PhD defense & graduation procedures, WE

The information below provides procedures for the PhD student's final semester, including graduation application, paperwork & fees, and the dissertation submission and defense process.

Note that all date references below assume that the student wishes to attend Commencement in the semester for which s/he applies to graduate. Details about End-of-Semester(i.e., after Commencement) deadlines are provided at the bottom of this page.

Registration

Please remember to register for three graduate credit hours in the semester in which you wish to graduate. These should consist of three credits of WE 8999 under your advisor (WE 7895 is not required in the semester of graduation).

These three graduate credits are required regardless of your status, whether self-funded, GRA, or Fellow.

See Graduate School's Post-Candidacy enrollment guidelines

Applying to graduate

Complete the Department's Application to Graduate Request form
MSE students must complete this form to request an Application to Graduate. Upon submission of this form, the MSE / WE Graduate Studies Coordinator will review the student's academic status. A Student Status Summary and further instructions will be e-mailed to the student.

The general flow is as follows:

  • Request to graduate/receive a degree by way of the department on-line form (the link above). This should occur on or before the third Tuesday of the term of graduation.
  • The Graduate Studies Coordinator reviews your course work and other degree requirements and provides a Student Status Summary. With the Summary are further instructions on what is required in the final term to satisfy the degree requirements.
  • Student logs in to GradForms.osu.edu and completes an on-line Application to Graduate.
  • The student's advisor posts approval on GradForms.osu.edu. This must occur before the GSC Chair will post approval.
  • The Graduate Studies Chair posts approval on GradForms. This is to occur on or before the third Friday of the term.

The GSC Chair is to post on-line acceptance of your Application to Graduate on or before the third Friday of the planned term of graduation--please plan accordingly.

Application for Final Examination and the Dissertation Defense

Submission and approval of the Application to Graduate on GradForms.osu.edu will permit the student to also file an Application for Final Examination on GradForms. This form must be filed on GradForms no later than three weeks before the proposed final examination date.

The student is to establish with his/her Ph.D. committee a date, time, and location for the final examination. The student should consult the Graduate School's Examination and Graduation Deadlines to determine dates for graduation eligibility.

Electronic submission of dissertation

All Ph.D. dissertations are required to be submitted electronically--i.e., in PDF format--through the State of Ohio library network OhioLINK (www.ohiolink.edu/etd). Hard-copy final approved dissertations are no longer submitted (though a hard-copy draft is to be submitted for formatting review to the Graduate School prior to any electronic submission).

  • Preparing your dissertation
    Graduate School "Dissertation and Theses" instructions
    Instructions regarding margins and formatting as well as procedures for electronic submission, including a tutorial on how to convert a document to PDF and add multimedia to the document. The Graduate School also provides information on workshops, FAQs, thesis templates, sample pages, and more.

The Electronic Thesis / Dissertation (ETD) is different from its paper predecessor in a few important aspects. First, it provides a technologically advanced medium for expressing your ideas. You may prepare an ETD by using nearly any word processor or document preparation system and by incorporating relevant multimedia objects. Second, it is less expensive for you to prepare. By creating an ETD, you avoid the requirement of submitting multiple copies on special paper. Third, ETDs promote greater access to your research. ETDs are made available to anyone that browses the web. They consume virtually no library shelf space, and never collect dust. Overall, ETDs contribute to worldwide graduate education and unlock the underutilized results of graduate research for the scholarly community.

Your dissertation should be uploaded by at least two full business days prior to the submission date listed on the Graduate School's Graduation Deadlines. This allows a minimum amount of time for Graduation Services to be notified by OhioLINK that your dissertation has been uploaded, perform a formatting review, and contact you to confirm receipt.

Commencement

OSU Commencement information

As regards specific Commencement ceremony procedures, those who have submitted an Application to Graduate by the third Friday of the semester will receive a Commencement Information Packet from the Graduate School. This will provide details on the ceremony, including your numbered assignment in the Commencement line.

