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Dissertation advisors and committee.

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The Dissertation Committee

Each program should make clear in its handbook how students go about selecting their dissertation advisors and/or committees, and set a timetable for doing so. Programs should be structured so that each student always has an advisor; leaving a gap between advice from the DGS and advice from the preliminary examination committee and/or dissertation advisor tends to prolong time to degree and increase attrition.

Chairs and DGSs need to be aware of the advising and mentoring relationships in their graduate programs. Monitoring the progress of each student is the responsibility of the program and not simply that of the faculty advisor. The dissertation chair and the other faculty members of a dissertation committee should meet with the student on a regular basis, and certainly a minimum of once a semester.

Policy on Advisors who have left Brown

Subject to the approval of the chair of the department, faculty who leave Brown may continue to serve as dissertation or thesis advisors for students whom they were advising at the time of their departure. Under normal circumstances, when a faculty member leaves, his or her advisees will be required to seek a new advisor. The program must be mindful of the need to provide students with some on-campus supervision and contact in the cases where a non-resident advisor continues service.

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Dissertation Committee: Roles, Functions, and How to Choose

The path to a dissertation is filled with choices that determine the quality of your experience as a student as well as the future strength of your professional network. 

Choosing your dissertation committee is one of the most important decisions–and one of the most fraught–that you’ll make as a graduate student. With the stakes being so high, many doctoral students worry about making a misstep and getting it wrong. 

Fear not! Putting together your dissertation committee becomes easier once you know the right questions to ask: of potential committee members, of your dissertation chair, and of yourself. While forming your dissertation committee can be challenging, striking the right balance will lead to a richly rewarding academic experience that will pay dividends throughout your career. Do your homework, and you’ll be just fine. 

Dissertation Committee Questions

• What does a dissertation committee do?
• Who serves on your dissertation committee?
• How do you choose dissertation committee members?
• What can you expect from your dissertation committee? 

What Does a Dissertation Committee Do?

The basic function of your dissertation committee, which typically consists of five members, is to guide you through the process of proposing, writing, and revising your dissertation.  

Dissertation committee members serve in a mentoring capacity, offering constructive feedback on your writing and research, as well as guiding your revision efforts. They are also the gatekeepers of the ivory tower, and the ultimate judges of whether or not your dissertation passes muster. 

The dissertation committee is usually formed once your academic coursework is completed. It is not uncommon in the humanities and social sciences for dissertation committee members to also write and evaluate qualifying exams, and of course serve as faculty. By the time you begin working on your dissertation, you may know the faculty members who will serve on your dissertation committee quite well. 

Who Serves on Your Dissertation Committee? 

To a degree, who serves on your dissertation committee is up to you. Dissertation committees usually consist mostly of faculty members from the doctoral student’s home department, though this can vary due to the rise of interdisciplinary programs. 

Some universities also allow an outside expert–a former professor or academic mentor from another university–to serve on your committee. It’s advisable to choose faculty members who know you and who are familiar with your work. 

While it’s a good idea to have a mix of faculty members, it’s also important to be mindful about the roles they can play. For instance, I always advise graduate students working in quantitative fields to have a statistician on their committee. When there’s big data to crunch, it never hurts to have a stats expert in your corner. You’ll also want at least one faculty member–besides your chair–whose research is in the same relative area as yours, or adjacent to it. 

How to Choose Dissertation Committee Members

Think Carefully. It’s tempting to approach a faculty member who is a superstar in their field (if not, necessarily, in yours) to lend a little extra sparkle to your own academic credentials. Or perhaps the kindly professor you can always count on for an easy A. Or even the faculty member you’d like to be friends with after graduate school. Right? 

Not so fast. Here are some things to keep in mind when building your dissertation committee dream team: 

• Avoid Superstars. Though the prospect of having your department’s most eminent name on your committee sounds exciting, their star power comes with a price. Between guest lectures, books, keynotes, and conference travel, their time is not their own, and it won’t be yours, either. Choose dissertation committee members who have time for you. 
• Choose faculty members you know, like, and can learn from. It’s not a bad idea to approach a professor whose coursework challenged you. One of the professors who served on my committee was such an exacting grader that my term papers for her courses were accepted for publication without revision (academia’s most coveted mythical creature). 
• Keep your eyes on the future. Members of your dissertation committee can be your mentors, co-authors, and research collaborators throughout your career. Choose them wisely. 

Forming Your Dissertation Committee

Reaching out to potential dissertation committee members and formally asking them to serve on your dissertation committee can be a surprisingly taxing process. It takes some planning, and you’ll want to put some thought into it before making the big ask. While being asked to serve on a dissertation committee won’t come as a surprise to most faculty–they know the drill–these are some considerations to know going in:

• Talk to your advisor before approaching anyone to be on your committee. Remember, your advisor knows their colleagues in a way that you don’t, and is also aware of departmental politics, potential personality conflicts, and which faculty members are a good fit on a dissertation committee. Trust your advisor’s judgement. 
• Know what you’re asking. Serving on a dissertation committee is a big time commitment for any faculty member. If they say yes to being on your committee, it means they are invested in you and your research, and they want to play a role in your future. It doesn’t hurt to send a thank-you note. 
• Don’t sweat it if they say no. It does not reflect on you as a student or a scholar. A good faculty member is aware of their limitations, and they probably just don’t have the time or bandwidth to take on another big commitment. Thank them and move on. 

Expectations

Once your dissertation committee is formed, it’s time to get down to business. As a faculty member, I love serving on dissertation committees because doing so gives me the chance to work with grad students one on one as they journey into new frontiers and carve a place for themselves in academia. It is a deep, rich learning experience, and it’s thrilling to watch students transform into scholars. 

Even though researching and writing a dissertation is the most challenging work you’ll ever do, recognize this time for the opportunity it truly represents. In your dissertation committee, you have a panel of experts all to yourself, and they’re eager to help you knock your dissertation out of the park. This is the experience of a lifetime; take advantage of your dissertation committee’s time and talent, and channel that energy and goodwill into your development as a scholar. 

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Courtney Watson, Ph.D.

Courtney Watson, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of English at Radford University Carilion, in Roanoke, Virginia. Her areas of expertise include undergraduate and graduate curriculum development for writing courses in the health sciences and American literature with a focus on literary travel, tourism, and heritage economies. Her writing and academic scholarship has been widely published in places that include  Studies in American Culture ,  Dialogue , and  The Virginia Quarterly Review . Her research on the integration of humanities into STEM education will be published by Routledge in an upcoming collection. Dr. Watson has also been nominated by the State Council for Higher Education of Virginia’s Outstanding Faculty Rising Star Award, and she is a past winner of the National Society of Arts & Letters Regional Short Story Prize, as well as institutional awards for scholarly research and excellence in teaching. Throughout her career in higher education, Dr. Watson has served in faculty governance and administration as a frequent committee chair and program chair. As a higher education consultant, she has served as a subject matter expert, an evaluator, and a contributor to white papers exploring program development, enrollment research, and educational mergers and acquisitions.

