Dissertation

718 is the three semester credit hour dissertation course students take to receive credit for their dissertation. Students must be registered in 718 to receive dissertation-related services, such as those provided by the doctoral advisory committee and by Thesis and Dissertation Services (TDS) of the Graduate School. Students must be registered in 718 when they submit their proposal and they must continuously enroll in 718 each fall and spring semester until the dissertation is completed. If the student holds a defense or receives services from his or her committee during the summer semester, he or she must enroll in 718 for one of the two summer sessions. The minimum number of semester credit hours of 718 the student is required to take will vary by program, so students are encouraged to review their degree plans to ensure all requirements are met.

After registering for your first 718 course, work with your dissertation advisor to form your doctoral advisory committee. Your committee must have at least two members (including your dissertation advisor) from your department and one member (who has the applicable knowledge and/or expertise) from outside of your department. Students with an approved minor must have a minor advisor serve on the committee. If the minor advisor is from outside of your department, he or she may count as your out-of-department committee member. For all University requirements regarding doctoral advisory committees please see University Procedure 11.04.99.R0.23. Once the committee is formed, fill out the Dissertation Committee Selection form, acquire the signatures of your committee members and your department head, and submit the form to TDS@tamuc.edu. Once you have received an email from TDS stating the committee has been approved, you may move forward in the process.

RELEVANT LINKS:

Dissertation Committee Selection Form

University Procedure

TDS@tamuc.edu

Work with your committee to prepare your proposal for defense. All proposals must follow the formatting shown in the dissertation template and further detailed in the Dissertation Formatting Guide. Dissertation students are required to schedule the proposal defense through the Graduate School, so as soon as you and your advisor feel you are ready, work with your committee to schedule a date, time, and location to hold the proposal defense. Once a date is agreed upon, complete the Schedule Form of the Dissertation Proposal Defense and submit the form to the Doctoral Program Coordinator by the 20^th of the month prior to your defense (e.g., for a defense in March, submit the form by February 20^th). Include a copy of your proposal as an attachment to your scheduling email. Make sure to bring the Dissertation Proposal Approval Form (found in  the Dissertation Proposal Packet) to the defense so you can obtain the signatures of your committee members if they approve your proposal. After receiving approval from your committee, submit the form and the proposal to your Department Head and your College Dean for their review and approval. After both the Department Head and College Dean have read and approved the proposal, keep the form for use in Step 3. Make all changes suggested by your committee, Department Head, and College Dean.

Regarding data collection:

Students conducting studies that have been determined not to require IRB, IACUC, or IBC approval may begin data collection after completing RCR training through CITI and after receiving approval from their advisor to do so. Students do not need proposal approval from TDS to begin data collection.

Students conducting studies that have been determined to require IRB, IACUC, or IBC approval may begin data collection after receiving their committee's proposal approval and approval from the appropriate reviewing body. Students do not need Graduate School's proposal approval to begin data collection.

If you are unsure about whether or not your study requires approval from IRB, IACUC, or IBC, please visit the applicable websites.

RELEVANT LINKS:

Dissertation Template

Dissertation Formatting Guide

Schedule Form for the Proposal Defense

Dissertation Proposal Packet

Responsible Conduct in Research (RCR) Training

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

Institutional Animal Care & Use Committee (IACUC)

Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC)

After making all changes suggested by your committee, the department head, and college dean, and after your advisor has received approval from the applicable research compliance committee, as necessary, provide a copy of the revised proposal to your advisor for review. If your advisor agrees that all necessary changes have been made, you and your advisor will sign the Advisor’s Approval to Submit Dissertation Proposal form (located in the Dissertation Proposal Packet). The Advisor’s Approval to Submit Dissertation Proposal form has a list of items that must be included with your submission email. All items must be submitted electronically to TDS@tamuc.edu. Hard copies of the submission materials will not be accepted. Ultimately, it is your responsibility to ensure all materials are received by the appropriate deadline. Proposals submitted past the deadline will be processed for the following semester. Keep in mind that students are required to receive proposal approval from TDS at least one semester prior to the semester in which they plan to graduate. You cannot defend your final dissertation in the same semester in which you received proposal approval from TDS.

