4.6 CONTINUOUS DISSERTATION REGISTRATION FOR DOCTORAL STUDENTS

Continuous Dissertation Registration for Doctoral Students

Once a student has met the requirements for admission to candidacy, received approval for the dissertation research proposal, or initiated enrollment in 699 (dissertation research for a doctoral degree), the student must pursue completion of the dissertation without interruption by enrolling each fall and spring semester of the academic year for at least 3 hours of dissertation research. Summer enrollment for 699 Dissertation Research is expected if the student is working on the dissertation and using any University facilities or resources, including faculty time. 

The continuous registration requirement is applicable whether or not the student has submitted an official Application for Admission to Candidacy form. The only exception is for DMA students who complete a document rather than a dissertation. DMA students may register for one hour of document research during a semester but must maintain continuous enrollment. A PhD student must have completed a minimum of 24 hours of dissertation research credits upon completion of the dissertation. An EdD student must have completed a minimum of 12 dissertation research credits upon completion of the dissertation. The amount of dissertation research for which a student enrolls in any given semester should be commensurate with the progress a student is expected to make on the dissertation, as well as reflective of the extent to which University facilities and faculty time are invested in the proposed activities.

To assist faculty and students in determining the appropriate registration for doctoral research, the following guidelines are recommended.

Three semester hours. Little or no progress will be made on the dissertation, only minimal use of University facilities will be involved, and/or there will be only slight faculty contact with the student; the work and writing of the dissertation are complete and only final grammatical corrections and the oral examination on the dissertation remain to be accomplished.

Six semester hours. The student will be devoting approximately one-half of a full-time academic load to the dissertation. Moderate progress on the dissertation is expected of the candidate, only limited use of University facilities will be involved, and/or faculty contact with the student will be limited.

Nine semester hours. The student will be devoting approximately three-fourths of a full-time load to the dissertation. Substantial progress on the dissertation is expected of the student, there will be major use of University facilities, and/or considerable faculty contact with the candidate is anticipated.

Twelve semester hours. The student will be working full-time academic on the dissertation. Extensive progress on the dissertation is expected, there will be considerable use of University facilities, and/or faculty contact with the student will be extensive.

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