This packet is provided mid-semester to your local address / email address (therefore it is very important that you provide the Graduate School with your current contact information).

Any questions about the ceremony should be addressed to the Graduation Services Office within the Graduate School, 292-6031.

  • If you will not attend Commencement, you must file a Commencement Absence with the Graduate School.

If you must delay graduation

Missing Commencement deadlines

You may find that you are unable to complete the final requirements in time to meet the Graduate School deadlines for submission. If so, you will not be permitted to take part in Commencement for that semester.

  • If you will not attend Commencement, you must file a Commencement Absence with the Graduate School.

End-of-Semester graduates

If the Commencement submission deadlines are missed, you have until the last business day before the start of the next semester to submit all required items (forms, fees, documents, etc.). If this final dealine is met, you will receive the degree during Commencement at the end of the following semester. If requested, the MSE / WE department can provide a verification letter confirming completion of all degree requirements.

Registration for the next semester

If the required items are not submitted by the last business day before the start of the next semester, you must register for at least three graduate credit hours and resubmit a department Application to Graduate Request using the MSE / WE on-line request form. The approved (by advisor and GSC Chair) Application to Graduate must be received at the Graduate School by the third Friday of that semester.

Registration

Please remember to register for three graduate credit hours in the semester in which you wish to graduate. These should consist of three graduate credits of WE 8999 under your advisor (WE 7895 is not required in the semester of graduation).

These three graduate credits are required regardless of your status, whether self-funded, GRA, or Fellow.

Post-Candidacy enrollment guidelines

Exit procedures

You've worked hard completing your degree and should be proud of your accomplishments! As you prepare to leave, there are a few administrative items to address. Please follow these steps to assure that there are no loose ends left as you move on to your new career.

  1. Please complete the MSE / WE Alumni form found in the Alumni section of the MSE / WE site. This will permit us to forward any postal mail that comes for you, as well as remain in touch regarding upcoming MSE alumni events.
  2. Contact the MSE Human Resources Officer (292-6790) and provide an estimated date after which you will no longer be working for your advisor as a GRA (if applicable), as well as any future plans.

    If you will be remaining with the department after graduation, please inform the Graduate Studies Coordinator and MSE/WE Fiscal Officer. For example, if you will be staying on in a research capacity or other form of employment following graduation. If you do not inform these staff, your e-mail account, mailbox, and key card access may be closed.
  3. Return your lab and office keys to the MSE Fiscal Officer (292-6790) and/or Ed Pfeifer (292-4139, 106 EJTC)and also provide your forwarding address.
  4. Be sure that your advisor has all results of any research carried out on his/her projects and that your lab and office space have been cleaned up.
  5. Return tools and any other equipment to the Research Support Staff; Ken Kushner, Steve Bright, Ross Baldwin, Cameron Begg, Henk Colijn, Ed Pfeifer.
  6. Department account deletion. Your MSE / WE account will be deleted from the department's servers on the first business day of the semester following that in which you receive your terminal degree. Please be sure to backup or forward any important messages, documents, etc. E-mail Mike Davis (292-6928) and inform him of a forwarding e-mail account to which your MSE e-mail should be sent.
    • If you will be staying with the department in any capacity (such as post-doc, employee, etc.) it is critical that you inform the MSE Human Resources Officer (292-7268) and e-mail Mike Davis (292-6928) of your plans. If you do not, you run the risk of having your MSE/WE account deleted.
    • To forward your "name.##@osu.edu" account, visit the OSU e-mail Forwarding Service web site.
  7. Complete the Engineering Career Services' post-graduation plans survey Your participation helps the College and the MSE/WE department understand our program's effectiveness in training students.

Alumni contact form

Complete the MSE / WE Alumni contact form Please use the form to keep your mailing address and contact information up-to-date with the MSE/WE department!

Questions?

Please e-mail the MSE-WE Graduate Studies Coordinator, go to 143 Fontana Lab, or call (614) 292-7280 with any questions.

You may also wish to contact the Graduation Services Office in the Graduate School, 247 University Hall, at 292-6031.