Ph.D. Policies and Procedures Handbook

The purpose of this Handbook is to identify and describe the objectives, curriculum, and regulations of the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) programs in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at Texas State University. The Graduate College awards the Ph.D. degree. In addition to the regulations of the Department specified in this Handbook, students must comply with the regulations of the Graduate College as specified in the most recent edition of the Graduate Catalog. The regulations of the Graduate College take precedence over the regulations of the Department in the event of any conflict or ambiguity. Students must also uphold the policies, procedures, and regulations of Texas State University, the Texas State University System, and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board as well as state and federal laws. Unless stipulated otherwise, all the policies and procedures described in this handbook apply to all programs.

     The purpose of doctoral education in the Graduate College is to provide the means for continued intellectual growth through advanced and specialized education that emphasizes original research. The aim of doctoral study is to develop leaders in basic and applied research in their fields of specialization. More explicitly, the Graduate College has adopted the following objectives for doctoral study that will add both breadth and depth to the academic and professional preparation received at the undergraduate and master's degree levels to:

• impart a thorough understanding of research methods and techniques in specialized fields.
• afford students the opportunity to undertake original research in their areas of specializations, both independently and in collaboration with the faculty.
• provide students with the ability and resources to integrate their research into the community of scholars and professionals in a particular academic discipline.
• challenge students intellectually to develop their powers of independent thought, and to direct them toward positions of intellectual leadership in their personal and professional lives.

     Doctoral study affords students of exceptional academic ability ample opportunity to continue their intellectual growth and development, and to integrate themselves into the professional community of scholars in a manner emphasizing the completion, presentation, and publication of original, creative research. Doctoral study presupposes the previous acquisition of a master's degree, and a command of skills and techniques needed to conduct intensive independent research and investigation. Doctoral instruction differs from instruction at the undergraduate and master's levels in at least the following respects:

• Doctoral students are expected to assume responsibility for the planning, completion, and presentation of original scholarly research
• With the assistance of the faculty, doctoral students are expected to undertake research projects that will lead to professional presentation and publication
• More extensive reading, emphasizing primary source material in a specialized field, is expected
• Students are expected to become thoroughly familiar with the current literature in their fields, with emphasis on recently published developments in research methods and results
• Doctoral courses are seminars that stress active roles for students in intellectual exchange with both faculty and peers and in the critique of published research
• Doctoral course work underscores integrating student research into the norms of an academic discipline

     The Ph.D. programs in Geography, Geographic Education, and Geographic Information Science are administered by members of the Ph.D. Graduate Faculty of The Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, which consists of faculty qualified to teach graduate-level courses, serve on graduate committees, and/or supervise directed research projects in accordance with the standards of the Graduate College.
     While the Graduate Faculty of the Department shares in the administration of the program, the Graduate Program Coordinator, the Department Chair, and the department-level Graduate Committee have specific roles in program administration. The Coordinator is responsible for the day-to-day program administration and supervision. The Coordinator also serves as the Department's formal liaison to the Graduate College through membership on the Graduate Council, which is responsible for the administration of graduate programs across the University.
     The Graduate Program Coordinator also serves as chair of the Graduate Committee, which consists of several members of the Graduate Faculty along with the Department Chair ex officio. The Department Chair is authorized to undertake any of the Graduate Coordinator's responsibilities as described in this Handbook in the Graduate Coordinator's absence. The Graduate Committee is charged with reviewing the program's structure and requirements and with initiating proposed changes that are then voted upon by the full graduate faculty of the Department.

     Applicants seeking admission to the Ph.D. programs must comply with the Graduate College Admissions guidelines and the procedures outlined in the Graduate Catalog. Application Requirements for each of the Ph.D. programs can be found in the following links:

• Ph.D. in Geography
• Ph.D. in Geographic Education
• Ph.D. in Geographic Information Science  

     All documents must be submitted directly to the Graduate College through the Graduate Admissions application portal. International students should refer to the International Students resources provided by the Graduate College for additional procedures.
     Incoming Ph.D. students must secure a doctoral advisor who agrees to supervise their doctoral dissertation research before their application can be evaluated and ranked for admission to the program.

