General Examination

The general examination covering the student's area of specialization (human factors/ergonomics, operations research, production & manufacturing systems, and engineering management) will be administered after the coursework is completed.

The examination will cover topics based on the formal plan of studies. The student's Committee Chair will discuss with the student the nature and the scope of the examination and the schedule for the examination.

The student's Committee will evaluate the written examination and may then request the student to appear before them to answer questions regarding the examination. If the student fails the examination, the committee may retest the student at its discretion during the following semester. Only one retest will be allowed.

If the written examination is completed successfully, the student must then submit a formal proposal for his or her doctoral research program. Guidelines are available in the IE School, which outline the contest requirements for this proposal. This proposal must be submitted not later than 6 months after the written examination was completed.

The student's Committee will then schedule an oral examination covering the proposal. This examination may not be scheduled earlier than three weeks after all committee members have been provided a copy of the proposal. If the student passes the oral examination, he or she is then recommended for admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree to the Graduate Dean.

Dissertation Defense

After the doctoral research program is completed and the dissertation written, the Graduate Dean will direct the student's committee to evaluate it and schedule an oral examination to review the doctoral dissertation.

The student should consult the Graduate College Catalog for specific requirements regarding the schedule for submission for thesis copies to the Graduate Dean prior to scheduling the oral examination. If the candidate fails the oral defense, he or she will be automatically dropped from the rolls of the Graduate College and the candidacy will be terminated.