Listed below are the major steps that should be completed for the Ph.D. degree in computer science or in computer engineering. Much of this information is taken from the Steps to Fulfill Doctoral Degree Requirements, Steps to Fulfill Preliminary Exam on the Office of Graduate Studies (OGS) website http://ogs.tamu.edu, and the Department's Graduate Brochure (pdf).

As noted below, many of the steps have associated OGS forms that need to be submitted. These forms are available on the OGS website. In all cases, the student is responsible for filling out the form and getting the signatures of all committee members before bringing the form to the advising office for Departmental approval. In most cases the advising staff will submit the forms to the OGS for the student.

• Ph.D. Student Annual Review. All doctoral students in the department are reviewed annually by the entire faculty. The purpose of the Ph.D. student annual review procedure is to encourage and motivate Ph.D. student research, and to provide additional mentoring for graduate study. The student is required to prepare and file certain materials for this review by the announced deadline, typically in mid-April. Details are provided in the Ph.D. Student Annual Review Procedure (html).

• Advisory Committee and Degree Plan. PhD students must form an Advisory Committee and file an approved degree plan. Requirements for the composition of the Advisory Committee and degree plans can be found in the Department's Graduate Brochure (pdf).

  OGS Form: Online Degree Plan Submission System

  Deadline: By the end of the student's third semester, and at least 90 days prior to the preliminary exam.

• Preliminary Exam. The student must pass the Preliminary Examination given by the Advisory Committee as described in the graduate catalog. Please consult Procedures for the Preliminary Exam for more information on eligibility requirements, and scheduling and administration practices for Ph.D. Preliminary Exams in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering.

  OGS Forms: Preliminary Exam Checklist and Report of the Preliminary Exam

  Deadline: As described in Procedures for the Preliminary Exam, there are eligibility requirements and deadlines for scheduling and reporting on Ph.D. Preliminary Exams. Roughly, the Preliminary Exam is typically held at about the time that the degree plan coursework requirements are completed, and it cannot be taken in the same semster that the degree plan is filed or that the student plans to defend.

• Dissertation Proposal. The student must submit a Ph.D. dissertation proposal as described in the graduate catalog. An electronic copy in PDF format of the proposal approved by the committee must be emailed to the advising office (grad-advisor@cse.tamu.edu) before the student brings the Proposal Title Page, already signed by the committee, to the advising office for the Department approval signature. (The dissertation proposal may be presented at the oral preliminary exam at the discretion of the Advisory Committee.)

  If the dissertation research will involve human subjects, animals, infectious biohazards, or recombinant DNA, then the student must check with the Research Compliance Division to ensure that they have met all compliance responsibilities. A copy of the appropriate approved research compliance approval form must be submitted with the research proposal. See the FAQ for information on how to submit the necessary approval forms to the Research Compliance Division.

  The department has no additional requirements for the proposal beyond that it be approved by the student's advisory committee (as shown by the submission of the signed Proposal Title Page) and that it meets any OGS requirements. Thus, students should consult with their advisor for guidance on preparing their proposal. As a rule of thumb, most proposals are about 10 pages long (single spaced) and include a description of the problem to be studied, an overview of the related work, a brief summary of any preliminary results, and a description of the research objectives and the planned approach.

  OGS Form: Proposal Title Page

  Deadline: The department requires that the Preliminary Exam be passed before the proposal can be submitted. The university requires that the proposal be submitted to OGS at least 15 days before the Request to hold the Final Examination is submitted to OGS (or about 4 weeks before the defense). (This is a decrease - it used to be 14 weeks before the defense.) Precise deadlines are listed on the OGS calendar.

• Apply for Graduation. Students need to submit an Application for Degree in order to graduate.

  Deadline: Normally in the first 1-2 weeks of the semester. Late application will be allowed for an additional fee until later in the semester. Precise deadlines are listed on the OGS calendar.

• Final Examination (Dissertation Defense). The student must pass Final Examination (Dissertation Defense) given by the Advisory Committee as described in the graduate catalog. Please consult Procedures for Ph.D. Dissertation Defenses for more information on eligibility requirements, and scheduling and administration practices for Ph.D. Final Exams in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering.

  OGS Forms: Request for Final Examination, Report of Final Exam (sent by OGS to the Chair of the student's Advisory Committee)

  Deadlines: As described in Procedures for Ph.D. Dissertation Defenses, there are eligibility requirements and deadlines for scheduling and reporting on Ph.D. Final Exams. Final exam deadlines are listed on the OGS calendar (usually about 8 weeks before graduation).

• Dissertation. A Ph.D. Dissertation as described in the graduate catalog and on the OGS website. After the dissertation has been approved by the student's committee, the student should submit the following items to the advising office:
  • an electronic copy of the dissertation in pdf format submitted by email to grad-advisor@cse.tamu.edu,
  • a hardcopy of the dissertation approval page, already signed by the committee (but not the Department Head), and
  • a hardcopy of an article from the journal model.
  The advising office will obtain the Department approval signature and then submit the approval page and the journal model to the thesis office for the student. The student will be notified by email after the dissertation has been approved by the department. Then, the student should submit an electronic copy (PDF format) of the dissertation to the Thesis Office.

  OGS Forms: Approval Form

  Deadline: Dissertation submission deadlines are listed on the OGS calendar OGS calendar (usually about 6 weeks before graduation). The dissertation cannot be submitted until after the Final Examination has been passed. Final corrected copies of the dissertation must be accepted by the thesis clerk no later than one year after the final examination or within the 10-year time limit, whichever occurs first. Failure to do so will result in the degree not being awarded.