Dissertation and Dissertation Defense Procedures
A Ph.D. candidate's program of original research and the written dissertation to which it leads are the highlight and culmination of doctoral study. The dissertation is the written documentation of the findings of the research program, and is required by the University to constitute a "significant contribution to knowledge worthy of publication in scholarly journals." Not only the research but also the exposition, grammar, and style must be of the highest order.
The dissertation defense is a public presentation and discussion of the findings of the research program, conducted before a committee of members of the faculty (not necessarily all from this department). It is open to attendance by all members of the University community. The dissertation defense is the climax of the Ph.D. program.
The following procedures are consistent with this interpretation of dissertation research, manuscript, and defense.
1) Dissertations must be prepared in accordance with University requirements; a detailed statement of these is available at http://www.jhu.edu/~gradbd/.
2) The University requires that two Readers study the dissertation carefully and sign a letter attesting that it is indeed a "significant contribution ... ". The "First Reader" is, of course, the research advisor, while the "Second Reader" is usually another member of the department, chosen by you and your advisor, with research interests closely related to yours. Second Readers may, if appropriate, be chosen from other departments or even, in exceptional cases, from outside the University. Early selection and involvement of the Second Reader can lead to significant improvements in the dissertation. The Readers' Report, signed by both Readers, must be available to the examining panel members two weeks in advance of the defense.
3) The defense must be held at least two weeks before the Graduate Board deadline to be met, in order to allow time to make any changes in the dissertation that are required by the defense panel.
4) Before the defense will be scheduled, all other requirements for the degree, including the computing requirement, must be fulfilled.
5) At least three weeks before the desired date of the defense, the candidate must request that the department chair appoint the defense panel (the Readers, plus two or three faculty from within or outside the department) and schedule the defense. This request is to be made on the accompanying form, entitled "Submission of Dissertation and Request for Dissertation Defense," which must be submitted with a copy of the complete dissertation to be defended. The student should distribute copies to the defense panel members, and one should be placed in the department Commons Room (301), where it will be available for examination by department faculty and graduate students. The dissertation as defended must be complete: Only changes required by the defense panel should be made following the defense.
6) One official University copy of the dissertation is required by the Graduate Board. This copy is submitted, on acid-free paper, to the Commercial Binding Office, A Level, M.S.E. Library, in a box or manila envelope. It becomes bound and placed in the M.S.E. Library, along with a microfilm copy. The candidate must also arrange to have a copy bound for the Department Library; the department will pay duplicating and binding costs for this copy, provided that duplication of the dissertation is done on department equipment. By tradition, the candidate also presents the research advisor with a bound copy of the dissertation. Costs of typing and duplication, as well as binding and microfilming fees, must be borne by the candidate.
7) After the dissertation has been defended and the University copy delivered to the Graduate Board, the candidate requests in writing that the department chair certify him or her to the Graduate Board for the Ph.D. degree.
READERS' REPORTS AND CHECKLIST
Requirements for Submitting a Readers' Report
A Readers' Report must be received for all students receiving a Ph.D., or a Master’s Degree with essay.
Dissertation Readers are to be selected and appointed by the sponsoring department or committee. Any duly appointed member of a department or committee sponsoring Ph.D. candidates and holding the rank of assistant professor or higher (including visiting professors, but excluding lecturers) is eligible for selection as a Reader without prior approval. Readers from outside the University structure, or from any non-Ph.D. sponsoring department, laboratory, or institute within the University, must be approved by the Graduate Board Office. Such approval will be forthcoming only when such an appointment is justified in writing by the chair of the department or committee making the request.
Two Readers are required for Ph.D. students and one for Master’s students.
Readers' Reports, in order to qualify for acceptance by the Graduate Board, must certify that the dissertation is a significant contribution to knowledge worthy of publication in its present form or with appropriate modifications, and that it is worthy of acceptance in partial fulfillment of requirements for the Ph.D. degree. Readers' Reports must show the academic rank or title of each Reader and the department and school (or University) with which he or she is associated. The report must also be dated, give the student's full name, and give the full title of the dissertation or essay. The title must be correct since the transcript and graduation program show this title.
This report must be in the Graduate Board Office by the deadline date for that period and the date must precede the date of the departmental certification.
The original and one copy of the Readers' Report are sent to the Secretary of the Graduate Board.