Changes to Advisers and Doctoral Committees
Approved by Graduate Council, March 2000.
Following admittance to a degree program, the student should confer with the head of that major department or program concerning procedures and the appointment of an adviser. Consultation or arrangement of the details of the student's semester-by-semester schedule is the function of the adviser. This person may be a member of the doctoral committee or someone else designated by the head of the major program for this specific duty.
Doctoral Committee
General guidance of a doctoral candidate is the responsibility of a doctoral committee consisting of four or more active members of the Graduate Faculty, which includes at least two faculty members in the major field, and one outside member, as described below. If the candidate has a minor, that field must be represented on the committee. (See also Major Program and Minor Field under D.Ed.-Additional Specific Requirements in this Bulletin.) This committee is appointed by the dean of the Graduate School through the Office of Graduate Enrollment Services, upon recommendation of the head of the major program soon after the student is admitted to candidacy. A person not affiliated with Penn State who has particular expertise in the candidate's research area may be added as a special member upon recommendation by the head of the program and approval of the dean. A special member is expected to participate fully in the functions of the doctoral committee. If the outside expert is asked only to read and approve the doctoral dissertation, that person is designated a special signatory of the dissertation. Occasionally, special signatories may be drawn from within the Penn State faculty in particular situations. At the discretion of the dean, other members may be added to the committee.
Chair
The chair or at least one co-chair must be a member of the specific graduate faculty of the doctoral program in which the candidate is enrolled. Concurrently, the chair or co-chairs may serve as the research supervisor(s) (dissertation director, major advisor) of the candidate. The primary duties of the chair are (1) to maintain the academic standards of the doctoral program and the Graduate School, (2) to ensure that the comprehensive and final examinations are conducted in a timely fashion, (3) to arrange and conduct all meetings, and (4) to ensure that requirements set forth by the Committee are implemented in the final version of the dissertation.
Outside Member
While one or more members of the doctoral committee may be from outside the department in which the graduate program resides, an official “outside member” must be appointed, who serves a specific role as described below. The primary responsibilities of this outside member are (1) to maintain the academic standards of the Graduate School and (2) to assure that all procedures are carried out fairly. The outside member represents the Graduate School; and, as such, the outside member shall be a member of the Graduate Faculty but need not have direct expertise in the research area of the candidate. The outside member may contribute technical expertise, but this role is subordinate to the aforementioned primary responsibilities. In this context, the head of the doctoral program will recommend to the dean (via the Office of Graduate Enrollment Services) a sufficient number of members, exclusive of the outside member, so that sufficient technical expertise is represented on the committee. Thus, the outside member may be in addition to a full complement of committee members with technical expertise in the area. Heads of doctoral programs will seek an outside member who has no conflicts of interest with members of the committee, in such a way as to preclude their fulfilling the primary duties as the outside member. The outside member shall not hold a budgetary or adjunct appointment in the department or academic unit to which the student’s doctoral program belongs. The outside member shall also not have a budgetary or adjunct appointment in or other conflict of interest with the unit(s) to which either the chair or the dissertation adviser belongs. The outside member cannot chair or co-chair the committee. This does not preclude other members of the Graduate Faculty regardless of budgetary appointment from serving on the committee, and potentially in dual roles, for example, as co-chair. The committee member representing the minor may serve as the outside member if his or her budgetary appointment satisfies the conditions noted above.
The membership of doctoral committees should be periodically reviewed by the program chair to ensure that its members continue to qualify for service on the committee in their designated roles. For example, if budgetary appointments, employment at the University, etc., have changed since initial appointment to the committee, changes to the committee membership may be necessary. If changes are warranted, they should be made as soon as possible to prevent future problems that may delay academic progress for the student (e.g., ability to conduct the comprehensive or final examinations).
Responsibilities of Doctoral Committees
The doctoral committee is responsible for approving the broad outline of the student's program and should review the program as soon as possible after the student's admission to candidacy. Moreover, continuing communication among the student, the committee chair, the research supervisor, and the members of the committee is strongly recommended, in order to preclude misunderstandings and to develop a collegial relation between the candidate and the committee.
Doctoral Examinations
The (entire) committee will prepare and administer the examination and evaluate the candidate's performance on the examination. If a committee member is unable to attend the final oral examination, he or she will sign as a special signatory after notifying Graduate Enrollment Services (114 Kern) that a committee change must be approved and be made a part of the student's record. (Substitutes are not permitted, but changes in the committee can be made, if needed, through the usual procedures.) These changes and approvals shall occur before the actual examination takes place. The department or program head will notify Graduate Enrollment Services when the candidate is ready to have the comprehensive and the final oral examinations scheduled and will report the results of these examinations to that office.
At least three members of the doctoral committee (including the thesis adviser or chair) must be physically present at the comprehensive and at the final oral examination. The graduate student must also be physically present at these examinations. (Thus for a five-person committee, two could participate via distance.) No more than one member may participate via telephone; a second member could participate via PicTel. The examination request and a request for exceptions must be submitted to the dean of the Graduate School for approval at least three weeks prior to the date of the examination. Special arrangements, i.e., requirements for meeting participation via distance, should be communicated to the student and to the doctoral committee members well in advance of the examination.
A favorable vote of at least two-thirds of the members of the committee is required for passing a comprehensive or a final oral examination. If a candidate fails an examination, it is the responsibility of the doctoral committee to determine whether another examination may be taken.
The committee examines the dissertation, administers the final oral examination, and signs the signatory page of the dissertation. At least two-thirds of the committee must approve the dissertation.