Comprehensive Examinations for PhD Students

The Advisory Committee will administer both written and oral preliminary examinations upon the Ph.D. student completing the course work on the program of study.

Written Examination
The Advisory Committee will submit written questions to the major professor covering the body of knowledge that the Advisory Committee members feel appropriate for the individual student. The examination will be administered by the major professor, with examination answers evaluated by the individual questioners. The Advisory Committee may solicit additional questions from other members of the faculty. Advisory Committee members will indicate to the major professor whether a pass or fail mark was achieved on exam; 4 out of 5 positive responses are required to pass. Failed exams may be repeated at the discretion of the Advisory Committee. The major professor should notify the Graduate Coordinator in writing that the written exam has been passed.

 Oral Examination
Within one month following successful completion of the written examination, the preliminary oral examination will be given. The Graduate School and the Crop and Soil Sciences Department faculty will be notified at least two weeks in advance of the time and place of the oral preliminary examination. Notification will be the responsibility of the major professor after approval of the Graduate Coordinator. All members of Advisory Committee are expected to be present during the entire oral exam. Faculty with the rank of Assistant Professor or higher are invited and encouraged to attend preliminary oral examinations. Questions may be raised in any area appropriate to the student's training. The members of the student's examining committee will determine if the student passes. At least four out of a possible five positive votes are required to pass. Oral examinations must be taken at least two semesters prior to graduation.

Admission to Candidacy
Before admission to candidacy, M.S. and M.C.S.S. students must have completed all prerequisites set as a condition for admission, filed a final plan of study, and maintained a 3.0 average on courses listed on the plan of study. Ph.D students must have completed all prerequisites set as a condition for admission, filed a final plan of study, met residence requirements, passed preliminary exams, and maintained a 3.0 average on courses listed on the plan of study.

M.S. and M.C.S.S. students must apply for admission to candidacy before the end of the first week of classes in the semester in which final courses on the program of study are taken. A Ph.D. student must apply for admission to candidacy at least 2 semesters before the date of graduation. After admission to Ph.D. candidacy, a student must register for at least two additional semesters and a total minimum of 10 hours of dissertation or other appropriate graduate credit. A student must register for a minimum of 3 hours of credit in any semester when using University facilities and/or faculty or staff time.

 Thesis/Dissertation Completion and Final Oral Examination
It is the student's responsibility to abide by Graduate School deadlines for graduation. Please check the Graduate School site for such information.

A final draft of the thesis or dissertation must be submitted to the Advisory Committee no later than three weeks before the final examination. The draft is one which is approved by the major professor as being complete and editorially correct. The style of the thesis or dissertation should be based upon professional journals in the field of study. The thesis may be formatted either in traditional thesis style, or as a series of manuscripts, based on Graduate School Guidelines. A corrected thesis or dissertation must be supplied to all members of the examining committee at least one week before the final oral examination date.

Final examinations (M.S. and Ph.D.) will consist of a seminar presentation of the student's research, followed by the defense/final exam. Questioning in the defense will emphasize the defense of the thesis or dissertation, but questions may be raised in any appropriate area, and particularly in areas where the student did poorly on preliminary examinations. All members of the Advisory Committee must be present during the final examination. Faculty holding the rank of Assistant Professor or above are invited and encouraged to be in attendance at the defense/final exam. The major advisor should notify the departmental faculty of time and place of the final seminar and exam. Four of 5 votes for the Ph.D., or 2 of 3 for M.S., must be positive for the student to pass. After passing the final exam, graduate students are required to prepare a final version of their thesis/disseration and to provide an electronic copy and a hard copy to the departmental library.