     Each Ph.D. degree program has an approved degree plan that outlines the course and product requirements to successfully complete the degree. Degree plans and requirements for each program are linked below. 

• Ph.D. in Geography
• Ph.D. in Geographic Education
• Ph.D. in Geographic Information Science

     After program admission, the student may access a degree audit from CATSWEB. The degree audit provides guidance for course selection and registration. In addition to a degree audit, students need to meet with their doctoral advisor during the first semester of admission to discuss options and review the degree audit and program requirements.
     Some courses have prerequisites, and students who lack the appropriate prerequisites must complete them before enrolling in those courses. Students who hold master’s degrees in fields other than Geography may be required to take leveling course work at the undergraduate or master’s level. 
     Prerequisite and leveling courses do not count towards doctoral credit and are not included in the minimum 31-hour coursework requirement. After completing the required coursework, the student must also complete a minimum of fifteen (15) hours of doctoral dissertation hours. 

     Any deviation from the program degree plan provided in the catalog requires approval by the Graduate Program Coordinator. Failure to initiate a change in the degree plan when a course or courses that do not appear on the degree plan are taken prevents such courses from counting toward the degree. This omission may cause a significant delay in completing the degree.
     If the Coordinator approves the proposed change, they will submit a request to the Graduate College for the change. If the Dean of the Graduate College concurs with the requested change, the Graduate College issues a new degree plan. The new degree plan replaces the old one.      
     In accordance with Departmental policy, the Graduate Coordinator will not approve requests to substitute core courses for the Ph.D. degree plans.

     The standard course load for a full-time Ph.D. student is six (6) credit hours of graduate-level coursework per semester. Students working full time are advised to take no more than three to six credit hours per semester. For students employed by the department as graduate assistants, the full-time requirement is nine (9) credit hours of graduate-level coursework per semester.

     The University policies regarding course credit including repeating courses, transfer credit, and dropping courses can be found in the Graduate Catalog.

     The University policies regarding dropping courses or withdrawing from a semester can be found in the Graduate Catalog.

     Doctoral students are required to maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA in doctoral-level courses listed on the degree plan as required for the Ph.D. degree. Cumulative GPAs are computed at the end of the fall semester, spring semester, and the second summer session (both summer sessions combined are treated as equivalent to one semester in determining satisfactory academic progress). 
     A student whose cumulative GPA falls below 3.0 during any semester of enrollment at Texas State University is placed on academic probation.  The student has one semester to raise their cumulative GPA above the 3.0 minimum.  A student who fails to do so is suspended from the Graduate College for a period of no less than six months. 
     A student on suspension who wishes to be reinstated after six months or more must send a formal request to the Graduate Program Coordinator who will petition the Dean of the Graduate College to reinstate the student. When requesting reinstatement, the student on suspension must provide compelling reasons why their academic performance will improve. The Graduate Program Coordinator will not initiate reinstatement requests without the explicit approval of the student’s doctoral advisor.

     Full-time doctoral students must satisfy a one-year residence requirement defined as 18 doctoral credit hours (as part of the thirty-one (31) required hours of course work) taken during consecutive fall, spring, or summer semesters. Part-time students may satisfy the residency requirement by enrolling in at least 18 consecutive doctoral credit hours at Texas State University.

     Generally, students in the Ph.D. program complete all degree requirements within four (4) years. However, the Graduate College allows students up to ten (10) calendar years since initial enrollment to complete all degree program requirements.

     Each Ph.D. student must have a doctoral advisor. The student is required to formally declare his or her advisor no later than the end of their first semester in residence and submit Form A - Dissertation Committee Chair Assignment Form to the Graduate College.

     Over the course of the doctoral program, the Ph.D. student will work with two committees.  The Ph.D. Comprehensive Examination Committee works with the student for the comprehensive examination. The Dissertation Committee works with the student following successful completion of the comprehensive examination towards completion of the doctoral dissertation and dissertation defense. Often, these committees are comprised of the same members. 
     The Ph.D. Comprehensive Exam Committee is comprised of the doctoral advisor and at least three other faculty members. For the Comprehensive Exam Committee, at least three of the committee members, including the doctoral advisor, must be designated as Ph.D. Graduate or Associate Faculty in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies. The Dissertation Committee is chaired by the doctoral advisor and at least three other faculty members. For the Dissertation Committee, at least three of the committee members, including the doctoral advisor, must be designated as Ph.D. Graduate or Associate Faculty in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, and at least one member must be external to the Department.   

