Program Milestones

Qualifying Examination

The student is expected to pass the Qualifying Exam within 2 years of admittance. This examination shall consist of a term research project supervised by the Faculty Mentor. The student will be required to prepare a written account of research work performed and its results, and offer an oral presentation before the members of the Doctoral Committee. If the student fails all or part of this Qualifying Exam, he/she may request to address the committee’s concerns a second time. The student will normally be terminated from the program upon failure to pass the Qualifying Exam on a second attempt.

Doctoral Research

Dissertation research will be carried out at either CGU or KGI, or at an industry or national laboratory under the supervision of the program faculty.

Fall Research Retreat and Progress Reports

Each year PhD students are required to participate in the Annual Fall Research Retreat. Students in the first PhD year are merely required to attend, while students in their second and subsequent years present annual progress reports to be evaluated and approved by their thesis committees. The research retreats foster communication among students and faculty, aid the development of interdisciplinary ties and the creation of a strong research community.

Dissertation Proposal and Advancement to Candidacy

The student is expected to submit a Dissertation Proposal to the Doctoral Committee no later than upon completion of the student’s third academic year in the program. The Proposal should take the form of a scientific grant proposal to a major funding agency. It should describe the research project that the student intends to carry out on which his/her Doctoral Dissertation will be based. The student must also offer an oral presentation of the Proposal before the Doctoral Committee. Upon successful completion of this presentation, the student will be recommended for Advancement to Candidacy for the Doctoral Degree.

Doctoral Dissertation and Final Oral Examination

On completion of the Dissertation research work, the candidate will submit and present a public oral defense of his/her Dissertation to the Doctoral Committee. A final draft of the written Dissertation will be presented to each member of the Doctoral Committee at least three weeks prior to the final oral examination. Following the presentation, the Doctoral Committee will deliberate on the quality of the Dissertation and make a recommendation to the Deans to either pass, fail or pass conditional upon certain changes to the Dissertation.