A final public examination is held under the auspices of the
committee in charge of the candidate's course of study. A candidate
must defend the dissertation and otherwise satisfy the committee and
other faculty members in attendance that he or she is qualified to
receive the degree of doctor of philosophy.
At the time of the
final examination, it is the responsibility of the candidate to obtain
from the Office of the Graduate School the candidacy application (on
which the result of the qualifying examination was recorded) for
completion by the committee at the final examination. The same
committee members also must sign the title page of the dissertation,
signifying their acceptance of it. Once the program director certifies
that all program requirements have been completed for the degree of
doctor of philosophy, the candidate must return the candidacy
application to the Office of the Graduate School and complete the
remaining formal requirements for the degree.