     An external committee member is not a member of the Graduate Faculty in the Department. Students must follow a formal procedure to add an external committee member to a Ph.D. Comprehensive Exam or Dissertation Committee. A proposed external committee member who is a member of the faculty in a department other than Geography and Environmental Studies at Texas State University must hold the Ph.D. degree, must be a member of the Graduate Faculty at Texas State University, and must hold, as a minimum, professional credentials equivalent to those expected of members of the Ph.D. Associate Faculty in The Department of Geography and Environmental Studies. 
     A proposed external committee member who is not a member of the faculty at Texas State University must hold the Ph.D. degree and must hold, as a minimum, professional credentials equivalent to those expected of members of the Ph.D. Associate Faculty in The Department of Geography and Environmental Studies.
     The student must obtain a copy of the prospective committee member’s curriculum vitae (CV) to ensure that the prospective member holds professional credentials equivalent to those expected of members of the Ph.D. Associate Faculty in The Department of Geography and Environmental Studies. The student will submit the CV to the Graduate Staff Advisor who will route the application to the Graduate Program Coordinator, Department Chair, and Graduate College Dean for consideration and approval. 
     The Department does not assume responsibility for any expenses incurred by the external committee member for their service. 
     After all committee members have agreed to serve on either the Ph.D. Comprehensive Exam Committee, Dissertation Committee, or both, the student must notify the Graduate Staff Advisor of the committee membership. The Graduate Staff Advisor will prepare Form B – Dissertation Committee Request Form for signatures and submission to the Graduate College. 

     Occasionally, students may need to change doctoral advisors or committee membership as a result of:

• Death, retirement, incapacity, or resignation from the university of the faculty member.
• Loss of status as Graduate Faculty on the part of the faculty member.
• A student's decision that his or her academic and professional interests would be better served with a different doctoral advisor or committee member.

     If a change of doctoral advisor or committee member is necessary, the student needs to contact the Graduate Staff Advisor to complete a Dissertation Chair/Committee Member Change Request Form. 

     All applicants seeking advancement to Ph.D. candidacy must pass both a written and oral comprehensive examination. The primary objective of the comprehensive examination is to assess the student's knowledge of the major field of study (geography, geographic education, or geographic information science) and to determine the student's ability to undertake and complete original research. The student must pass the written component before proceeding to the oral component. This examination may not be taken until all required course work has been completed. 

     Before formal arrangements for the written examination are made, the student arranges examination dates and format with the doctoral advisor and the committee. At the discretion of the advisor and members of the committee, the format of the examination may be closed book, open book, or a combination of closed book and open book. The examination must be administered only during the fall or spring semester by the advisor and committee members.
     Once written comprehensive exam dates are finalized, the doctoral advisor must contact the Graduate Staff Advisor to communicate the exam dates. 

     In consultation with each committee member, the student will prepare a comprehensive exam reading list comprised of publications identified during coursework and independent research as relevant to their research and specialization. The reading list must be approved by the doctoral advisor and circulated to committee members at least six (6) weeks prior to the written exam so the committee can provide feedback requiring additional reading or preparations. Reading lists may vary in length and are organized into categories or bodies of literature. The student prepares for the written comprehensive examination based on the reading list. 

     At least two (2) weeks prior to the beginning of the written component, the doctoral advisor invites each committee member to submit a written question or questions for inclusion on the examination. Questions are to be received by the doctoral advisor at least one (1) week before the scheduled beginning of the examination. The doctoral advisor may edit the questions for clarity and/or duplication. The doctoral advisor provides all committee members with the complete list of questions for committee comment and approval before administering the examination to the student. Students should not be made aware of any examination questions before an examination begins.

     The entire written examination lasts four consecutive days. Only one examination period shall be scheduled for each examination day. Each examination period is either closed book or open book. This is an examination. Therefore, students shall answer the questions independently without help from others for both closed book and open book examinations. 

