Faculty

Abstract: There is growing awareness that established structures of higher education are often predicated on problematic assumptions about merit, excellence, and rigor. Doctoral qualifying exams, for example, are required to advance to candidacy in many Ph.D. programs despite decades of documented concerns about the implications of standard modes for student equity and well-being. As more Ph.D. programs move to reform these exams and candidacy requirements, it is important to understand how Ph.D. programs, as academic organizations, construct the significance of the qualifying exam.

This rubric checklist came about as a result of listening to the needs of both IGEN and EGE workshop attendees, as rubrics are one of the tools that our Equity in Admissions workshop series attendees most frequently adopt following their workshop participation. The use of rubrics can help to create more equitable admissions processes, but it can be difficult to know how to design and implement them to be effective.