PhD dissertation defenses will be preceded by a one-hour departmental seminar open to the academic community and the public. The PhD defense should be announced in the department.

Departmental policy requires that PhD students must remain in the Department on a full-time basis until the thesis has been submitted to the dissertation committee. The only exceptions to this policy are PhD students who have been approved to pursue a part-time program.

Except under extra-ordinary circumstances, the in-person oral defense should be scheduled at least 3 weeks after the distribution of the thesis to the departmental committee.