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Ph.D. Degree Requirements

A Ph.D. program is intended to provide a student with research and teaching experience beyond the level provided in an M.S. program. The fundamental differences between these two programs are that a Ph.D. student is expected to demonstrate mastery of knowledge in several disciplines or areas of specialization and to demonstrate mastery of research skills by designing and completing an original, independently conducted research project, and by writing a dissertation based on this research.

GUIDANCE COMMITTEE

Each student should consult with her or his Ph.D. program advisor at or before the beginning of their first semester to plan a tentative program of courses, to select a Guidance Committee, to begin to develop a research proposal, and to discuss possible areas of specialization. A student will choose one major area and at least two minor areas of specialization. A Guidance Committee of five members, two of whom must represent areas other than the student’s major specialization, will be appointed by the Dean of the Graduate School upon recommendation by the student’s advisor and the Graduate Program Coordinator (see Doctoral Students Supervisory Committee Nomination Form, p. 22).

The Guidance Committee is responsible for supervising direction of the student’s research, for assuring appropriate diversity among the student’s proposed areas of specialization, for determining the level of expertise required to satisfy major and minor areas of specialization, and for conducting all qualifying examinations required to evaluate the student’s academic and research progress.

The Guidance Committee meets within the student’s first year to approve the proposed areas of specialization, to assist in the development of a final program of courses, and to discuss the proposed research. The student will schedule meetings at least once each year to review the student’s academic and research progress and to discuss whether adjustments in the program are necessary. Research and courses accepted by the Guidance Committee shall be included in the “Report of the Guidance Committee” (form attached), which should be signed by the student and committee members and submitted to the Graduate Program Coordinator for filing in the department’s graduate student files following the first committee meeting.

REQUIRED COURSE WORK

Course requirements for doctoral students will be determined with the advice and consent of the Guidance Committee, and will be based on the student’s previous record and on the needs within the student’s areas of specialization. There is no minimum credit requirement. Course work will be reviewed periodically by the Committee.

Statistics requirement—each student is expected to have a working understanding of intermediate level statistics before advancing to candidacy.

When coursework is completed, doctoral students register for PBIO 999 Doctoral Research.

TEACHING REQUIREMENT

The department’s teaching requirement can be satisfied either by appointment as a TA for two semesters or, in the event no teaching assistantship is available, by registering for “Investigations in Plant Biology: Teaching” (PBIO 995R) for two semesters. In either case, one semester should include major responsibility for teaching a laboratory section in an introductory level Plant Biology course and the other semester should involve collaboration in teaching an advanced Plant Biology course. Students with previous professional teaching experience may request a waiver of this requirement.

FOREIGN LANGUAGES

There is no departmental requirement for foreign language proficiency. However, proficiency may be appropriate in certain programs. The student’s Guidance Committee will determine if there is a need for a foreign language and the best way to fulfill this need.

QUALIFYING EXAMINATION (CANDIDACY EXAM)

The Qualifying Exam consists of two parts: 1) a comprehensive written exam and 2) a comprehensive oral exam. The written exam is to be taken no later than the end of the fourth semester of residence. The oral exam can be taken only after successful completion of the written exam. The oral exam is typically taken by mid-term of the fifth semester and will last approximately two hours.

The Qualifying Exam must be passed before the student can be advanced to candidacy. Continued financial support may be in jeopardy if advancement to candidacy is delayed beyond the fifth semester. The student is responsible for scheduling both parts of this exam.

a. Comprehensive Written Exam

A student, in consultation with the Guidance Committee, will choose one major area and at least two minor areas of specialization.

In the written exam, the student is expected to demonstrate competence in his or her chosen areas of specialization and to express synthesized information in clear, concise, well-organized readable essays, without the aid of reference sources. This is a “closed book” examination. It should be taken following completion of the major portion of the required course work, typically during the fourth semester of residence.

The student’s advisor will solicit questions from Committee members, administer the exam, and provide copies of the completed exam to all Committee members for evaluation. Each area of specialization will be considered either passed or failed in the collective judgement of the Committee. In the event of failure of one or more parts of this exam, the following conditions are set:

  1. If one area is failed, the student is given a "conditional pass". The failed area must be reexamined no sooner than eight weeks after the date of the first exam. If upon reexamination the area is again failed, the collective judgement of the Committee will determine whether the student should continue in the program and, if so, any conditions that must be met.
  2. If two or more areas are failed, the entire exam is failed. A second exam may be scheduled no sooner than six months after the date of the first exam. One reexamination is allowed. If the student fails the reexamination the student will normally be terminated. Continuation in the program will be permitted only upon approval of a petition to the Graduate Admissions and Standards Committee.

b. Comprehensive Oral Exam

In the oral exam the student is expected to demonstrate an ability to "think on one's feet." The student should demonstrate a mastery of fundamental concepts in her/his areas of specialization and be able to draw upon a broad spectrum of information to answer theoretical and practical questions. This exam will be conducted by the Guidance Committee and chaired by the student’s advisor. Based on the collective decision of the Committee, the student will: 1) pass, 2) conditionally pass, or 3) fail the oral exam.

If the student is found to be deficient in one area in the oral exam, the Committee may decide upon a conditional pass. In this event, the Committee will recommend conditions for removal of the deficiency. If the Committee determines that the student has failed the oral exam, he or she will be permitted one reexamination, not sooner than four months after the first oral exam.

When the student has passed the Qualifying Exam and satisfied any language requirement, the advisor will inform the Graduate School and recommend that the student be advanced to candidacy in the Ph.D. degree program. Following advancement to candidacy, the student’s Doctoral Committee will be appointed by the Dean of the Graduate School upon the recommendation of the student’s advisor and the Graduate Program Coordinator. The Doctoral Committee may include the same faculty who served on the Guidance Committee, or may consist partially or entirely of new members.

DISSERTATION

A dissertation is required of all Ph.D. candidates. Once the dissertation draft copy has been approved by the student's advisor draft copies of the dissertation are distributed for review to each member of the Doctoral Committee. This should be done as early as possible, since Committee members may require at least two weeks to review the draft copy. Committee members may return it for revision before the dissertation defense, or at the defense. A copy of the revised dissertation should be available to each committee member for further examination before final approval and signatures are obtained on the signature page to be bound in the dissertation. The student must consult the Graduate School Calendar for the deadline for submission of copies of the approved dissertation for binding.

The format of the thesis is determined by guidelines printed in the “Thesis and Dissertation Manual” available from the Graduate School Office and/or web site (www.gradschool.unh.edu). Five bound copies of the thesis are required: two for the Graduate School (to be deposited in the UNH library), one for deposit in the department's collection of theses, one for the student’s advisor, and one for the student. These copies are submitted to the Graduate School unbound, along with a check to cover the binding fee.

The department maintains a collection of theses in Spaulding G-28 (meeting room). Perusal of past dissertations is helpful as models for presentation styles.

DISSERTATION DEFENSE

The dissertation defense is an oral examination on the student’s research and dissertation. The student is responsible for scheduling the defense, which will be administered by his/her Doctoral Committee, and chaired by the advisor. The defense will last approximately two to three hours and should be scheduled prior to the deadline published in the Graduate School Calendar. If the Committee is satisfied with the revised draft of the dissertation and its defense, each member may sign to that effect. If further revisions of the dissertation are required, another Committee meeting may be scheduled for further defense of the dissertation.