• A closed-book examination
  • Examination time is limited to four consecutive hours. 
  • The department will provide the student with a word processing software, a USB drive, and a quiet and comfortable place free of distractions. 
  • The student must save the answers to a USB drive and submit the USB drive as well as a hard copy of the answers to the doctoral advisor who will share the responses with committee members.
  • Students are not permitted to access the internet using any device during a closed-book examination.
• An open-book examination:
  • Examination time is limited to eight consecutive hours. 
  • The doctoral advisor will clearly state time allocated to each examination period and mark those hours on the question sheet given to the student at the beginning of each examination period. 
  • The student may submit their answers electronically to their doctoral advisor and committee members.
• Preparation and Submission of exam answers
  • All exam answers must be prepared in a word processing software.
  • For both closed-book and open-book examinations, a student must submit the answers to the doctoral advisor at the end of each examination period.

     After the student completes the written examination, the doctoral advisor provides copies of all the questions and a complete set of the students’ answers to all committee members. Committee members, including the doctoral advisor, are expected to read and evaluate the answers as soon as possible after the student completes the examination. After reading the answers, each committee member offers judgment about whether the student has passed the written examination and communicates their judgment of the written examination via email to the advisor.
     If a majority of the committee judges the written examination to be passing, the student passes the written examination. Otherwise, the student fails the written examination.  The committee's judgment concerning the outcome of the written examination must be communicated to the student orally and in writing within one (1) week after the student completes the written examination.  The written communication concerning the outcome of the written examination may be in the form of an email or a physical letter at the discretion of the advisor.
     A student who has failed the written examination is eligible to retake the written examination once. Unless under extenuating circumstances and with the approval of the Graduate Program Coordinator, the second examination must take place no less than three (3) months and no more than one (1) year after the end of the first written examination. A student who fails the written examination twice is denied admission to Ph.D. candidacy.
     At the committee's discretion, the candidate can be required to complete up to six hours of additional course work before retaking the examination. 

     After the student has passed the written component, the oral component of the examination is scheduled by the doctoral advisor in consultation with the committee and the student. The oral examination takes place within three (3) weeks after the end of the written examination or within three weeks of the advisor communicating the passing outcome to the student. 
     Once the oral comprehensive exam date is finalized, the doctoral advisor must contact the Graduate Staff Advisor to communicate the exam date and reserve an examination room. The Graduate Staff Advisor will also prepare Form C – Doctoral Comprehensive Examination Report Form and provide it to the doctoral advisor. 
     The oral examination is limited to two consecutive hours.

     After the oral examination is complete, the student is excused while the committee deliberates the result of the examination. Each committee member offers his or her judgement as to whether the student has passed the oral examination. If a majority judges the oral examination outcome as passing, the student passes the examination. The committee must notify the student of its decision within thirty (30) minutes of the end of the oral examination.
     A student who fails the oral examination is eligible to retake the oral examination once. Unless, under extenuating circumstances and with the approval of the Graduate Program Coordinator, the second oral examination must be taken no less than three (3) months and no more than one (1) year after the date of the original oral examination. A student who fails the oral examination twice is denied admission to Ph.D. candidacy.
     Upon passing both the written and oral comprehensive exams, the doctoral advisor and committee members will complete Form C – Doctoral Comprehensive Examination Report Form. Students who pass the comprehensive examination have not yet achieved candidacy until they have defended their proposal.

1. The student and committee agree on the examination dates and format.
2. In consultation with each committee member, the student prepares a reading list and obtains approval.
3. At least 6 weeks prior to Exam Week: The advisor circulates the approved reading lists to all committee members.
4. At least 2 weeks prior to Exam Week: The advisor invites each committee member to submit written examination questions.
5. At least 1 week prior to Exam Week: All committee members send their written examination questions to the advisor. The advisor compiles the questions and obtains committee approval for the final list.
6. Exam Week: The student completes the written examination.
7. No later than 1 week after Exam Week: The committee reviews the written responses, and the advisor informs the student of the outcome (pass or fail).
8. No later than 3 weeks after Exam Week: The oral examination must take place. The student should be informed of the result within 30 minutes of its conclusion. Form C – Doctoral Comprehensive Examination Report Form must be submitted to the Graduate College.
9. All components must be completed during a regular long semester and cannot extend over a semester break.

