ETD Dissertation Defense
Process
Step 1: In order to be eligible
for the degree, you must complete the Application for Degree card. This card
must be received in the Graduate School within 30 days of the start of the
semester (or within 15 days of the start of Summer Session II) you intend to
graduate. The card must be signed by the Director of Graduate Studies (or the
designated representative) in your program. For the exact due
date, see the university calendar or the Graduate School Bulletin.
Step 2: After
consulting with your advisor, ask your Director of Graduate Studies to submit a
Notification of Intent to Schedule a Final Doctoral
Examination form to the
Graduate School a minimum of 8 weeks
prior to the anticipated date of your final examination date. Upon
receipt, the Graduate School will check your file to make sure
that all requirements to this point have been met, and will begin the process of
identifying an outside examiner for your defense. Do not finalize a defense date
with your committee before the outside examiner has been identified and has been
consulted for their availability. You will be notified when your Outside
Examiner has been assigned.
The final examination must take place no later than eight days prior to the
last day of classes of the semester in which the student expects to graduate.
Final examinations may not be scheduled during the period between semesters or
between the end of the eight-week summer session and the beginning of the fall
semester. Consult the Schedule of Classes for deadlines on the
scheduling of final examinations.
Step 3: A Request for Final Doctoral Examination form should be
submitted to the
Graduate School a minimum of two weeks
prior to the specific date of the defense. This form must be
accompanied by a Dissertation Approval Sheet which must be signed by your advisor and by the majority of your committee members,
and affirms that your dissertation is ready to be defended. At this time you
should deliver a copy of the dissertation to your outside examiner (note that
your committee and the outside examiner will probably want a paper copy of the
dissertation for purposes of the final examination, but it can be in pdf format if all involved are in agreement). Dissertations
must be received by your committee two weeks prior to your exam.
Step 4: After
your Final Examination, you have 60 days to submit the final
copy of your dissertation to the Graduate School in pdf
format. This must be accompanied by a copy of the Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Approval form, signed by
your advisor and Director of Graduate Studies. There is a required formatting
check that must be done prior to the final turn in of your dissertation. At this
time, your dissertation will be checked to ensure that it meets format
requirements of the
Graduate School. The First Format Check is returned
to you with Corrections, and after the corrections have been made, you must set
up an appointment with the Graduate School to submit your Final Copy. It is
your responsibility to ensure that the ETD will display clearly and properly on
a monitor when accessed, including working links so the ETD can be readily
navigated (whether it is composed of a single or multiple files), that the
printed pdf version will be clear and legible
(including any figures or images); and that fonts have been properly embedded.
The Graduate
School requires one copy of
the approved ETD on CD-ROM. We also require paper copies of the dissertation
Title Page and Abstract, as well as any reprint permission letters and any
required third party software licenses.
Checklist
FAQ's
If you have any questions about this process, contact the Degree Certification Officer for your program.
Dissertation Fees
The base dissertation fee is $74. Applicable fees will be
determined by the Degree Certification Officer at the time the final
dissertation is submitted to The Graduate School. The charge must be paid at
Student Billing Services, 18 Funkhouser Building. No diplomas will be released
without payment of the applicable dissertation fees.
In order to register the dissertation copyright, the candidate must (1) sign
the Copyright Authorization statement on the Microfilm Agreement Form and submit
this form with the final two copies of the dissertation; (2) pay the copyright
fee of $65(this copyright charge is in addition to the $74
dissertation fee); and (3) include a copyright notice in the dissertation.
Publishing the Dissertation
The Graduate School publishes dissertations through Bell & Howell (formerly UMI), Ann Arbor , MI.
Doctoral candidates may obtain a copy of the Bell & Howell Publishing
Agreement Form in 106 Gillis Building. Complete the agreement form and return it
when submitting the final two copies of the dissertation. Students wishing to
register the copyright of their dissertation may do so using this form. For more
information on Bell & Howell/UMI, see <www.umi.com/>. You will receive
this form after your document has been format checked.
Survey of Earned Doctorates
The University of Kentucky Graduate School
participates in the Survey of Earned Doctorates (SED), which is conducted each
year by the National Opinion Research Center. It is required that doctoral
candidates complete this survey when the final copies of the dissertation are
submitted. Copies of the SED form are available in 106 Gillis Building. You will
receive this form after your document has been format checked.
Direct questions to the Degree Certification Officer for your program.
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Last
updated Nov 9, 2007