is reclassified in this situation, the Master’s thesis must follow the same rigor outlined in 6.b. of this policy statement.  In some cases, if recommended by the committee and the School Director, the student may be terminated from the program.

Upon completion of the dissertation research and documentation, a final oral examination must be passed, consisting of a public defense of the dissertation and a test of the candidate's mastery of the fields covered in the program. It is conducted by the dissertation committee Chair with assistance from the student's committee. To permit adequate time for the committee to review the dissertation, all copies of the tentatively completed dissertation (subject to revisions required by the examining committee) must be deposited with the Program Director and the respective college offices at least two weeks before the date of the final oral examination. The committee Chair shall submit certification of a successful defense to the Office of Graduate Studies through the respective college deans.

The J.D. program requires 88 hours of instruction at the Delaware Law School at Widener University, and the M.M.P. requires 30 credit hours in the Marine Policy Program, School of Marine Science and Policy (SMSP) at the University of Delaware.  In the joint degree program, nine of the 87 law school credits will be accepted as elective credits by SMSP and nine of the 30 SMSP credits will be accepted by the Law School as electives.

The M.M.P. requires the successful completion of an Analytic Paper (AP), which is an article-length paper intended for submission to a policy, law or economics journal for publication, although actual submission and acceptance is not required for degree completion.  As noted below, three of the 30 credits are awarded for completion of the AP.

Marine Policy students are required to complete the following courses (18 credits):

• MAST 670 International and Domestic Ocean Policy (3 credits)
• MAST 663 Decision Tools for Policy Analysis (3 credits)
• MAST 675 or 676 Natural Resources or Environmental Economics (3 credits)
• MAST 873 Marine Policy Seminar (1 credit) *Taken three times
• MAST ___ Science Elective (3 credits)
• MAST 865 MMP Analytical Paper (3 credits)

Electives offered by Marine Policy faculty include courses in Environmental Movements, Values and Policy; US Renewable Energy and Climate Law; International Climate Change Policy; Legal Aspects of the Coastal Zone; Offshore Wind Power; Electric Vehicles and the Grid; and Applied Policy Analysis.

Delaware Law School is divided into two divisions:  Regular and Extended.  Regular is a three-year, full-time day program; Extended is a four-year evening program.  More information on academic requirements can be found at http://delawarelaw.widener.edu/prospective-students/jd-program/jd-academics/

Students must gain admission separately to each program.  A student can apply for admission to both programs simultaneously or matriculate in one program and then seek admission to the other program while a student.  Information on admission can be found at on the CEOE prospective graduate student page and the prospective students page for Delaware Law School.

For further information about the Juris Doctor-Master of Marine Policy Joint Degree Program, please consult either:

Professor James May
Delaware Law School
Widener University
4601 Concord Pike, P. 0. Box 7474
Wilmington, DE 19803
Phone: 302-477 -2182
Email: jrmay@widener.edu

or

Professor Jeremy Firestone
School of Marine Science and Policy
College of Earth, Ocean and Environment
University of Delaware
373 Harker ISELab
Newark, DE 19716
Phone: 302-831-0228
Email: jf@udel.edu