Dissertation/Thesis Committee

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The dissertation/thesis committee may supervise several aspects of the student’s degree program from the point at which he/she is admitted to candidacy through defense of the dissertation/thesis. Students must consult with the sponsoring department to determine which supervisory roles apply. The committee may approve the student’s plan of study; arrange for the candidacy examination; arrange for the comprehensive examination; and oversee the candidate’s general supervision related to research, the dissertation/thesis, and the general meeting of degree requirements.

Committees must be comprised of at least three members. For doctoral committees, the chair must have graduate teaching eligibility at the doctoral level. The remaining committee members must have graduate teaching eligibility at the masters level. For masters committees, only the chair must have masters level graduate teaching eligibility. Students who wish to have a committee member that is outside the faculty bargaining unit (“outside readers”) must contact their graduate coordinator and the School of Graduate Studies and Research Thesis/Dissertation Office for guidance.