     The dissertation research begins with the preparation of a research proposal. Students work closely with their doctoral advisors to develop this proposal. The proposal prepared in GEO 7300: Advanced Geographic Research Design is usually not the final dissertation proposal. Instead, students must work with their doctoral advisors to develop a proposal acceptable for distribution to their dissertation committee. Once the proposal is approved by the doctoral advisor, it is shared with the committee.

     The student should be aware of and adhere to the Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR) at Texas State University while designing and conducting his/her dissertation research. Carefully review the Graduate College’s Thesis/Dissertation Guide: Focus on Process and Procedures covering the following topics: Plagiarism, Using Copyrighted Materials, Laws and University Regulations, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, Institutional Review Board, Sponsored or Shared Research Initiatives, and Brief Overview of Embargoes.

     After the proposal has been read by the Dissertation Committee, it must be defended in a committee examination to assess whether the student is proposing original research and is sufficiently prepared to undertake independent research/investigation. The doctoral advisor will need to email the Graduate Staff Advisor to inform them of the date and time of the proposal defense. 
     Following the examination, the committee decides by majority vote whether the student has passed the examination. If a majority votes that the student has not passed the examination, then the committee prepares a report in writing detailing what changes are needed to make the proposal acceptable. Once the student has made these changes, the examination is repeated. A student who fails their dissertation proposal defense twice is denied advancement to candidacy.

     Once the Dissertation Committee is satisfied that the proposal is complete and has been defended successfully, the student works with the Graduate Staff Advisor to submit the proposal to the Graduate College. The Graduate Staff Advisor will prepare Form D – Dissertation Proposal and Proposal Defense Form and route the form for signatures and submission to the Dean of the Graduate College. 

     After the proposal and Form D have been approved by the Dean of Graduate College, the Graduate Staff Advisor will prepare Form E – Application for Advancement to Candidacy for signatures and submission to the Graduate College. A student is advanced to Ph.D. candidacy upon satisfying the following conditions:

1. Completion of 31 hours of Ph.D. coursework, along with leveling and prerequisite courses as appropriate
2. Passing the comprehensive examination
3. The dissertation proposal is defended and approved by the student’s Dissertation Committee
4. All required forms are approved by the Dean of the Graduate College

     Ph.D. students must be advanced to candidacy within four (4) years after initial enrollment in the Ph.D. program. No credit will be applied toward the doctoral degree for course work completed more than four years before the date of advancement to candidacy. This time limit applies toward credit earned at Texas State University as well as credit transferred to Texas State University from other accredited institutions. For PhD students on departmental funding, advancement to candidacy must be achieved by the end of their sixth (6) funded semester to be eligible for two additional semesters of funding. More information about the Advancement to Candidacy for each program can be found in the following links:

• Ph.D. in Geography
• Ph.D. in Geographic Education
• Ph.D. in Geographic Information Science

     All doctoral students are required to complete a dissertation. The dissertation must be an original contribution to scholarship and the result of independent investigation in a significant area. 

     Doctoral students must take a minimum of 15 credit hours of dissertation. After being admitted to Ph.D. candidacy, students must be continuously enrolled each long semester for at least one dissertation hour. Additionally, the student must be enrolled for dissertation hours during the semester in which the degree will be conferred.
     Students who are enrolled for dissertation credit but who have not completed the dissertation receive grades of “PR.” 

     Doctoral dissertations may be structured in the style of a book (also called a traditional or monograph-style dissertation) or in the style of a three-article dissertation (also called a manuscript-style or alternative-format dissertation). Regardless of structure, the Graduate College maintains organization and style requirements for all dissertations at Texas State University that must be met for doctoral dissertations to be accepted by the university and the candidate be allowed to graduate. 

• Book Style Dissertation

     A book-style dissertation presents one cohesive study as a single monograph. Book-style dissertations typically follow the outline below.