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How to Finish Your Dissertation in Half the Time

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• Dissertation Reading Committee

The Doctoral Dissertation Reading Committee consists of three faculty members (the principal dissertation advisor and two other readers) who agree to read a student’s dissertation and serve on the orals committee. All members of an approved reading committee are expected to sign the signature page of the completed dissertation. The reading committee normally serves on the oral exam committee, but not always. At the very least, the primary dissertation advisor and one reader from the reading committee serve on the oral exam committee. The student is responsible for obtaining signatures from advisor and readers before submitting the form to the Doctoral Programs Officer for final processing.

The rules governing the composition of the reading committee are as follows: at least one member of the committee must be from the GSE; the principal dissertation advisor must be on the Stanford Academic Council (AC); and any member of the committee that is not a member of the academic council must be approved by the Area Chair and the Associate Dean of Educational Affairs. In the last case, the Petition for Non-Academic Council Member to Serve on Doctoral Committee form (available from the Doctoral Programs Officer) and a current CV of the proposed member are required. This person must be particularly well qualified to consult on the dissertation topic and hold a PhD or an equivalent foreign degree. Non-AC members may not serve as dissertation advisors, but may serve as a co-advisor along with a member of the AC. Students may only have one non-AC member on the reading committee. The only exception to this rule is if you have more than the three members required for a reading committee. At least two members of the reading committee must be members of the Stanford AC. Reading Committee members must sign the Doctoral Reading Committee form (all forms located on the GSE website under current students>forms). Email confirmations or digital signatures will be accepted.

The reading committee formation, and any subsequent changes to the committee composition, are reviewed and approved by the Associate Dean of Educational Affairs. This signature is obtained by the Doctoral Programs Officer, not the student.

The University requires approval of the Doctoral Dissertation Reading Committee form prior to advancement to Terminal Graduate Registration (TGR) status, or before scheduling a University Oral Examination–whichever comes first in the student’s program. Further instructions for form completion are on the GSE Website.

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Build an Advisory Committee

All students in programs that require a thesis or dissertation will select a graduate advisory committee in consultation with their graduate advisor(s). Some non-thesis programs require a final oral exam (“defense”) with a committee, and some require a project, for which students may enter a “project advisor” in the Committee section of their MyPack portal. The project advisor must be from the student’s home department. If your program does not have a committee/project advisor requirement at all, you will see a message in the Committee section of your MyPack portal saying that a committee is not required.

Committee requirements may be found in the Graduate Handbook . You may also contact your Graduate Services Coordinator for guidance regarding any program-specific committee requirements.

As you speak with faculty members about adding them to your advisory committee, you may add them in your MyPack Portal and save your progress until your committee is complete:

MyPack Portal > Student Homepage > Planning & Enrollment tile > Graduate Degree Planning > Committee

• Log into MyPack Portal using your Unity ID and password
• View your Student Homepage
• Select the ‘Planning & Enrollment’ tile
• From the left-hand navigation menu, select ‘Graduate Degree Planning’
• Select ‘Committee’

To begin adding members, click the button next to “Add to Committee”:

When you add someone to your proposed committee, you will select from multiple “Graduate Committee Member Types.” The member types are summarized below, but please refer to the Graduate Handbook for more information.

• Chair – Your faculty advisor
• Co-Chair – You may have co-advisors who would each be designated as Co-Chair. If you have been approved to have a co-major, you must have a co-chair from each major.
• External – Someone from outside of NC State (or NCSU faculty/staff without graduate faculty status) who will be a voting member on your committee. This person will not count toward the minimum number of members required for the committee (four for doctoral and three for master’s). A current vitae must be uploaded when adding this member type, as external members require approval from the Dean of the Graduate School.
• Graduate School Representative (doctoral committees only) – If a doctoral graduate committee has no representation outside of the student’s graduate program, a Graduate School Representative (GSR) is required. Co-chairs can never be considered unbiased, even if they are from outside the student’s graduate program, and would therefore never be able to substitute for the GSR. If needed, the Graduate School can assign a GSR when a preliminary oral exam is requested. GSRs are non-voting members who must be present at both the preliminary and final oral exams.
• Inter-Institutional – A member of the graduate faculty from Inter-Institutional Universities may serve as one of the required committee members when appropriate.
• Member – NC State faculty with graduate faculty status .
• Technical Consultant – Someone from outside of NC State (or NCSU faculty/staff without graduate faculty status) who will be a non-voting member on your committee. This person will not count toward the minimum number of members required for the committee (four for doctoral and three for master’s). A current vitae must be uploaded when adding this member type, as Technical Consultants require approval from the Dean of the Graduate School.

When you are finished adding members, click the “Validate” button to confirm that your proposed committee meets the general Graduate School requirements (found in the Graduate Handbook ). Submit your valid committee for review by clicking the “Submit” button.

When you submit your committee for approval, each member will receive an automated email request to approve their role on your committee. After all members approve, your committee will be routed to your DGP (Director of Graduate Program) for approval.

• Any committee members from outside of NC State (or NCSU faculty/staff without graduate faculty status) will require additional approval from the Dean of the Graduate School before your committee is routed to your DGP. When the Graduate Dean approves an Inter-Institutional member, an external member, or a technical consultant, that member will receive an email to confirm that they are approved to serve on your committee.

An approved committee will be “locked.” If you need to make changes to an approved committee, please contact your Graduate Services Coordinator for assistance.

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Composition of the Ph.D. Dissertation Committee

The committee consists of a minimum of five members, one of whom is external to the Ph.D. program or to NJIT. The majority of the committee members are NJIT Graduate Faculty from the student's program or department having research experience or developing research interests related to the dissertation research. The dissertation committee chairperson typically is the doctoral candidate's dissertation advisor. This chairperson must be a tenured or tenure-track faculty member in the program. Two committee members, including an external member, may serve as co-advisors. The advisor, or at least one of the co-advisors, must be a tenured or tenure-track faculty member from the program. The other members of the dissertation committee, except for an external member from outside the university, must be members of NJIT’s Graduate Faculty . Former students of any committee member, who are less than four years beyond doctoral completion, are specifically excluded from membership. The external members should either have appropriate faculty rank elsewhere or have sufficient research expertise.

For committee approval, the Ph.D. Dissertation Committee Appointment Report must be submitted to the Graduate Studies Office. Please use this link to initiate the electronic signature process for the Dissertation Committee Appointment Report if not already submitted, as well as all subsequent PhD milestones.     

