Proposal and Dissertation Process

PROCESS OUTLINE

• Choose a tentative dissertation topic (If you are unsure, see the PhD program director)
• Choose at least some of the classes based on your dissertation topic
• Start researching your topic
• Register for Proposal Class (usually during your last semester of classes)
• Choose a dissertation committee chair
• Choose other members of your committee based on the discussion with your chair
• Fill the necessary paperwork (See section on Forms)
• Start writing your proposal
• Follow the advice of your Committee chair
• See Bonnie Proctor to ensure that you are following required standards of writing
• Apply for proposal defense
• Defend your proposal
• Congratulations! You are now ready to start writing your dissertation

DISSERTATION PREPARATION

The dissertation prepared by the PhD candidate must:
• Make an original contribution to scholarship
• Demonstrate the candidate’s competence for independent research
• Reveal the candidate’s familiarity with and proficiency in handling the relevant literature
• Present a logically organized, methodologically sound, and readable account of the investigation, findings, conclusions, and implications of the study.

See the Religious Education Doctoral Handbook for more information on dissertation preparation.

ORAL DEFENSE OF DISSERTATION

The candidate must orally defend his/her dissertation. The defense date is set and announced by the director of the Religious Education Program at least two weeks before the defense. No defenses are scheduled during the final two weeks of a term or during the interim between semesters.
To pass the oral defense, candidates must receive a vote of approval from at least four of the five examiners. The committee votes in one of the following ways:
1. Acceptance of the dissertation as presented
2. Acceptance of the dissertation subject to minor revisions
3. Acceptance of the dissertation subject to major revisions
4. Rejection of the dissertation

After the defense the student makes all the corrections.
The deadline for dissertations to be submitted to the Dissertation Secretary with the signed approval page is no later than 10 days before graduation.
Strict adherence to this deadline is essential or graduation is postponed.

WRITING RESOURCES

AU formatting rules
AU Standard for Written Work
AU Writing Center