Phd candidacy exam checklist
You are ready to do your candidacy exam? Congratulations! Here is a
checklist that will help you meet the requirements for your Phd
candidacy exam.
- Thesis committee: you need at least three faculty members from the
department. You must provide the names of your committee members
to Mary Jane at least one week before
your examination. Your committee members will expect to get a copy
of your proposal document. It is customary to provide the proposal
document to your committee two-three
weeks before your exam. However, this can be negotiated between
you and your committee members.
- Proposal document: this is a variable length document that
describes your research proposal. Content, length and style are
between you and your committee members. You must give a printed
copy of this document to Mary Jane at least one week before your
exam. The goal of this requirement is to give
interested faculty/students a chance to read up about your proposal
before your presentation.
- Proposal abstract: this is a 20-40 line abstract of your proposal.
You must email an ASCII version of your proposal abstract to Mary
Jane at least one week before your examination. She will email
an announcement to the dept. The purpose of this requirement is to
make it easier for interested faculty/students to make it to your
exam -- this
increases the chance of getting useful feedback on your research
proposal.
- Reserve a room: it might be a good idea to reserve a room
well in advance. The two weeks before the end of each quarter tend to
be popular for candidacy exams and thesis defenses. So move early.
It is
customary to schedule your exam at a "convenient" hour :) Avoid
early morning slots as far as possible. Late
morning and afternoon slots are commonly used.
Good luck!