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The Dissertation Committee

The academic experience is greatly enhanced if faculty members other than the direct advisor are readily and formally available for consultation and discussion with the graduate student. To provide this element of supervision, a dissertation committee must be put in place for the Ph.D. student early in the dissertation stage. The graduate group is responsible for monitoring the progress of the student through the dissertation committee, as follows:

• A dissertation committee must consist of at least three faculty (including at least two members of the graduate group). While some graduate groups require all members of the dissertation committee be members of the graduate group or affiliated department, others encourage/require appointment of a faculty member from another department to encourage an interdisciplinary perspective. Students should be sure to review the policy about the composition of dissertation committee as they are building their committee.
• It is required that the dissertation committee meet with the student, as a committee, at least once per year to assess the student’s progress in the program and to provide advice on future work.
• The committee submits a written report to the graduate group chair, at least once per year, detailing its observations of the student’s progress and its recommendations.
• The student must be given the opportunity to respond to the committee’s report/recommendation and to append a response to the committee’s report.
• Copies of the report shall be given to the student and kept by the graduate group.
• This annual progress report will be used, in part, to determine the mark given for the student’s dissertation status course.

The Graduate Group is responsible for ensuring that the membership of the dissertation committee is recorded in the student’s official University record. The graduate division office at the home school will monitor compliance with this requirement through reports and an annual audit of the official student file.

Advising on Embargo Options

An important point of guidance from the advisor and dissertation committee – that is sometimes overlooked in the later stage of completion -- is to counsel the student on whether to embargo the dissertation. Penn requires open access publication of dissertations in the University’s institutional repository, ScholarlyCommons . Open access publication provides a wide audience, can help to market ideas to potential employers, and can help make plagiarism or theft much easier to detect. The open access dissertation will be available via the internet, including full text searching through search engines like Google. In cases where papers are in press, patents are pending, or where there are other intellectual property concerns, it may be beneficial to delay publication (commonly referred to as an "embargo"). Students should discuss embargo options with their advisor and their dissertation committee who can help to decide whether a delay in publication is necessary or advisable. Refer to the Dissertation Embargo Guidelines for more information about embargo options.

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Division of graduate studies menu, division of graduate studies, dissertation committee policy, dissertation committees.

The dissertation committee supervises a student’s dissertation work, determines the acceptability of the dissertation, and serves as the final examining committee.

Full Graduate Faculty Policy

The dissertation committee must be on file with the Division of Graduate Studies no later than 6 months prior to the final oral defense.

Appointment Procedures

Each department or program determines its own internal dissertation committee approval procedures. After the dissertation committee is approved by the department, the Graduate Coordinator submits the committee recommendation in GradWeb.

Once the Division of Graduate Studies has reviewed and approved the committee, the student and department will receive an email confirming that the committee has been approved by the Division of Graduate Studies.

Departmental policies for membership of doctoral committees should be guided by Division of Graduate Studies policy, but may be more restrictive than Division of Graduate Studies School policy. Petitions for exceptions to Division of Graduate Studies committee policies may be submitted using the general petition form .

Committee Membership

The dissertation committee consists of a minimum of four members , each with a particular role:

• 2 Core Members

Institutional Representative

• Committees in Biology, Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Physics also have an Advisor separate from the Chair

The chair has principal responsibility for advising the student. They should have adequate time available for this work and should expect to be accessible to the student.

If co-chairs are appointed, both co-chairs share the responsibility for the student's progress

The following requirements apply:

The chair must be a tenure-related member of the graduate faculty who holds a doctoral degree.

For a tenure-related member of the graduate faculty from a department other than the student’s degree-granting department, the student’s department must have authorized that faculty member to serve as chair (or co-chair) using the dissertation committee service nomination form .

Once a faculty member is authorized to chair in another department, they remain authorized to chair in that department indefinitely, or until the department asks to change the faculty member’s status.

Once authorized to serve in that capacity for a department, the faculty member can no longer serve as institutional representative for the department on future committees.

In those departments in which dissertation committees have both a chair and an advisor, the advisor(s) of a committee must be able and willing to assume principal responsibility for advising the student.

They should have adequate time available for this work and should expect to be accessible to the student. If co-advisors are appointed, both co-advisors share the responsibility for the student's progress.

In addition, the following requirements apply:

The faculty member must be a member of the graduate faculty with authorization to serve as advisor.

• Professors of practice may be appointed to the graduate faculty and granted authorization to serve as a dissertation advisor in the student’s degree-granting department.

For a member of the graduate faculty from a department other than the student’s degree-granting department, the student’s department must have authorized that faculty member to serve as advisor using the dissertation committee service nomination form .

Once a faculty member is authorized to serve as advisor in another department, the authorization remains indefinitely, or until the department asks to change the faculty member’s status.

Once authorized to serve as an advisor for a department, the faculty member can no longer serve as institutional representative for the department on future committees, except in the:

• Department of Biology
• Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
• Department of Physics

In these departments, if the advisor is not a member of the degree-granting department, the institutional representative must be from a different department or research institute than the advisor.

Core Members

At least one core member must be a member of the graduate faculty (including non-tenure-related members) from the student’s degree-granting department.

The remaining member may be a:

Member of the graduate faculty from the student’s degree-granting department

• Member of the graduate faculty from another UO department

Non-tenure-track faculty member who is not a member of the graduate faculty

Faculty member from another college or university

• Qualified practicing professional or community member

The institutional representative serves in the role of impartial, “outside” committee member who ensures that all rules and standard practices governing committee procedures are followed.

The institutional representative typically also offers substantive expertise related to the dissertation, although that is not required.

The institutional representative must meet the following requirements:

Must be a tenure-related member of the graduate faculty .

Must be from a University of Oregon department other than the student’s degree-granting department.

In the departments of biology, chemistry and biochemistry, and physics, where there the role of chair and advisor are separate, if the advisor is not a member of the degree-granting department, the institutional representative must be from a different department or research institute than the advisor.

Additional Core Members (optional)

Additional members may be appointed to the dissertation committee, at the discretion of the student’s degree-granting department.

An additional core nember may be a:

Interdisciplinary Doctoral Degree Programs

Each interdisciplinary degree program shall maintain a list of faculty members appointed to the program for purposes of graduate faculty membership and designated by the department as eligible to serve as chairs/advisors and core members or as core members only.

If a faculty member is appointed to serve as chairs/advisors or core members, they may not serve as institutional representatives for committees in that program.

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Dissertation Committee

Committee makeup.