1. Title Page
   Includes the dissertation title, author’s name, university, department, and submission date. 
2. Abstract
   A concise summary of the research, including the problem, methodology, key findings, and contributions.
3. Acknowledgments (Optional)
   Personal and professional acknowledgments. 
4. Table of Contents
   Lists all chapters, sections, tables, and figures. 
5. Introduction (Chapter 1)
   Presents the research problem and its significance. 
   States the research objectives or questions. 
   Provides an overview of the dissertation structure. 
6. Literature Review (Chapter 2)
   Reviews existing research related to the topic; identifies gaps in the literature. 
   Establishes the dissertation’s theoretical or conceptual foundation.
7. Methodology (Chapter 3)
   Explains the theoretical framework, research design, methods, and data collection process. 
   Justifies the chosen approach
   Discusses ethical considerations (if applicable).
8. Results/Findings (Chapter 4)
   Presents the data analysis and key findings. 
   Uses tables, figures, or qualitative narratives where appropriate.
9. Discussion (Chapter 5)
   Interprets the results in relation to the research question(s) and literature. 
   Explores implications, limitations, and alternative explanations.
10. Conclusion (Chapter 6)
    Summarizes the main findings. 
    Highlights the study’s contributions. 
    Suggests future research directions.
11. References
    Lists all cited sources in the required citation style. 
12. Appendices (if needed) 
    Includes additional materials such as raw data, survey instruments, interview transcripts, or supplementary analyses.

• Three Article Dissertation

     Three article dissertations comprise at least three chapters in the style of individual peer-reviewed journal articles bundled with an introduction and a conclusion chapter. The articles should form a cohesive body of work that supports a theme or themes expressed clearly in the introduction chapter. 
     In a three-article dissertation, students must be the first author on all articles. As first authors, students are responsible for developing and articulating a research concept or idea, developing a proposal to pursue this idea, developing a research design, conducting research and analysis, writing the manuscripts, designing an intervention, instrument, or assessment (if relevant), and interpreting results. Coauthors on dissertation articles are included at the discretion of the student and the doctoral advisor.   
     The need for three articles (as opposed to just two) should be clear and not merely represent minor tweaks of a work that would be more appropriately reported in just one or two articles. The proposal and defense for a three-article dissertation are expected to parallel those for a book-style dissertation; the three-article dissertation alters the format but not the content expected in dissertation research. Three-article dissertations typically follow the outline below.

1. Introduction (Chapter 1)
   Provides an overarching introduction to the dissertation. 
   Defines the research problem, objectives, and contributions. 
   States the methodological approach. 
   Explains how the three articles are connected and contribute to broad academic themes.
2. Three Journal Articles (Chapters 2-4)
3. Conclusion (Chapter 5)
   Synthesizes the key findings from all three articles. 
   Discusses their combined theoretical and practical implications. Identifies limitations and future research directions. 
   Highlights the broader contributions of the dissertation to the field.
4. Appendices (if needed)
   Supplementary materials, additional data, ethics approvals, or technical details not included in the main chapters.

     The dissertation must be written in the English language. Students who are not native speakers of the English language may obtain the services of professional editors to assist in the preparation of the to meet written English quality standards.
     It is the student’s responsibility to review and adhere to both the Departmental and Graduate College’s requirements for dissertations at Texas State University. Consult the Graduate College’s resources below for formatting and submitting the dissertation document. 

• Thesis/Dissertation Guide: Focus on Formatting
• Thesis/Dissertation Guide: Focus on Vireo Submission
• Vireo Formatting Template (Microsoft Word)

     Ph.D. students should work closely with their doctoral advisor to make consistent progress toward the completion of their dissertations, including the review of dissertation drafts.
     Once the dissertation has been completed and the committee has had sufficient time to review the document, the student must pass a final oral examination – the dissertation defense – in a public presentation. After all committee members have informed the advisor that the dissertation is ready to be defended, the advisor proceeds with scheduling the Dissertation Defense.
     To publicly defend the dissertation, the student must email the Graduate Staff Advisor the following information at least two (2) weeks prior to the defense: 1) date and time of the defense, 2) Zoom link, the room number, or both, 3) the dissertation title, and 4) an abstract. The Graduate Staff Advisor will then share this information with the department and the Graduate College to promote the defense and prepare Form F - Dissertation Defense Report Form. 

