Program of Study

Interdisciplinary Research

TSB faculty, whose research spans a variety of methodological approaches, enjoy thinking about problems from multiple points of view. The multi-method training students receive will help them to produce better research and also to understand the work of future colleagues who, given the direction of the field, will likely come from a range of disciplinary traditions. Complementing the TSB approach is Northwestern University’s strong support for cross-disciplinary graduate education. Students from other departments routinely enroll in TSB courses, and TSB students are welcomed in other department’s courses. Faculty are affiliated with a number of on-campus initiatives which enrich the environment. TSB faculty regularly invite students (including first-year graduate students) to participate as co-authors in their published research. As students mature in the program, they can find support with the faculty for writing their own papers and generating multi-disciplinary collaborations.

Course Requirements

Critical evaluation of disciplinary perspectives, as well as integration of disciplinary methodologies, is a key goal of the TSB doctoral program. The required courses therefore provide theoretical, historical, psychological, and sociological perspectives on technology, along with classes in research methods. For the remaining courses, each student must work with an advisor to create a course of study that approaches a single theme within technology and social behavior from multiple disciplines. To see examples of recent course offerings in the program see our courses page.

Because Ph.D. students are encouraged to create a course sequence that best supports their research, dissertation, and teaching plans, each student will be assigned to a temporary advisor upon arrival, who will help design a research plan. Students need not, however, feel obliged to choose this person as a thesis advisor. The research plan will incorporate course requirements from both the School of Engineering programs and School of Communication, however since these degree requirements are quite flexible, students can expect to engage in hands-on research starting in their first year.

Qualifying Examinations

Students in the joint Ph.D. will complete one part of the qualifying exam in each of the two distinct fields. These exams must be completed before the beginning of the student’s 4th year in the program.

Dissertation Committee

Theses in Computer Science require implementation and theoretical analysis of a computer system in a technical research context, while theses in Communication require either empirical or archival evidence for a well-fleshed-out argument. Ph.D. theses in TSB, the joint Ph.D. in Computer Science and Communication, will comprise two parts that are not often found together – an implementation, and a hypothesis about how the implemented system affects social behavior, with an empirical evaluation of that hypothesis.

In order to ensure that the Ph.D. thesis represent joint competence in Computer Science and Communication, the thesis committee needs to be composed of four faculty members, of whom two are in Communication and two are in Computer Science. Three of the committee members must be faculty at Northwestern University. The thesis must be judged acceptable by all four of these committee members.