When you’re ready to advance to doctoral candidacy, consult with your department regarding policies related to your program of work and to ensure you’ve completed any steps that must be taken prior to candidacy.
Forming the Dissertation Committee
All doctoral students must secure the agreement of a minimum of four people to serve on their dissertation or treatise committee.
- Consult with your supervisor(s) regarding committee composition and expectations before inviting members.
*Note that some departments may require more than four members*
- Meet Graduate Studies Committee (GSC) requirements:
- Your supervisor or one co-supervisor must be a member of your program's GSC.
- Select at least two additional committee members who are also members of your program's GSC.
- Include at least one external member (from outside your program's GSC).
- If you have a member unaffiliated with UT, the Graduate School may request a CV/resume when reviewing your candidacy application. You do not need to submit this unless it is requested directly
- Confirm all four (or more) members have agreed to serve and confirm with your supervisor(s) that final committee composition meets program, GSC and Graduate School requirements.
- Finalize committee membership in the Degree Candidacy Application.
Retired or Former Faculty on Committees
When a faculty member retires or separates from the University, their GSC membership ends, unless they request continued GSC membership.
Continued GSC membership:
- Requires approval from the Dean of the Graduate School, subject to yearly review.
- Must be recommended by the appropriate GSC and submitted by the GSC chair.
Approved retired faculty:
- May serve as a GSC member or co‑supervisor.
- Cannot serve as the sole supervisor (no exceptions for Emeritus faculty).
If a current GSC member leaves the university and GSC:
- A new current GSC member must be added to the committee to meet membership requirements.
- The former faculty member may remain but will be reclassified as an outside committee member.
Applying for Candidacy
Degree Candidacy Application
Students must have registered and paid tuition during the term in which the candidacy application is submitted.
As part of the application, you will be required to include a brief (60 lines or less) description of your dissertation or treatise proposal approved by your committee supervisor. Do not worry about formatting, the application does not like it. This should be prepared in advance; the application will time out after 30 minutes of inactivity and you will lose any unsaved changes.
Contact Information
After your committee is formed, visit All My Addresses at the link below to verify your name, address and phone number is up to date.
Change in Doctoral Committee
Changes to committee membership require special approval, so students should be certain the membership is complete and correct before initiating the application.
Language other than English
Those who wish to write a thesis, report, dissertation or treatise in a language other than English must petition to do so.
Registration Requirements
Once the Dean of the Graduate School approves your application and you have been admitted to candidacy, you are required to continuously register for the dissertation course (_99W) or treatise course beginning the next long term. (Music majors and treatise- option students should check with their graduate adviser for registration requirements.)
When will my application be approved?
- The Graduate School regularly reviews and approves candidacy applications during the first half of terms, but applications submitted after the halfway point may not be reviewed immediately or in time for pre-registration.
When do I need to enroll in the _99W course?
- The first long semester after advancing to candidacy, after which point you must remain continuously enrolled in dissertation hours until graduation.
- The last date that you can enroll in dissertation hours is noted on the academic calendar.
Doctoral Program of Work
The doctoral program of work includes the courses taken toward fulfillment of the degree requirements, as established by the Graduate Studies Committee and the Graduate School.
The program of work must:
- Have a minimum of 30 semester hours of advanced coursework, including a minimum of six hours of dissertation;
- Include only courses taken within the past six years; and
- Include coursework that is sufficient in academic breadth/depth.
Contact your Graduate Adviser to determine the specific requirements for your degree.
Questions
If you have questions about advancing to candidacy or completing the application, contact your departmental graduate office.