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Students who are beginning the qualifying process in the fall are required to work with their qualifying adviser to complete the Qualifying Process Student/Faculty Adviser Agreement. After completion, the student is to upload a copy of the signed Agreement to his/her UTBox Program of Work folder (either scanned or photo’d).
Developing the Qualifying Document
Guidelines
Developing the qualifying document encompasses a process and a product. That is, it involves the acquisition of knowledge and skills as well as the reporting of them. Acceptability, therefore, is a matter of whether the student has gained a sufficient degree of mastery of the subject and whether the reporting of the results of these intellectual activities is adequately done. Along with a copy of the document, each member of the qualifying process evaluation committee receives an evaluation data sheet upon which he/she will independently rate the acceptability of the document.
Criteria that reflect desirable characteristics or qualities of the qualifying document include:
Integrative Analysis and Interpretation
- Identifies the issues that have been investigated
- Attempts to clarify
- Illuminates new problems
- Speaks to the central problems concerning the subject
- Deals with conceptual clarification
- Outlines implications for future work
Proposed Research Study
- Is competently planned, well related to other relevant work, and addresses the stated question well
- Uses appropriate analytical procedures, presents anticipated results and their implications clearly
- Is easily understood and well-written
Although these are ends toward which the student’s effort should be directed, and the achievement of many of these goals would be welcome and pleasing to the QP adviser, the qualifying document is the student’s product and responsibility. QP advisers conduct a final meeting with the student, before (or soon after) the QP document is turned in, to discuss the logistics and procedures of the two exams.
Preparing the Qualifying Document
Completion of the qualifying document occurs during the two-semester EDP 395R course sequence. In general, the first semester may be viewed as a reading semester, in which the student explores the literature for a suitable topic, and the second semester may be viewed as a writing semester, in which the student develops the qualifying document, including the research design.
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Effects of Area/Program Probation on Qualifying Process
Area and Program-Specific Information
Program- and area-specific information on the qualifying process.