Dissertation Chair

Role: Primary project manager of the committee. The Chair will have both subject matter and general methodology expertise and will guide the student through the dissertation process. Duration: Begin in year 3 and continue until completion of the dissertation Time Commitment: 24 hours per session with student Selection: Doctoral students will select/approve their Chairs (see below for how to select a Chair)

Committee Member One

Role: Advise students on possible dissertation topics by narrowing down research interests. This committee member will have both subject matter and general methodology expertise. Duration: Begin in year 1 and continue in this role until completion of year 2. In year 3 the Advisor continues to support the dissertation committee in the role of Committee Member # 1 until completion of the dissertation Time Commitment: 2 hours per session in year 1, and 2 and 4 hours per dissertation course in year 3 with student Selection: The Dissertation Director will assign this committee member after matching expertise with student focus.

Committee Member Two

Role: Review dissertation document in preparation for preliminary and final defense. This committee member will have both support subject matter/and general methodology expertise. Duration: Begin in year 3, for courses 3 and 4 (BUS 902 & BUS 903) Time Commitment: 2 hours per course with student Selection: The Dissertation Director/Program Chair will assign this committee member after matching expertise with student focus.

Responsibilities by Roles

The responsibilities of the Chair include:

• Staying current with dissertation policies and procedures
• Implementing any changes
• Advising the candidate from the first dissertation course until the completion of the dissertation and graduation (BUS 901 – BUS 903)
• Guiding the candidate to complete a work plan for completion of the dissertation in each dissertation course
• Guiding the candidate toward achieving a high level of technical and ethical quality in the dissertation research
• Assisting the candidate completing the CITI and in navigating the IRB approval process
• Assisting the candidate to complete their proposal
• Providing guidance on the dissertation structure, formatting, content
• Referring candidate to support functions when necessary – Doctoral Writing Center, Methodology Specialists
• Guiding the candidate in the selection of methods/procedures for data collection and analysis
• Preparing the candidate for the defense process

Dissertation Committee Members - Advisor/Reader

All members of the candidate’s committee share responsibility in ensuring that the candidate produces high-quality scholarship. The responsibilities of the Committee Members include:

• Providing subject matter expertise and guidance
• Reading drafts and provide meaningful feedback at each defense stage
• Providing guidance on correct usage of APA
• Directing student to editors list

Doctoral Candidate

The responsibilities of you as a doctoral candidate include:

• Proposing a viable project that has collectible data to support conclusions.
• Managing the doctoral research process, including initiation and continuation of communications with the Dissertation Chair and the Dissertation Committee Members.
• Completing weekly work plans and contact form in GAP and bi-weekly meetings with the Dissertation Chair.
• Meeting and abiding by the deadlines in the written and approved work plan and contact form.
• Completing a successful preliminary defense.
• Conducting ethical research that adheres to the approved written methodology received by the Institutional Review Board (IRB).
• Completion of CITI certification
• Completing a successful final defense.
• Incorporating any feedback and recommendations from the Dissertation Chair and the Dissertation Committee Members.
• Having a deliverable, scholarly written, edited, and properly formatted final draft of the dissertation research meets the university’s content and quality standards. (This is the completed Dissertation that must be successfully defended.)
• Keeping the Dissertation Chair and the Dissertation Committee Members informed of developments as the research study is conceptualized, designed, conducted, and written. A Doctoral Candidate may consult with an additional statistician, Methodologist, or editor, but in no case should any person other than the Doctoral Candidate conduct the work associated with the dissertation research.

Note: If an event occurs that prohibits the dissertation research’s progression and completion; the Doctoral Candidate must communicate with the Dissertation Chair to obtain advice, service, or assistance. If any significant modifications need to be made to the timeline, the Doctoral Candidate must seek approval from the Dissertation Chair and the Dissertation Director.

Selecting Your Dissertation Chair

At the end of the second year, after successful completion of RES 751, doctoral students will select their Dissertation Chair. The Dissertation Chair serves as the committee lead, providing expert support structure in content, methodology and guidance throughout the dissertation process.

After successful completion of RES 751, students will receive an email from Student Services with a link to the Dissertation Committee Selection Form. Students will use this form to identify their first and second choice for Dissertation Chair.

Considerations for Selection

Selecting your Dissertation Chair is a crucial step in the dissertation process and should be done so with careful consideration. For advice on what to consider prior to selection, please see here .

To see a list of the available Dissertation Chairs and their subject matter expertise and qualifications, please see here .

Additional Support

While the students’ Committee Members and Chair will be able to provide substantial support throughout the dissertation process, additional dissertation support is available.

Doctoral Writing Center Specialists

Doctoral Writing Center Specialists are available to assist students from the time they begin their prospectus until the end of your dissertation. The specialists are able to guide the process of writing, organization and revising the dissertation.

The responsibilities of the Doctoral Writing Center Specialists include:

• Provide suggestions and considerations for the author on organization, mechanics, cohesion, or flow.
• Focus on the areas that the author has specified the need for.
• Discuss aspects related to writing, not content.

How to Get in Touch: Book an appointment easily here!

Methodology Specialists

Methodology Specialists provide support to dissertation students if it is determined that a proposed dissertation is sufficiently complex to require more in-depth guidance. Individuals in this role guide dissertation students in selecting the best approach to data collection and analysis.

Roles and responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Providing in-depth guidance into both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies
• Meeting students for 2-hour consultancy sessions (days/times may vary)
• Proposing the most appropriate research design fit to address a problem statement and research questions or for testing stated hypotheses
• Data collection and analysis
• Presentation of the data
• Conclusions drawn from analyses

How to Get in Touch: Please send an email to [email protected] for a current list of methodologists available.

Common Questions

For a list of responses to common questions regarding the chair selection process, please see here .

Contact Options If you have questions regarding any element of this process, please reach out to:

Dr. Geraldine Goodstone, Dissertation Director – [email protected] Dr. Alex Sherm, Program Chair – [email protected]

Ph.D. dissertation advisor and committee selection

Each student must secure a Doctoral Thesis Advisor (Dissertation Advisor, Advisor), and Dissertation Committee. The student should choose the Advisor according to her/his research interests and the field of mathematics where she/he wishes to pursue writing a dissertation. Typically the Advisor is a faculty member with whom the student has interacted previously, for instance, by having taken classes with her/him. The student should identify an Advisor as early as possible, ideally during their first two years in the program, but no later than by the end of their 3 rd year.

The Dissertation Committee, chosen in consultation between the student and her/his Advisor, serves as an advisory board to the student during her/his doctoral program, on issues such as class selection, research work, Oral Exam, dissertation preparation, and defense. The student is encouraged to form this committee as early as possible, but not later than the end of their 3 rd year.

The Dissertation Committee must consist of a minimum of 5 graduate faculty members, including the Advisor, who functions as the committee’s chair. At least 2 other committee members must be from the student’s major department/program, and at least 1 committee member must be from another department in a field related to the student’s major. Additionally, at least one Graduate School representative must serve on the committee. Formal approval of the committee is made by the Graduate Dean.

