Appendix C. Summary of Milestones for Ph.D. Degrees

Written Qualifying Exam: The departmental Ph.D. committee notifies AC that student has passed the written qualifying exam. This memo is from the Chair of the departmental Ph.D. committee.

Oral Qualifying Exam: The departmental Ph.D. committee notifies the AC that the student has passed the oral qualifying exam. This memo is from the Chair of the departmental Ph.D. committee and includes the signatures of the examining committee. Also required is a separate memo (typically via e-mail) from the Academic Council representative that the oral exam that it was conducted in accord with Academic Council guidelines.

Approval of Dissertation Committee: The departmental Ph.D. committee notifies the Registrar of the student’s dissertation committee. This memo is from the departmental Ph.D. Committee Chair and includes the name, academic unit, and degree qualifications for each member of the dissertation committee.

Advancement to Candidacy:

After the oral qualifying exam has been passed and a dissertation committee selected and approved, the departmental Ph.D. Committee Chair requests advancement to candidacy for the student once the dissertation committee has approved the topic. From this point forward, the dissertation committee is responsible for key milestones.

Passage of Dissertation Defense: The dissertation committee notifies the AC when the student has passed the dissertation defense. Also required is a separate (typically via e-mail) memo from the Academic Council representative that the exam was conducted in accordance with AC policy.

Recommendation for Degree: When the dissertation has been successfully defended and the dissertation approval and release form has been signed by each member of the dissertation committee, the Chair of the academic unit and the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, and the student’s dissertation has been accepted "final" by the Thesis Processing Office, the Chair of the dissertation committee submits a memo recommending the student to the Academic Council for nomination. A copy of the signed dissertation approval and release form and a copy of the final acceptance notification email from the Thesis Processing Office must be included with the nomination memo.

Nomination for Degree: The Academic Council will make the final decision whether or not to recommend the candidate to the President of the Naval Postgraduate School for the award of the Doctor of Philosophy degree.