Thesis Preparation and Registration

The student’s thesis advisory committee must approve writing of the Ph.D. thesis at a formal committee meeting 4-6 months prior to the defense, at which time a Thesis Approval Form (see appendix) will be signed by all committee members to indicate their approval to begin writing the thesis.

The Chairperson Nomination for a PhD Defense form must be completed by the Principal Investigator and the student four months prior to the exam. The Principal Investigator must contact chair choices prior to submitting the form to the Graduate Studies Coordinator to assure the potential chair is willing and able to serve as chair. The Chairperson Nomination Form (form in appendix).

The SMD Training Handbook Thesis Defense Page is a comprehensive guide, written specifically for SMD graduate students. The guide covers  everything from before the defense, to the defense itself, to after the defense, providing information about the process, outlining requirements and offering useful tips and is available online here.

In addition, the "Guidelines for the Content of a Basic Science Ph.D. Thesis" is a supplemental guideline written by Dirk Bohmann and Eric Phizicky is available online here.

It is the responsibility of the student to see that style, format, margins, paper, binding, etc. are in accordance with University regulations. The student should be aware that the Dean of Graduate Studies has a deadline each year by which time a thesis must be registered to allow graduation at the next Commencement. It will usually take at least three months to prepare the thesis after all experimental work is complete and the most common mistake is not allowing adequate time for preparation of illustrations, typing, review by the advisor and thesis advisory committee and for registration in the Graduate Dean's Office.

Registration with the office of the Dean of Graduate Studies must take place at least 10 business days before the final exam¹. In preparation for registration, the student should begin the process by meeting with the Graduate Studies Coordinator when first discussing a defense date with the Ph.D. advisor and thesis advisory committee. The approval/paperwork process starts at least 6 months before registration with the following steps:

1. 4-6 months prior to the thesis defense, the student must obtain written approval from their committee members to start working on their thesis. The thesis defense approval form must be signed by all members of the committee at a committee meeting 4-6 months prior to a planned defense date and a research review form must be completed for this meeting. The thesis approval form and research review form can be obtained from the Graduate Studies Coordinator.
2. At least 4 to 6 months before scheduling the defense, students must submit their Committee Chairperson Nomination Form (see appendix) to the Graduate Studies Coordinator.
   • Note Regarding Chair Selection: Chairs must have no affiliation with the student's program, department, or project collaboration. While the primary role of the chairperson is to ensure that the thesis defense is conducted fairly and in accordance with university guidelines, it is recommended, but not required, that the selected chair possess a foundational understanding of the dissertation topic. Faculty members often find it challenging to effectively follow and engage in the defense process without a basic familiarity with the subject matter. Please ensure that all suggestions for the chairperson align with the University of Rochester’s Regulations & Policies Concerning Graduate Studies, (page 11.)
3. Once a chair has been selected and approved, the student can move forward with selecting the date and time for their defense. Once a date/time is selected, they should immediately contact the Graduate Studies Coordinator so that room reservations can be secured, and a detailed email will be sent to the student to convey pertinent information. This must be at least 2 months prior to the defense to allow sufficient time to meet all deadlines as well as time to write and prepare for their defense².
4. At least 2 months prior to the defense date the student should poll the thesis committee and defense chair to determine their preference for thesis format (hard copy or pdf).
5. At least 30 full business days prior to the defense, the student will need to provide the Graduate Studies Coordinator with the necessary information needed to create the SharePoint record.
6. At least 25 full business days prior to the defense, the student must provide the thesis to their thesis committee and defense chair to review in their preferred format. The version given at this time MUST be the same version given to the entire thesis committee and defense chair; no revisions can be made until after the thesis defense. The student will also need to meet with the Graduate Studies Coordinator to approve the SharePoint information and provide them with the required documentation.
7. At least 20 business days prior to the defense, the Graduate Studies Coordinator approves the SharePoint record, and the SharePoint approval emails are sent to the thesis committee.
8. At least 15 full business days prior to the defense the thesis committee and Program Director must approve of the thesis submitted for defense via the SharePoint site (link provided in email sent from UnivGradStudies@UR.Rochester.edu).
9. At least 10 full business days must elapse between the registration date and the actual date of defense.
10. The school allows 60 calendar days after the defense date for submission of the final copy of the thesis via ProQuest. However, defenses schedules later in the semester will be subject to a deadline date that may be shorter than 60 days. Please consult the academic calendar for these deadline dates.

Please note that a “Summary or Conclusion” section must be included in the thesis. The information is in the “Preparation of a Thesis” manual.

¹ Registration deadlines vary. Please check in the Department Office for a schedule of dates for the academic year. Final exams may not be scheduled during specific blackout periods.
² If the examination takes place during Fall or Spring semester, avoid scheduling the examination on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Friday afternoon.