Page 39 - DISSERTATION AND THESIS HANDBOOK 2017 -2020

I. Responsibilities of the Chair of the Dissertation Advisory
Committee and the Workings of the Committee

The chair is responsible for the following:
a. Seeing that the candidate receives regular and continuing guidance in his or
her research, including timely response from all committee members to work
on the document submitted to them by the candidate;\
b. Coordinating the responses of committee members so that the candidate
does not receive fundamentally conflicting advice
c. Informing candidates who are not making reasonable progress what they
must do to avoid being dismissed for failure to make such progress; and
d. Ensuring that the dissertation advisory committee meets at least once a year.

All dissertation advisory committees are unique; it is important for candidates to
clarify exactly what each member of the committee expects. In general, however, the
major input into the original draft of a dissertation will come from the dissertation
Chair.

In some instances, members of the dissertation advisory committee will see each
chapter of the dissertation as it is being written; in others, the committee members
may see a complete draft after it has been given tentative approval by the Chair.
Whatever procedure is used, all members of the committee must familiarize
themselves with the contents of the dissertation and agree that the dissertation is
ready for oral defense.

During the advisory committee meetings with the candidate, the following must be
accomplished:
a. Review of the candidate’s progress;
b. Make suggestions concerning future research, and
c. Record the committee’s findings and suggestions.

A copy of this record (using the prescribed documents for this purpose: the Advisory
Committee Meeting Form) must be placed in the graduate candidate‘s file and given to
the graduate candidate.

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