The TDS Review:

During the review, TDS will check your paper for conformity to the dissertation template and to the Dissertation Formatting Guide. Once reviewed, TDS will send you an approval email with a copy of the reviewer's checklist with formatting corrections to make before submitting your final document. Please keep a copy of all emails regarding your submission and approval for your records.

RELEVANT LINKS:

Dissertation Template

Dissertation Formatting Guide

Dissertation Proposal Packet

iThenticate

Deadlines for Submission

Register for your final three hours of 718. Following proposal approval, continue to collect data, analyze data, and write your final dissertation chapters. Make sure you remain in contact with your advisor regarding your progress on your dissertation. Also, be aware of the deadlines that are relevant to you.

Once you and your advisor feel you are ready, work with your committee to schedule a date, time, and location to hold the final defense. Once a date is set, fill out the Schedule Form for the Final Defense and submit it to the Doctoral Program Coordinator by the 20^th of the month prior to your defense. Make sure to bring the Dissertation Final Defense Report form to your final defense so you can obtain the signatures of your committee members if they approve your dissertation. After receiving approval from your committee, submit the form and the dissertation to the department head and college dean for their review and approval. After both the department head and college dean have read and approved the dissertation, keep the defense form for use in Step 5. Make all changes suggested by your committee, department head, and college dean.

RELEVANT LINKS:

Schedule Form for the Final Defense

Dissertation Final Defense Report

Deadlines for Submission

After making all changes suggested by your committee, department head, and college dean, provide a copy of the revised dissertation to your advisor for review. If your advisor agrees that all necessary changes have been made, you and your advisor will sign the Advisor’s Approval to Submit Dissertation form. The Advisor’s Approval to Submit Dissertation form has a list of items that must be included with your submission email. All items must be submitted electronically to TDS@tamuc.edu. Hard copies of the submission materials will not be accepted. Ultimately, it is your responsibility to ensure all materials are received by the appropriate deadline. Dissertations submitted past the deadline will be processed for the following semester. If IRB approval was required for your study, send a completed IRB Closure Form to ResearchCompliance@tamuc.edu. 

TDS will provide the results of its format review using a Reviewer's Checklist, sent to the student and his or her advisor via email.  Keep in mind that dissertations that do not follow the dissertation template and Dissertation Formating Guide will require revisions and, therefore, may take longer to receive approval. If the needed revisions are not made in a timely manner, your graduation eligibility may be impacted.

Once your document is approved, you and your advisor will be notified via email. The approval email will include instructions for uploading the approved dissertation to ProQuest. Make sure you follow the instructions exactly to ensure your dissertation is processed successfully. At this time you will be asked to pay the required ProQuest fees and any remaining student fees. Your approval will not show up in DegreeWorks until all fees are paid and the dissertation is uploaded to ProQuest.

RELEVANT LINKS:

Advisor’s Approval to Submit Dissertation

iThenticate

Deadlines for Submission

The graduation application opens in myLeo at the start of the semester. After submitting your application, the Graduate School will be in communication with you throughout the semester regarding your graduation eligibility. Uploading to ProQuest and paying all student fees are requirements for graduation, so make sure those steps are completed prior to the graduation ceremony. After you receive confirmation from TDS that all dissertation-related requirements have been met, you are free to prepare for the graduation ceremony (assuming all program-related requirements have also been met).

The Graduate School hosts a reception each semester for all doctoral students who are graduating. Attendance is not mandatory, but we encourage students and their families to attend so you can celebrate your achievements and be recognized for them. As the graduation ceremony approaches, the Doctoral Program Coordinator will be in contact with all graduating doctoral students with information related to the reception and the graduation ceremony.