Qualifying Exam/Admission to Candidacy/Dissertation

During the fourth semester, the student undertakes a series of activities which lead to admission to candidacy for the PhD degree.

  1. Early in the fourth semester, a student should select a qualifying exam committee consisting of his/her dissertation advisor and at least two additional faculty members. The registrar must be notified once the committee has been selected and approved by the advisor.
  2. The student prepares a 1-2 page double spaced preliminary research proposal and distributes it to his/her committee.
  3. The student meets with the qualifying committee to discuss the preliminary proposal. At this meeting, the committee also identifies 3 or 4 additional topic areas on which the student will be questioned during the oral qualifying exam.
  4. The student prepares a 15-20 page double spaced dissertation prospectus in the form of a research proposal, which should contain: a brief literature review indicating the present state of the field of intended research; a specific question or questions that will be addressed; and a research plan including the materials and methods to be used; preliminary results, if any; work to be undertaken in the future; and a provisional timetable for completion of the dissertation. The prospectus is distributed to the committee, and the qualifying exam is scheduled for late in the fourth semester or early in the fifth semester.
  5. During the qualifying exam, the student presents and discusses his/her research prospectus and is questioned on it and on the several topic areas previously identified by the committee.

Completion and approval of the dissertation prospectus and oral exam as well as the requirement of at least two honors grades during the first two years satisfies the Graduate School's requirement for Admission to Candidacy.

In each subsequent year, the student continues his/her research and meets with the qualifying committee to discuss progress. In the final year, the student prepares and defends the dissertation before a dissertation committee.