Research Proposal

After the candidate has passed the comprehensive examination and has done extensive preliminary proposal research, he/she must present and defend a research proposal before the dissertation committee.

The candidate must follow departmental procedures for the proposal defense. The proposal must be found to be satisfactory by all members of the committee, and a Research Topic Approval Form must be fully signed and approved by the department, by the college, and by the School of Graduate Studies and Research before the candidate may proceed with the dissertation. The Thesis/Dissertation Manual outlines this procedure.