Student Handbook

Thesis

When it comes time to begin preparing your thesis, visit the Thesis Advisor’s Office (125 Caldwell Hall) and obtain the appropriate packet (Advanced Degree Requirements for the Master’s/Doctoral Degree). The packet contains essential information concerning degree deadlines, scheduling exams, thesis format, etc., as well as the necessary forms (e.g., “Schedule of Final Examination” and “Approval of Thesis Form”). Also, at that time, check with the Records office to verify the make up of your committee and to verify that the Graduate School has a confirmation of your undergraduate degree.

At least 7 days before the examination be sure to bring to the Graduate School and GFA the Schedule of Final Examination form (signed by your committee members and the DGS) and the 5x8 Degree Information card.

It is instructive to quote here the advice that appears on the cover of the Graduate School publication, “Thesis and Advanced Degree Requirements”: “It is the responsibility of the candidate to become familiar with the various requirements that apply and to satisfy them in the proper way.” The Graduate School presents seminars three times a year to advise students writing theses and dissertations. These meetings are well advertised and offer the opportunity to obtain authoritative answers to questions about your thesis, registration, fees, commencement, etc.

Theses may be organized either as a single work (traditional thesis) or as a series of relatively independent chapters (independent chapter thesis). In the latter case, there may be a unified introduction and bibliography or separate introductions and bibliographies. There may be a unified summary, or the two-page abstract (required of all theses) can serve as a summary statement for all chapters. Some examples of thesis formats are shown below.

The independent chapter option allows you to prepare your thesis as a series of papers in a format ready for publication, and chapters can be published before the thesis defense. If your published work includes co-author(s), you may cite the work of your co-author(s) in your thesis with appropriate acknowledgment, but you should not include the data of your co-author(s) in your thesis. An exception could be if data from a co-author are needed for clarity. In that case, the legend to the figure should explain this. The work in your thesis must be primarily, if not entirely, your own. You should acknowledge in the publication that the research is part of a thesis, and the Graduate School requires written permission from the publisher to include it in your thesis.

There is a collection of theses in the Elizabeth Keller Reading Room (G09 Biotech). You might want to look at some recent ones as examples. When final copies are made of your thesis, please make an extra bound copy for this thesis collection. Please give the copy to the GFA who will put it in the library.

FINAL THESIS SEMINAR

The final thesis seminar usually is given immediately before or on the same day as the thesis defense, i.e. the “B” exam. However, in some cases students may want to present the thesis seminar up to six months before the B exam, in order to allow input from the special committee about final experiments.

THESIS DEFENSE (“B”) EXAM

To schedule the oral defense of the Ph.D. thesis (or “B” exam): at least seven days before the exam you must distribute the thesis to the Special Committee, have the scheduling form signed by all the Special Committee members and the DGS, and present this signed form to the Graduate School. The GFA should also receive a copy of the schedule form at this time along with the title and abstract for the thesis seminar.