After admission to candidacy, the student must register for at least 5 hours of coursework in each of two semesters to be eligible for graduation. An application for graduation must be filed with the Graduate School no later than Friday of the second full week (the first full week for summer) of classes in the semester of the anticipated graduation date. Following the completion of the research project, the student must submit to the Graduate School a dissertation acceptable to the Advisory Committee. The student then orally defends the dissertation before the Advisory Committee. The defense consists of a formal seminar immediately followed by questioning by the Advisory Committee. This defense is open to the public. NOTE: At least two weeks in advance of the final defense, the student must provide the date, time, and place of the exam to the Graduate Program Administrator, who will forward this information for announcement on the Graduate School website. Students cannot do this themselves. This must be done through the Graduate Program Office. Failure to properly notify the Graduate School in advance of the date of the final defense could jeopardize the validity of the Final Defense.