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Please note: this represents the program handbook for the 2022-2023 academic year only. For an archived version of a previous year's handbook, or to obtain a hard copy of this current year's program handbook, please contact the  program director .

Thesis Committee

The Ph.D. Thesis Committee has the responsibility of advising a student on all aspects of the thesis experience, from the proposal process through the preparation and defense of the final document.

The Committee should be comprised of

• the Thesis Advisor(s),
• the Thesis Committee Chair who presides at all committee meetings (must be a BE faculty member), and
• at least one additional member (unrestricted).

The student and research supervisor should agree upon members of a Thesis Committee, and the student is responsible for inviting faculty to sit on their committee. Beyond administration of the Oral Exam, the Thesis Committee is meant to provide guidance on the various aspects of the student’s project; Thesis Committee members should therefore be selected with this goal in mind.

Forming the Committee

During the summer of the second year, the student must submit the BE PhD Thesis Committee form  to the BE Academic Office ) to request approval of the Thesis Committee membership.

Changing the Committee

The Thesis Committee constituted for the Oral Exam/Thesis Proposal may change over the course of the student’s research, as determined by the student and advisor with approval by the Graduate Program Chair. Students should submit a new PhD Thesis Committee form (above) to the BE Academic Office.

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Prelim and Dissertation Committee Membership

• The  Prelim Advisor  (for Prelim Committees) and Dissertation Advisor  (for Dissertation Committees) is the primary intellectual mentor for the student. The Advisor is a full-time faculty member of Statistical Science (whether primary or secondary) and of the Duke Graduate Faculty.
• The  Committee Chair  is a full-time faculty member of Statistical Science and of the Duke Graduate Faculty. Except in rare circumstances (cases covered by points 3 and 4 below) the Advisor is also the Committee Chair.
• Secondary faculty members in Statistical Science that are full-time members of the Duke graduate faculty are eligible to serve as Prelim and/or Dissertation Advisors, though not as Committee Chairs.
• If an existing dissertation Advisor leaves the department for another position, s/he can remain as Advisor though not as Dissertation Committee Chair. A proposal to remain as Advisor must be agreed on by the student and existing committee members, as well as the Director of Graduate Studies, prior to proposal to the Dean of the Graduate School.
• The Committee has (at least) three full-time Duke graduate faculty members from Statistical Science; this count of three includes the Chair. One or more of these can be a secondary faculty member in Statistical Science.
• External Member: Both Prelim and Dissertation Committees have one external/minor area member. This person is a full-time member of the Duke graduate faculty usually from another Duke department. For Dissertation committees (but not Prelim committees) ad-hoc appointments are sometimes made of Adjunct or Visiting Professors in Statistical Science, or researchers outside Duke who are closely affiliated with the program and specific research interests of the student. These irregular, ad-hoc appointments are made by the Graduate School on the basis of a proposal from the DGS, and require a CV and a short note on why the person is being proposed, what the nature/extent/expectation of his/her role is, and why there are no eligible non-Statistical Science Duke professors to serve as external. The Committee Chair, or proposed Chair, is responsible for providing this information/documentation to the DGS with the committee proposal form.
• In the normal course of things it is preferable to have a single Advisor, to be clear about where the primary responsibility for intellectual leadership and mentoring rests. The provision for additional faculty members on the active Committee usually provides coverage of scientific/statistical areas without needing Co-Advisors. However, in (rare) cases when the thesis research is really in two areas, or two distinct aspects of one area, then Co-Advisors may be proposed.
• Only faculty eligible to serve as Advisor may be proposed as Co-Advisor. In particular, Adjuncts, visitors, non-Statistical Science professors from Duke, or researchers from outside Duke are not eligible to serve as either Advisors or Co-Advisors; the External Member role provides the formal mechanism for such researchers to actively participate and contribute research guidance to a student.
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Dissertation Advisory Committee and Thesis Defense

Keeping students on track towards excellence and completion of thesis research.

The semester after the successful completion of the Qualifying Exam, each student and their research mentor put together a dissertation advisory committee (DAC) that contains at least three members and eventually 5 members that are required to attend the dissertation defense. This committee is expected to meet with the student every semester.  Not all members of the committee need to be present at each meeting (three members are sufficient for scheduling).

At least two DAC members must be from the group of GPN training faculty (ideally one from each campus). The final 5 member composition of the DAC at the defense includes a minimum of 2 readers of the dissertation.  At least one thesis reader must not be a collaborator on the thesis project, although she/he can be a collaborator with the laboratory. The thesis mentor is the first reader. A completed Request for Special Service Appointment Form must be submitted for each non-BU committee member; students should submit these forms through the GMS registrar forms website . An electronic copy of the form should be emailed to the GPN Assistant Director .  GMS will send the requesting student notice of the approval of the Special Service Appointment. The outside member can be a second or third reader, although this is not required. Members of a student’s Qualifying Exam Committee can also participate on their DAC; in fact, the three examining committee members may often end up being the readers of the dissertation, but this is not mandatory. The Chair of the committee cannot be a reader of the dissertation. The Chair’s chief responsibility is to make sure that the student works with the office to schedule the necessary meetings and serves as an interface between the committee’s recommendations to the student and any other concerns that the student or mentor may have during the training process. The Chair also formally introduces the student at the open defense presentation.

Composition of the DAC must be approved by the GPN Program Director in consultation with the GEC and when relevant, the Computational Neuroscience Curriculum Committee. Students should contact the GPN Program Director to obtain approval for the proposed DAC committee. During the DAC meeting (limited to 1 hour per semester) students make a short PowerPoint presentation to the group highlighting their research accomplishments over the past academic period (with review of research goals) and receive feedback from faculty regarding any issues in approach or interpretation. Scheduling of the DAC meetings is done by the student (with guidance from the GPN office if needed). At the conclusion of the DAC, the committee chair is responsible for completing the  GPN Dissertation Advisory Committee Form and submitting it to the GPN office.

FORMAL PROGRESS REPORT

Usually one year before their pre-defense, with the approval of their Dissertation Advisory Committee (DAC), students make a formal oral presentation (50 min) to their committee and to the neuroscience community at large.  This presentation is followed by a short formal meeting of their committee to discuss their progress and whether they are on target for the completion of their research and eventually the pre-defense (see below).  Students are encouraged to schedule the Progress Report (third or fourth year in the program) once they have enough preliminary data to indicate that their Aims are sound and there is sufficient progress in their research direction for presentation and discussion.  The outside member usually does not attend this exercise although they are definitely welcome. The seminar should take place at least one year before the defense date.  It is expected that the student will provide a written progress report, not to exceed ten pages (double-spaced), that will be given to the members of the DAC one week before the seminar. It is encouraged that this report take the form of a research manuscript to motivate the student and mentor towards generating a draft of the student’s first author paper, a graduation requirement in GPN.  At a minimum the written report should include:

• Statement of the problem and its significance. The hypothesis or hypotheses being tested.
• Literature review and background.
• Methods in use.
• Studies completed by the student.
• Proposal for future work and discussion of expected outcomes (include potential problems and alternative plans).

