Dissertation proposal

Dissertation Proposal Meeting

The purpose of the Dissertation Proposal Meeting is for doctoral candidates to propose their dissertation research study and receive feedback and eventually agreement from committee members on design and methodology.

Step 1 -  Designate Final Oral Examination Committee: Prior to  meeting with your committee, you must designate your Final Oral Examination Committee members by submitting  this GSSP electronic form.

 All members of your Final Oral Examination Committee, including the member(s) representing the minor(s) you are completing, must be listed on this form and must attend your final oral examination.   Please choose, then designate on the form, an internal committee member who is not your advisor, to serve as “Chair” of your Defense. They typically facilitate the public presentation, although the advisor may do this. However, the Chair must conduct the Final Oral Examination (private session) and vote, and is responsible for submitting the official decision form to the Graduate School. 

Step 2 - Prepare Your Proposal:  You should prepare your dissertation proposal in close collaboration with your advisor who chairs this meeting (see below for format options). Discuss which format best suits your dissertation research and prepare your proposal accordingly. The FSoS graduate faculty recommends the two-study journal article dissertation and corresponding format (Information found HERE: to be added). However, it is up to the candidate and the committee to determine which dissertation format is best. Other proposal formats such as the NIH-grant proposal format and the three chapter traditional volume-length proposal format are also fine if committees approve them.

 Proposals should be submitted to committee members at least two weeks before the proposal meeting is held. 

Step 3 - The Proposal Meeting: The proposal meeting should generally be scheduled for 1.5 hours, however,  check with your advisor about their preference for length. Your advisor chairs this meeting. There is no standard format for a proposal meeting, but typically, the candidate  will present a brief overview of the proposed study. Then the committee members will ask questions for clarification and engage with you in discussion about your proposed research.  At the end of the proposal meeting, everyone should be in agreement about the proposed research scope, topic, methodology(ies), and dissertation format.  Additionally, you and your committee should discuss whether a Data Analysis and Results Review meeting would be helpful. (For more information, see Data Analysis and Results Review: to be added)

Finally, committee members will review the doctoral candidate’s portfolio to evaluate progress and determine whether the student is on track to meet the competencies before defending their dissertation and graduating. If there are outstanding competencies at this time, committee members must agree to a plan for completing them prior to setting a date for the final defense. The plan must be outlined in the Completion of Dissertation Proposal Meeting Form.

Step 4 - Advisor Submits Approval Form: Once your committee feels comfortable with your dissertation research plans and your Portfolio has been reviewed, your advisor will complete and submit the Dissertation Proposal Meeting Form on behalf of the committee. . 

If revisions are requested, the specific changes required and the committee’s process for reaching agreement and a decision to approve the revised proposal should be clearly outlined and communicated to the candidate in an email within one week of the proposal meeting. Once approval for the revised proposal is reached, the advisor will complete the Dissertation Proposal Meeting Form on behalf of the committee.