Ph.D. students must pass a comprehensive exam in the fifth semester (see comprehensive exam reading list), a language exam (reading competence in one language is required for the Ph.D.; a course in metalogic may be substituted for the language requirement by students working in appropriate areas), a dissertation prospectus exam, and an oral dissertation defense based on the dissertation.

In addition to these requirements, all graduate students, whether M.A. or Ph.D., must meet a "background core" requirement consisting of six courses in basic areas (namely, metaphysics, theory of knowledge, ethical theory, Greek philosophy, modern philosophy and symbolic logic; courses taken to satisfy the graduate distribution requirements will not count toward satisfying the background core requirement). Most students entering the program with a B.A. in philosophy will already have satisfied this requirement.