On RT Ph.D. Programs

A friend recently contacted me to develop a list of universities offering the Ph.D. degree in RT. I could come up with only seven. These were:

Clemson University
Indiana University
Oklahoma State University
Penn State University
Temple University
University of Utah
University of Waterloo (Canada)

If you know of others, please do comment on this post.

Should the small number of university Ph.D. programs be of concern to those in RT? From where will the RT scholars of the future come? Can seven schools produce enough quality faculty to supply all of higher education? Is it healthy for only seven schools to be producting all RT faculty? These are questions to ponder.

It so happens that the existing Ph.D. programs are generally of high quality -- although some are relatively small in size. Because they are good programs, I would urge faculty from these institutions will get together to discuss the future of RT graduate programs and look for ways to enhance RT graduate education in the USA and Canada.

It also seems to me that these universities need to lead curriculum reform. RT curriculum reform appears to be bogged down at the current time. I would call on universities with Ph.D. programs to show some leadership with curriculum reform.

Finally, perhaps the time is right for other research universities to develop Ph.D. programs. More Ph.D. programs are needed now.