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Advancement Information

Please refer to the relevant sub-sections of the ELP wiki for further details of each doctoral milestone.

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.Each graduate student would normally expect to reach this point by the end of the third year. Doctoral Candidacy will allow you to focus solely on research and register each semester for Dissertation/Treatise coursework.

Assessment Stages

Complete Written Mid-program Review

  • Check with your advisor regarding your eligibility and method of completing this requirement. More information is available in the mid program review section of this ELP wiki.

Complete Specialization Paper (SP)

  • Administered by each program area: CSP, EPP, PHEL, and ExecEdD.  Check with your faculty advisor to determine your eligibility and method of completing this requirement. More information is available in the Specialization Paper Policy

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Doctoral Dissertation process

The process for completing a Doctoral dissertation is fourfold. 

    1. A student will prepare and defend a dissertation proposal consisting of the first three chapters before all members of the dissertation committee, including the chair.
    2. Once the proposal is approved by the committee, the student must complete the advancement to doctoral candidacy application process.
    3. Upon successful advancement, the student will conduct the research activities under the guidance of the dissertation chair and committee. 
    4. The student will defend the completed dissertation before the committee.  After successfully defending and satisfactorily completing any required revisions, the student would earn the Ph.D.

Prepare Dissertation/Treatise proposal

  • Select chair/supervisor and members for the dissertation/treatise committee. Information about the composition of the dissertation committee can be found on the Graduate School website.
    • To determine if a faculty member is on the Graduate Studies Committee (GSC), which might impact their eligibility to be on your dissertation committee, talk to your advisor. It is the responsibility of the student to secure a faculty supervisor and committee that meets the requirements of the Graduate School.
    • The committee for a Doctoral dissertation must be comprised of four individuals.  The chair of the committee must be a faculty member with GSC status in the Department.  The second and third committee members must be faculty or and/or senior lecturers with GSC status in the Department. The fourth member must be an outside member, who holds a doctorate degree, who is not a member of the student’s GSC. The fourth member, if external to the University, will need to submit a curriculum vitae and a letter indicating his/her willingness to serve on the dissertation committee. 
  • Prepare your proposal (traditionally, this is the first 3 chapters of your dissertation/treatise; however, you should work with your dissertation chair to determine the contents of your proposal).
  • Once your dissertation committee chair approves your proposal draft, schedule a meeting for the oral proposal presentation and distribute copies to committee members.  
  • Schedule a room, with the Graduate Coordinator, in which to present your proposal.
  • After a successful proposal, you will complete your doctoral advancement kit for committee signature. 

Apply for Advancement to Candidacy

Advancement into candidacy requires an application and approval by the student’s supervising professor, the departmental Graduate Advisor, and the UT Graduate Dean.

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PLEASE NOTE: The Graduate Advisor will not approve the on-line portion of the application unless the student completes all the paper forms in the application packet required by the Department. If you have questions about this process, please contact the Graduate Office.

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Complete Dissertation/Treatise Research Activities

  • Only AFTER you receive IRB Approval, you graduate school approval for candidacy, may register for your first dissertation/treatise course
    • Two dissertation/treatise courses are required to be taken in consecutive semesters.  The first one is the dissertation research course (399W, 699W or 999W) followed by the dissertation writing course (399W, 699W or 999W).  The treatise research course numbers are 399K, 699K or 999K and the writing course numbers are 399L, 699L or 999L. 
  • An advising hold on your registration record will be in place until you meet the IRB Approval Pre-requirement.
  • Work with your chair to determine your progress.
  • Complete data collection and analysis (for peace of mind, be sure to back up your work).
  • Write the final dissertation/treatise draft.
  • Submit your draft to your chair for approval.

Dissertation Guidelines

In most cases, the a Doctoral dissertation will include five chapters:

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It is expected that the writing, the use of citations, the review and understanding of the research literature, and the research skills would reflect the highest quality standards. In addition, the style guidelines are typically those of the APA format, those made available by the University, or any other legitimate style appropriate to the study and accepted by the dissertation committee.

Complete Final Oral Exam

Scheduling of the Final Oral Examination (Defense of Dissertation/Treatise) will be predicated upon the quality of the execution, analysis, and writing of the dissertation/treatise and will be conducted only with Dissertation/Treatise Committee approval. While the Dissertation/Treatise Committee alone votes on the acceptability of the student's Final Orals, any member of the Graduate Faculty may participate during the Examination.

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Extension of Candidacy Policy and Process

Dissertation/Treatise Completion Requirements

  1. According to the Graduate School guidelines (Graduate School Handbook), students who have been admitted to doctoral candidacy have two years to complete their degree. The candidacy of each student is reviewed after two years and annually thereafter. At the end of the second year, the Office of Graduate Studies informs the Department Graduate Advisor that a student’s candidacy must be reviewed and a recommendation be made concerning an “Extension of Candidacy” or “Termination of Candidacy.”
  2. At the end of the second year of candidacy, an Extension of Candidacy for one last year may be requested and must be approved by the Graduate Studies Committee (GSC) of the department according to the process outlined in this policy.
  3. An extension of candidacy may be approved for up to one year (2 long semesters plus 1 summer semester) only. The student must be approved by the Graduate Studies Committee.
  4. Under extraordinary circumstances, candidates may request an additional extension of candidacy provided the dissertation/treatise committee chair and the program head support such a request.

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