DISSERTATION OUTLINE/PROSPECTUS

Approximately 7-9 months prior to the defense date (Check Graduation Calendar ), the student must submit a dissertation outline (or prospectus for current PIN students), approved by the first and second reader (third reader is optional), to GMS using the GMS Dissertation Prospectus Outline Approval Page. All forms can be obtained from the GMS website and the submission is electronic.  A copy of this document should be sent to the GPN Assistant Director  for inclusion in the student’s files. This document will typically consist of an outline that provides proposed chapter and section headings for the dissertation document with headings that describe the key findings.  Example outlines are on file in the GPN office.

DIPLOMA APPLICATION

A GMS PhD Diploma Application must be submitted to GMS  approximately 4 months prior to the defense date (Check the Graduation Calendar ). Due date varies with graduation cycle.

DISSERTATION ABSTRACT

A dissertation abstract conforming to GMS format requirements must be approved by the first reader, and GPN Program Director, and submitted to GMS (using the PhD Dissertation Defense Abstract Form on the GMS Form website at least 3 weeks prior to the dissertation defense. Please note that prior to electronic submission of the defense abstract, students are required to meet with the GMS Registrar. The abstract must also be circulated to all DAC members prior to the Pre-Defense DAC Meeting.

PRE-DEFENSE AND DEFENSE

A pre-defense meeting of the DAC usually occurs two weeks prior to the defense to make sure that the quality of the dissertation document is close to being acceptable for the degree and to review necessary paperwork.  At this time, the committee will review the abstract and title.  Members of the DAC should have two weeks to review the thesis before the pre-defense. There is no oral presentation associated with this meeting.  The outside member usually does not attend this exercise but does provide the student with feedback on the document, either by email or phone, before the meeting takes place.  In most cases, the Chair of the committee makes sure that the views of the outside member are represented in the discussions.

SCHEDULING OF THESIS DEFENSE

After submission of the abstract and at least two weeks prior to the Thesis Defense, students must submit the Oral Defense Scheduling Form. At the time of their defense, students will give a 50-minute oral presentation, followed by 10 minutes of questions, that is open to all members of the University. We suggest GPN students have their defense in the Eichenbaum Colloquium Room (CILSE 101), 610 Commonwealth Avenue or in 5 Cummington Mall, Room 113.  This public forum will be followed by a closed session of the DAC where the student is asked to respond to questions put forth by the committee to test her/his ability to defend the work presented in the dissertation document. It is expected that all members of the DAC will attend the entire formal defense, which should last a maximum of two hours.

DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO GMS

After the three dissertation readers have signed the dissertation signature sheets (TO BE PROVIDED BY THE STUDENT), the finalized dissertation is submitted to GMS to complete the PhD requirements. Note that GMS must approve the dissertation formatting before the final document can be submitted.

GMS DEADLINES

Deadlines for submission of forms: see the GMS Graduation Calendar

Specific forms can be obtained at the GMS Student Forms Page

All faculty on the DAC must have an appointment at BU.  It is important to request a Special Service Appointment (due at time of Abstract Approval) for all non-BU members.  Please notify the GPN office if you need any help in this matter.

Dissertation Committee

The dissertation committee form affirms that a candidate has an approved  proposal or prospectus and that their  dissertation committee  is formed in accordance with program policies.  

DEADLINE: March 15 of the student’s fourth year or be placed on academic probation.

How to submit an approved dissertation committee form

The dissertation committee form is available in the Laney Connect Hub . Log in with your Emory credentials and follow the instructions to locate and submit the form.

Please note: if you have an external member of your committee, you will need to attach either a completed approval or a request for approval with a CV of the proposed member.

The Laney Graduate School team will review the form and confirm that the committee meets LGS policy requirements. You and your program administrator will receive a confirmation email when you submit the form and it is approved.

How to “Change” or add a “New” member of a committee*

The dissertation committee form is available in the Laney Connect Hub , in the "Milestones" section.  Log in with your Emory credentials and follow the instructions to locate and submit the form.

Please note:  If you have an external member of your committee, you will need to attach either a completed approval or a request for approval with a CV of the proposed member.

Note: If your committee changes, you MUST submit documentation as soon as the change occurs . If there is a discrepancy between the members listed on the committee form and other dissertation-related materials IT CAN delay your graduation.

Timing and Sanction

Student must obtain approval no later than March 15 of their fourth year. 

Students who do not meet this deadline will be placed on academic probation, will not be eligible for PDS funds, and may forfeit financial support.  These sanctions will be lifted when the student files a dissertation committee form.

Membership and Request for External Committee Members

The Laney Graduate School policies for dissertation committee membership are in the LGS Handbook .  Below is an outline.  Programs may have additional policies, and dissertation committees must meet both program and Laney Graduate School requirements.

• At least three members of the dissertation committee must be Laney Graduate School faculty.
• Emory faculty who are not Laney Graduate School faculty may serve on the committee, but do not count towards the three LGS faculty requirement.
• Members of the Emory community who are not faculty may serve on the committee with the Dean's permission.  Instructions are below.
• Scholars at other institutions may serve on the committee with the Dean's permission.  Instructions are below. 
• When a dissertation committee member, co-chair/co-advisor, and chair/advisor who is an LGS faculty member either moves from Emory to another academic or research institution or retires, he or she can continue to serve as an LGS faculty member for a limited time.  See the Handbook for details.

External Committee Member Request

• This applies to proposed members in categories 3 and 4 above.
• The request should be made by the Director of Graduate Studies / Program Director, in the form of a memo addressed to the Dean of the Laney Graduate School.
• The request should explain how the proposed member will contribute to the candidate's committee, and describe the expertise the proposed member brings.
• The request should be accompanied by the proposed member's current CV.
• The request should list the LGS graduate faculty members who are currently participating on the dissertation committee.
• The request should be submitted with the LGS dissertation committee form.
• If the request was submitted independently, before the LGS dissertation committee form, then the email giving permission should be uploaded with the LGS dissertation committee form.

Requesting an Extension for Chair/Advisor of the Dissertation Committee

If the faculty member who serves as a the Chair or Co-Chair of your committee left Emory and has served for the full amount of time allowed under our policy in the LGS Handbook, it is possible to request an extension to allow the member to continue to serve for a limited additional period.  This request is made by the Director of Graduate Studies/Program Director on behalf of the former Laney Graduate School faculty member.

