Moving Into Candidacy Step by Step

Moving into Candidacy – Step by Step

1.  Decide who will be your chair/advisor.

  1. This must be a “Regular” member of the Graduate Faculty
  2. Check the Grad School webpage, under “faculty” to see if the person you have in mind is “Regular” or “Associate”
  3. If you want to have an “Associate” member as your chair, you can arrange for them to “co-chair” with someone who is a “regular” member

2.  Complete the SSW form Nomination of Chair

  1. Have this form signed by the chair and the Doctoral Program Director

3.  Set up a meeting with your chair and the Doctoral Program Director (DPD) to discuss the composition of your committee

4.  Ask four other faculty members to be on your committee.

  1. You need at least 3 faculty on the committee who are “regular” members of the Graduate Faculty
  2. You need a total of four members who are in the SSW
  3. You need one “outside” member
  4. This can be someone from another school at UMB, UMBC from another campus, or from outside the University
  5. The outside person must have a Ph.D.

5.  Complete a SSW Nomination of Committee Members form

  1. Have this form signed by your Chair, and by the Doctoral Program Director

6.  Working with your chair and committee, write you dissertation proposal.

7.  One month (approximately) before you plan to defend the proposal, give copies of the proposal to your committee members.

  1. This step should be only with the agreement of your chair

8.  Two weeks before you plan to defend your proposal, complete a “Readiness for proposal defense” form (SSW)

  1. Get the signatures of your chair and at least two committee members certifying that your proposal is ready for defense. (Due in DP office 10 working days in advance of defense.)
  2. Give a copy of your proposal to the DP office
  3. Send the DP director a copy of your proposal electronically.

9.  Defend your proposal (Congratulations!)

  1. Committee will complete a form certifying that the proposal was successfully defended.
  2. Give this form to the DP director, along with
  3. Graduate School form applying for candidacy
  4. Graduate School form listing the courses you have taken, and grades received
  5. Graduate School form naming your committee chair and members
  6. Indicate the proposed date of dissertation defense. This must be two semesters after you gain candidacy.
  7. Indicate two of the committee members as “readers”. These are the people who will certify that your dissertation is ready for final defense.

10.  I will send the four forms with a cover letter to the Dean of the Graduate School, requesting that you be granted candidacy.

  1. In about two weeks, you will get a letter from the Dean, indicating that you now have candidacy status. This is the formal indication that you are a “candidate”.
  2. It is the date on this letter that determines the “clock” for the two Graduate School time limits: 5 years from entry to candidacy, and 4 years from candidacy to graduation.
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