• Dissertation Defense Procedure
  • The advisor chairs the defense. All members of the dissertation committee are expected to be present.
  • Questions must pertain primarily to the dissertation itself and to the implications of the results for future research in the dissertation field. 
  • All members of the dissertation committee are afforded the opportunity to ask questions. 
  • At the discretion of the advisor, and if time permits, members of the audience may be invited to ask questions. 
  • The dissertation defense should be limited to two consecutive hours. 
• Dissertation Defense Results
  • At the end of the dissertation defense, the advisor excuses the audience and the candidate and deliberates the result of the examination with the dissertation committee. 
• The committee has three alternatives to consider: Pass; Provisional Pass; and Fail. 
  • "Pass" means that the dissertation requires no changes or requires only minor revisions that can be completed in a short amount of time. Under such circumstances, the dissertation committee signs the examination report and entrusts overseeing revisions to the research advisor. When these changes have been completed, the student presents the final copy of the dissertation to the Graduate College in accordance with the procedures below. Ordinarily a "Pass" report requires unanimous judgment of the dissertation committee. 
  • “Provisional Pass" means that the dissertation committee judges that more extensive revision of the dissertation is needed for it to be acceptable. Under such circumstances, committee members examine the revised dissertation before it is presented to the Graduate College in accordance with the procedures below, but another oral examination is not necessary. When the dissertation committee elects “Provisional Pass”, a report is prepared by the advisor. The report outlines the nature of the needed revisions and gives a time limit within which the student must complete them to the satisfaction of the dissertation committee. It must be signed by the dissertation committee and the student. Copies of the report are given to the Coordinator, and the Dean of the Graduate College. Once the revisions have been made to the satisfaction of the research advisor and the dissertation committee, members of the committee sign a statement indicating passage of the examination. This statement is then sent to the Dean of the Graduate College for approval. If the student fails to complete the necessary revisions within the appropriate time limit, the student must repeat the final examination. 
  • "Fail” means that the dissertation is unsatisfactory as written and that the student will not be awarded the degree until he or she has rewritten the dissertation and redefended the dissertation. A committee which judges that the examination is a failure may recommend revisions to the dissertation draft or may require the student to undertake a new dissertation under the supervision of the same dissertation committee or a different dissertation committee. A report of “Fail” must be accompanied by a report prepared by the advisor and signed by the dissertation committee. The report identifies the reasons that the dissertation is not acceptable and offers judgment as to whether the student is permitted to revise the dissertation draft or must attempt a new dissertation. The dissertation committee must sign the report. Copies of the report are given to the Coordinator, the Department Chair, and the Dean of the Graduate College. 
• The dissertation committee should strive for a unanimous decision if possible. A report of Pass requires unanimous agreement. Otherwise, the decision must be made by the majority vote of the dissertation committee. The decision is communicated orally to the student as soon as possible after the decision has been made. The decision must be communicated in writing, along with the report in the event of a Provisional Pass or Fail, to the student within one (1) week after the defense. 
• A completed Form F - Dissertation Defense Report Form must be submitted to the Graduate College.
• The student has the right to appeal the decision of the dissertation committee. Appeals are heard by the Graduate Program Coordinator. The decision of the Graduate Program Coordinator is referred to the Department Chair, and the Department Chair’s decision referred to the Dean of the Graduate College for final resolution
• A student who fails the dissertation defense twice will be withdrawn from the program.

     The approval of the dissertation requires positive votes from the advisor and a majority of the committee members. Once the committee has approved the dissertation, Form G – Dissertation Submission Approval Form and an electronic copy of the approved dissertation must be submitted to the Graduate College. With the TXST Vireo Submission system, the dissertation submission and review processes are completed entirely online. The dissertation must be submitted at least twenty-one (21) days prior to commencement. The primary document of the dissertation must be in PDF, however supplementary materials in various formats are allowed. Refer to the Graduate College’s Dissertation Guide: Focus on Vireo Submission for additional details.

     Students are responsible for compliance with deadlines for completion of dissertation established by the Graduate College and the department. Students are expected to complete the dissertation within three (3) years of advancement to candidacy.