The form for requesting an extension is in the Laney Connect Hub . Log in with your Emory credentials and follow the instructions to locate and submit the form.

Effective Date and Previous Policy

This policy was effective starting fall semester 2017.   Students who started their programs before the fall of 2017 must meet the dissertation committee deadline in effect when they first enrolled, and must have an approved dissertation committee no later than August 1 before their fifth year of study.   Students who started their programs before the fall of 2017 will not be placed on probation if they fail to meet the dissertation proposal defense deadline.

For students who started their degree programs prior to fall 2017, please refer to the previous candidacy policy and associated requirements (found most recently in the  LGS Handbook ).

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Thesis and dissertation information

College guidelines for written dissertation .

Selection of thesis topic and advisor

All incoming students will be classified into two groups before the start of the semester, preplaced and unplaced. If both the student and the advisor agree to work together more than one week before the semester starts and they notify the department head of this decision, then the student is preplaced. As a result, that project will not be advertised to the other students, and the student will not be eligible to select projects available to the unplaced students. Those not preplaced automatically join the unplaced group. The unplaced students are given seven weeks from the start of the semester to mid-semester break to meet faculty and learn about available projects. During this period, faculty may not promise placement to any of the students in the unplaced group. Before the mid-semester break, all unplaced students specify their project preferences and are then placed by agreement of the faculty.

Selection of dissertation committee

The candidate, in consultation with the advisor, should arrange a doctoral thesis committee before the beginning of the fifth semester. The doctoral thesis committee will be chaired by the advisor, and will have at least three additional members. The requirements for the committee are that at least two of the members have a primary affiliation with the MSE department* and at least one of the members is not primarily affiliated** with the MSE department. The candidate should carefully choose committee members who can provide supplemental resources, stimulate critical thinking, and assist in the candidate’s development. As such, the candidate is strongly encouraged to interact regularly with his/her committee members.

The candidates should continue to further develop their proposal presented at the RPE detailing the research plan and updating the timeline, results, and analysis sections. These developments should be discussed with doctoral thesis committee members, either individually or as a group, by the beginning of the fifth semester.

Thesis overview

Before the beginning of the seventh semester, the candidate must convene their thesis committee for an overview of her/his dissertation.

The candidate should prepare a written document and an oral presentation that convey and justify her/his plan for completing her/his dissertation. The written document and the 20-30 minute presentation should be prepared in accordance with the standards for a final dissertation but are expected to be briefer; the document must be distributed to committee members at least 10 days prior to the oral presentation; if the deadline is not met, then the committee shall cancel the scheduled event, and a new date shall be set. A plan and a projected timeline to carry out the necessary work to complete their dissertation should be given in the presentation. It is the candidate’s responsibility to post a public announcement in the department at least two weeks prior to the date of the exam that includes the following information: the date, time, place, candidate name, title, and dissertation committee.

• The student must attach as a separate appendix or a clearly labeled chapter within the main body of the document, a copy of each manuscript for which that student is an author. The candidate must attach a detailed plan for how the research results will be disseminated in peer-reviewed journals. The committee will provide feedback on the publication plan.

It is important to emphasize that, at the time of the overview, there may be considerable work remaining before the thesis is completed and conclusive findings may not yet have been reached. However, the overview presentation and document should demonstrate the following five items:

• The candidate is able to place their research in the context of the background literature and defend how their research represents (will represent) an advancement of the state of knowledge in the field.
• A clear hypothesis (or clear hypotheses) has guided the production and analysis of publishable research results.
• The path to reach the stated goals of the thesis is clear and the candidate has mastered the skills required to complete the research; questions of feasibility should be largely absent.
• The scope of the research, analysis, and integration are deemed appropriate by the committee to form an acceptable Ph.D. dissertation.

At the conclusion of the overview, the committee shall meet in private to prepare written comments for the candidate that include feedback on the four points above, as well as suggestions for enhancing the quality of the thesis. Each committee member will fill out a Thesis Overview Feedback Form ( see Appendix D of Ph.D. Student Handbook ); after the overview, the advisor fills out a Thesis Overview Feedback Summary Form ( see Appendix E of Ph.D. Student Handbook ) that is afterwards provided to the student. This form, with a written response, must accompany the final thesis hard copy when submitted to the committee. If the committee is not satisfied that the overview demonstrates a feasible plan for the thesis, the candidate may be asked to repeat the overview between four and six months after the initial examination. Approval of the committee is a requirement for continuation in the doctoral program.

The final dissertation

The doctoral dissertation must embody the results of extended research, be an original contribution to knowledge, and include material worthy of publication. It should demonstrate the candidate’s ability to conduct an independent investigation, to abstract principles upon which predictions can be made, and to interpret in a logical manner facts and phenomena revealed by the research.

The written dissertation must be prepared according to the college guidelines . The thesis document (hard copy + soft copy) along with a response to the Thesis Overview Feedback Summary Form must be submitted to the committee at least three (3) weeks (i.e., 21 days) before the tentative defense date; if the deadline is not met, then the committee shall cancel the scheduled event, and a new date shall be set. The committee members have one week to verify that the overview comments were properly incorporated in the thesis document. If the dissertation is accepted by the Committee, the candidate is eligible for a final public examination. If not, then the committee informs the student in writing of deficiencies that need to be resolved before a new thesis defense date can be scheduled. The committee decides by majority vote, with a tied vote resolved by the Department Head. It is the candidate’s responsibility to post a public announcement in the department at least two weeks prior to the date of the defense that includes the following information: the date, time, place, candidate name, title, and dissertation committee.

Upon satisfactorily passing this examination, the candidate will be recommended for the doctoral degree.

Doctoral Dissertation Advisory Committee

Advisory Committee

After passing the comprehensive examination, the student will select a Dissertation Committee which must be approved by the ORLD Coordinator and the Dean of Graduate Studies. The Committee will include at least four (4) members selected from the following categories. Each voting member must have UMES Graduate Faculty Status. The categories for committee members are as follows:

• Chair Select from ORLD full-time faculty, as well as UMES full-time faculty. Previous Doctoral Committee Chair experience is preferred. 
• Core Faculty Select from ORLD adjunct and full-time faculty, UMES faculty, or faculty affiliated with another accredited university who have expertise in the student’s area of interest. 
• Research Faculty   Select from ORLD adjunct and full-time faculty, UMES faculty, or faculty affiliated with another accredited university who have expertise in research design and/or statistics. 
• Associate Member or Secondary Core or Research Faculty This person may be selected because of expertise in a desired area.

