Courses and Curriculum

The program of study in IRHR requires all students to:

1. Complete three core seminars

2. Select a primary field of either Human Resources or Labor, Work, and Society, in which five courses will be taken

3. Either select a secondary field in which three courses will be taken, or take three electives if no secondary field is chosen

4. Complete four statistics and research methods courses

5. Complete a Master's thesis

6. Complete a dissertation

7. Attend the Proseminar, consisting of presentations by SMLR faculty, outside scholars, and Ph.D. students

Students can take doctoral courses at Princeton, Columbia, NYU, CUNY, Fordham, New School, or Stony Brook as part of their studies, through the Inter-University Consortium in which Rutgers participates.

Learning Goals for Students

1. Attain marked ability, scholarship, research and leadership skills in industrial relations and human resources 
2. Engage in and conduct original research
3. Prepare to be professionals in careers that require training at the highest levels in the social sciences that address issues related to industrial relations and human resources

Course Outline

Master's Thesis

During their second year in the program, students complete an empirical research project under the guidance of a three-person thesis committee. A member or associate member of the SMLR graduate faculty may serve as the committee chair and direct the research project. A satisfactory oral defense of the thesis is required. Upon completion of the thesis and oral defense, and 30 credits of coursework (of which 6 may be research credits for completing the thesis), students are awarded the master of science degree and become eligible to take the qualifying exam.

Qualifying Exam

The qualifying exam assesses students' knowledge of, and ability to synthesize, the theory and methods covered in their required and elective courses and in their specialized fields of study. It covers the IRHR literature that is considered the foundation upon which the student's career and future research are based, as well as the research methods and data analysis techniques that are relevant to the student's chosen area of specialty. The format is take-home. The exam is offered once annually, and all students sit for the exam at the same time (or at a time agreed to by the student's advisory committee and the Graduate Director). Normally, students take the qualifying exam in the summer after their second year. To sit for the exam, students need to have (1) successfully defended their master’s thesis and (2) completed a minimum of 42 course credits. The qualifying exam is graded and must be approved by at least four members of the IRHR graduate faculty. Students who fail the exam must retake it within four months. After passing the qualifying exam, students are admitted to Ph.D. candidacy.

Dissertation

Students complete a dissertation during their fourth and fifth years. The dissertation committee must be chaired by a member of the IRHR graduate faculty and include at least three other faculty. At least one member of the committee must be from outside the IRHR graduate faculty. Members from outside Rutgers are preferable. All students present and defend their dissertation proposals in a seminar format. The proposal defense is open to all interested faculty and Ph.D. students, although only the committee members vote on the acceptability of the proposal. A final oral defense takes place upon completion of the dissertation. The defense is open to the public and must be announced at least two weeks in advance.

Research Involvement

Students are expected to be actively involved in research throughout the entire time they are enrolled in the program. To facilitate this, students are assigned to a research advisor upon their admission into the program. Students may change their research advisor, by mutual agreement, at the end of their first year and any time thereafter. Research advisors provide annual assessments of students' research activities, and satisfactory performance is required in order for students to remain in good standing in the program and continue to receive financial assistance.