This is the last step in obtaining the Ph.D. degree. The Final Examination shall be oral and under the jurisdiction of the advisory committee. It shall deal mainly with the subject matter of the dissertation. The examination shall be held not earlier than seven days after a preliminary or “working” copy of the complete dissertation has been submitted to the Graduate Records Office of the Graduate School. The preliminary copy submitted to the Graduate School must be accompanied by a Tentative Approval form signed by all members of the advisory committee.

The decision as to whether a candidate has passed, conditionally passed, or failed the examination rests solely with the dissertation advisory committee. In some cases, revision of the dissertation may be required by the committee as a result of the Final Examination. In making its recommendation, the advisory committee will take into account the opinions of other participating faculty members and experts. The vote of the advisory committee must be unanimous. Immediately following the examination, the major advisor will communicate the results to the student and send the official report on the examination to the Ph.D. Office of the SB and the Graduate Records Office. Final approval of the dissertation following the exam shall be indicated by original signatures of all members of the advisory committee on Final Examination form, which must be submitted to the Graduate School with the final copy of the dissertation.

Students in the dissertation phase should pay close attention to the rules and requirements stipulated in the Graduate Catalog regarding matters such as dissertation preparation and scheduling of the Final Examination. They should also consult with the Graduate Records Office regarding formatting and style aspects of the dissertation, the preparation of the dissertation abstract, binding, microfilming, etc.