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Ph.D. Preliminary Exam
The Preliminary Exam
The primary purpose of the preliminary examination is to determine if
the student has acquired the specialized knowledge necessary for
their proposed dissertation research.
The preliminary exam is part of the
Graduate School Requirements
for the Ph.D. Degree.
For more details on University requirements, see
the Graduate School's rules governing the exam.
The key regulations on the exam are:
- The preliminary exam is an oral exam in front of a committee of
at least four professors.
- The chair of the committee should be the student's research advisor.
- The exam must be taken before the end of the
student's third year.
A student who has not passed the examination by this time must file with
the Dean of the Graduate School a statement, approved by the
Director of Graduate Studies, explaining the delay and setting a date
for the examination.
Except under unusual circumstances, extension will not be granted beyond
the middle of the fourth year.
A student must be registered during the term in which they takes the
preliminary examination. In the summer a preliminary examination may be
scheduled only between the opening and closing dates of the summer session.
See the academic
calendar.
- The committee is recommended by the student and their advisor to the
DGS who appoints the committee. The DGS must submit the list of
committee members on a
committee approval
form to the Graduate School. After the Graduate School approves the
committee, there is a 60 day waiting period before the exam
can take place!
Students should NOT delay the start of the committee
approval process: only a list of Professors is needed (not an exam date
or time or syllabus!)
- Professors from other Universities can serve on prelim committees
with the approval of the Graduate School.
- The student and advisor will write a syllabus to be covered in
the exam. This outline must be approved by the members of the exam
committee and the DGS. The student and the committee should agree upon a
syllabus for both the major and minor topics.
These must be sufficiently separated.
The syllabus must be submitted to the Director of Graduate Studies for
approval.
- Unless changes take place later, the committee for the preliminary
exam will also be the committee for the PhD thesis defense.
- Assessment of performance on the exam will be entered on an
exam evaluation form by
each committee member.
Satisfactory completion of the preliminary examination
This occurs when at least 3 of the 4 committee members, one of whom is the
chair, cast an affirmative vote. (For a 5 member committee,
at least 4 affirmative
votes are required.)
See the
Graduate School Requirements for further information.
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