One committee member (with full-time faculty status in the ORLD program) will be assigned the role of Dean’s Representative, a position that reports on the proceedings to the Dean of Graduate Studies. 

Proposal Defense

The student and his/her Dissertation Committee will agree upon a dissertation subject and accompanying research design. A quantitative proposal and dissertation manuscript will include the first four chapters (Introduction, Review of the Literature, Theoretical Framework and Hypotheses, and Methodology) of the final dissertation (usually six chapters: Introduction, Review of the Literature, Theoretical Framework and Hypotheses, Methodology, Results, and Conclusions/Discussion). A qualitative proposal and dissertation may contain a different number of chapters than those noted for quantitative proposals. Proposal templates are  available here . The student will follow the APA Style Manual (7th or latest edition) regarding referencing and appropriate citations. The students will follow the UMES Thesis and Dissertation Style Guide ( available here ) for specific formatting of the document.

The Proposal Defense, administered by the Dissertation Committee, is an oral examination of the research proposal. All members of the Dissertation Committee must attend the Proposal Defense either in person or via prior approved audio/video technology. If an emergency arises among a Committee member, the Dean of Graduate Studies may substitute that member with the Program Coordinator or the Dean’s Representative to the Dissertation Committee so that the Proposal Defense may take place. At least three Dissertation Committee members must be physically present for the proposal defense.

During the Proposal Defense—the oral examination—the Dissertation Committee members examine the student on all aspects of the proposed dissertation research as well as whether the student has the proper motivation, technical and intellectual capacity, and resources to complete the research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree.

Following the completion of the Proposal oral examination process, the Dissertation Committee will hold a closed meeting in which decisions will be made concerning the final form of the proposal. The student will be called back into the room to hear the Dissertation Committee decision. Dissertation Committee consensus is desired; however, the student passes the proposal with at least three of four affirmative votes. The student is required to bring  ORLD Form B  to the proposal defense. It is expected that the Dissertation Committee will work with the student to make any required changes. When the Dissertation Committee recommends substantive changes in the proposal, the student will not move forward to submit to the UMES Institutional Review Board (IRB) the request for approval of human subjects data collection until all edits have been made. After passing the Proposal Defense, the student is allowed to submit materials as needed to the UMES Institutional Review Board (IRB).

After passing the Proposal Defense, the student is admitted to candidacy provided that he/she submits the application for  Admission to Candidacy . This application form may be obtained from the UMES Graduate School ( https://www.umes.edu/Grad/ ). The timeline for Admission to Candidacy is five years after enrollment in the program.

If the student fails the Proposal Defense, he/she must re-defend the research proposal. A second failure or failure to re-defend within one year (but no sooner than 30 working days) of the first proposal defense results in cancellation of admission.

Dissertation Defense

The ability to undertake independent research and provide sufficient evidence of scholarship is demonstrated by submission of an original dissertation, which is required of all candidates for a PhD degree. A minimum of 12 dissertation hours is required to complete the ORLD Doctoral degree program. Prior to admission to candidacy, the student may register for no more than six (6) dissertation hours. After registering for all 12 required hours, the candidate must register for one dissertation hour per semester and summer session, including the semester or session in which he/she defends his/her dissertation. In other words, the candidate must be continually enrolled in dissertation hours until graduation. The candidate has up to four (4) years to successfully defend his/her dissertation from the time he/she was admitted to candidacy.

The Dissertation Defense MUST be physically attended by ALL members of the candidate’s Dissertation Committee, and the Dissertation Defense must be held in UMES facilities. At the completion of the defense, the Dissertation Committee will hold a meeting (without the candidate) to discuss decisions regarding the candidate’s pass/fail status and any recommendations for the final form of the dissertation manuscript. The student will be called back into the room to hear the Dissertation Committee decision. The Dissertation Committee has the following alternatives regarding the pass/fail status for the candidate:

• Accept the dissertation without any recommended changes and sign the appropriate form.   
• Accept the dissertation with recommendations for changes, and, EXCEPT FOR THE DISSERTATION COMMITTEE CHAIR, sign the appropriate form. After the candidate makes the recommended changes, the Dissertation Committee chair will review the dissertation and, upon his/her approval, sign  ORLD Form E .   
• Recommend revisions to the dissertation manuscript and NOT sign  ORLD Form E  until the candidate has made the changes and submitted the revised dissertation manuscript for Dissertation Committee approval. Then, the Dissertation Committee will sign  Form E  if they approve of the changes.   
• Recommend revisions and convene a second meeting of the Dissertation Defense. The second defense may take place no fewer than 6 months and no later than 12 months after the first defense. Candidates may be examined no more than twice. After failing the second attempt, the candidate’s admission to the graduate program is terminated.   
• Rule the dissertation manuscript and defense unsatisfactory; therefore, the student fails and may not re-defend. Before or after recommended changes, the candidate fails if two (2) of four (4) Dissertation Committee members do not sign  ORLD Form E . In addition, the ORLD Coordinator may override any Dissertation Committee pass/fail decision. Circumstances for an override could include  a.)  a dissertation manuscript not in compliance with ORLD specified outline/style;  b.)  failure of the student to comply with IRB human subjects protection requirements; or  c.)  acts of plagiarism and faulty data handling and other examples of academic dishonesty that were found. These problems would go back to the student and the RAC with appropriate action to be taken as warranted, e.g., if an academic honesty or IRB issue and/or revisiting the dissertation manuscript for revision and a subsequent review following the above five pass/fail alternatives.

Although not an ORLD requirement, the Doctoral candidate may request a Public Seminar (open to the public) to serve as a dress rehearsal for the Dissertation Defense. The request should be submitted to the ORLD Coordinator.

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Campus Dissertation Year Fellowships

Campus currently offers the following dissertation year fellowships. The department may nominate a select number of Literature PhD students each year, and students will apply below for consideration. Students should closely review each fellowship's details for the eligibility requirements and award details.

• UC President's Dissertation Year Fellowship
• Fletcher's Jones Dissertation Year Fellowship
• Marye Anne Fox Dissertation Year Fellowship

It is the student’s responsibility to ask their faculty advisor to submit the letter of support to [email protected]  by the application deadline. It is also the student’s responsibility to ensure that their application is completed and all required information and attachments have been provided. Incomplete submissions will be disregarded.

Application

• Independent Study Request
• Committee Constitution
• Pre-Qualifying Meeting Worksheet
• Ph.D. Qualifying Exam Schedule Request
• Ph.D Dissertation Defense Information
• Dissertation Year Fellowship
• Department Letterhead Request
• PhD Travel Fund Request Form

PhD Program Handbook

Always refer to the PhD Handbook for the official department policies and procedures.  If you do not find the answer to your question(s) there, please contact PhD advising ( [email protected] ) for guidance.