In the semester prior to your planned defense and prior to applying for graduation, you must submit an Application for Admission To Candidacy form which is available on the Graduate College forms webpage. The AAC is a list of all completed and planned course work and is the primary method for obtaining official approval of elective courses.
The AAC should be submitted after your successful dissertation proposal. At the very least, it must be submitted a full semester before you graduate. Check the deadline here: https://www.boisestate.edu/registrar/boise-state-academic-calendars/ Please note that the Graduate College has up to eight weeks to process the AAC once the form arrives.
Guideline for selecting "Requirement Type" categories in the drop down menu:
Select "Core Course" for any course that fulfills your emphasis area core requirements including COMPUT 601
Select "Culminating Activity" for COMPUT 691 Doctoral Comprehensive Exam
Select "Elective" for any course that fulfills your pre-approved or advisor-approved electives in your emphasis, including Independent Study and Seminar credits
Select "Research" for COMPUT 693 Dissertation
Select "Other Requirement" for Practicum/Internship
Once this application is accepted by the Graduate College, the student becomes a Ph.D. Candidate. The Graduate College strongly recommends that the AAC be submitted when the student has finished approximately half of the degree requirements.
Once admitted to candidacy, it is expected that the student will proceed with the research outlined in the proposal defense. Major deviation from the proposed research requires majority approval of the supervisory committee.
Refer to the calendars on the Registrar’s website for the deadline by which to apply for graduation: https://registrar.boisestate.edu/boise-state-academic-calendars/
Typically the deadline is in the semester before you plan to graduate. While it's possible to apply late, additional fees may apply and complications can arise. Plan ahead to avoid applying for graduation after the deadline.
The application for graduation is submitted through your student center. Instructions can be found here: https://registrar.boisestate.edu/apply-for-graduation/
Refer to the templates and other resources on the Graduate College Thesis and Dissertation web page: https://www.boisestate.edu/graduatecollege-success/thesis-and-dissertation-template/
The dissertation must be the result of independent and original research and must constitute a significant contribution to the knowledge base of the focus area, equivalent to multiple peer-reviewed publications. The style and format of the dissertation are to conform to the standards of the Graduate College.
A public defense of the dissertation is scheduled after the supervisory committee has reviewed a draft that is considered to be a nearly final version. The date of the defense is determined jointly by the supervisory committee and the student and must be consistent with any guidelines provided by the Graduate College. The first part of the defense will be a public oral presentation of the dissertation. The second part will be an oral exam administered by the supervisory committee who will decide whether the student passes or fails the defense. A student who fails the defense may be permitted to try again but failure a second time will result in dismissal from the Ph.D. program.
If the defense is completed with a result of pass, the supervisory committee prepares a statement describing final requirements such as additions or modifications to the dissertation and any additional requirements such as archival of data. When these requirements have been met to the satisfaction of the supervisory committee, the approval page of the dissertation is signed by the members of the committee.
Ensure that your defense committee is the same as it was when you submitted the Appointment of Supervisory Committee Form. Contact the Computing PhD Program Coordinator if you need a copy of the form. Submit an updated form if needed.
Schedule the date, time (two hour duration) and location of your defense as soon as it is reasonable. Once you’ve selected the date and time, select a room for your presentation. If you are planning to present your defense downtown in City Center Plaza, Brenda
Using your student Gmail account, create a Google calendar event and invite your advisor, committee members, GFR, and Computing PhD Program Coordinator, being sure to include a Zoom link generated with your Boise State student account (if applicable).
Keep the following in mind:
You must schedule a time that works for your appointed Graduate Faculty Representative (GFR).
You must allow ample time for your committee members to review your work prior to your presentation.
You are responsible for creating a Zoom link through your student account if you wish to present online or in hybrid format.
Schedule two hours for your defense. This will allow for 45 minutes for the public presentation, 15 minutes for public discussion, and an hour for a private discussion between the student and the defense committee.
Send the title and abstract to the Computing PhD Program Coordinator for promotion of your defense.
Distribute copies of your dissertation to your committee members at least two weeks prior to your defense. Your advisor and committee members may ask you to make revisions to your dissertation before your defense.
Download the Defense Committee Approval form.
Print one copy on standard white paper and bring to your defense. Your committee must sign in blue or black ink.
After your defense, your GFR will deliver the approval form to the Graduate College.
After your oral defense is complete and you have made all revisions requested by your committee, submit your dissertation to ProQuest. Follow each of the steps outlined in the ProQuest Guide.
Final submission is managed by the Graduate Student Success Center. Contact success@boisestate.edu if you have questions or need support.
While the established Graduate Student Success Center deadline to complete your oral defense is a recommended deadline with a little flexibility, the submission deadline is not. Any student who submits their dissertation document after the deadline will be placed on a waitlist and is at risk of being pushed to the subsequent semester depending on Graduate College workload.
The only way to guarantee that you are on track to graduate in your desired/designated semester is to successfully defend your dissertation and submit it to ProQuest prior to the published deadline.
Semester before:
Review the Graduate College Dissertation Defense webpage to prepare for the process.
Submit the Application for Admission To Candidacy to the Graduate College. Form instructions are located here: https://www.boisestate.edu/graduatecollege/application-for-admission-to-candidacy-instructions/
Follow the steps listed on the Registrar's Graduation Checklist and apply for graduation: https://www.boisestate.edu/registrar-help/apply-graduation/
Communicate with your supervisory committee that you’ve applied for graduation and are beginning preparations to defend.
At least two months prior to defense:
Update the Appointment of Supervisory Committee Form if your advisor, committee members or GFR changed since your proposal.
Discuss with your advisor, committee members and GFR their availability to participate in the oral defense, and determine who will attend in person or online.
If no manuscripts have been submitted to a peer-reviewed publication, follow up with your advisor to start the process of obtaining an external independent review of the dissertation
Six weeks prior to defense:
Seek dissertation feedback from your advisor and committee members and obtain approval to schedule defense.
With feedback from your advisor and committee members, finish writing your dissertation. Consult with a Graduate Student Success Center writing coach if you need support with your final draft.
If an external reviewer is required, with approval from your advisor forward your final dissertation to the Computing PhD Program Coordinator.
One month prior to defense:
Submit your final dissertation to your advisor and your committee members.
Schedule the date, time (one hour duration) and location of your proposal defense with your advisor, committee and GFR. Schedule two hours for your defense; 45 minutes for your presentation with discussion to follow.
If presenting in person, contact the Computing PhD Program Coordinator for a room assignment.
If presenting online or in a hybrid format, create a Zoom link using your Boise State student account.
Using your student Gmail account, create a Google calendar event and invite your advisor, committee members, GFR, and Computing PhD Program Coordinator, being sure to include the room assignment and/or a Zoom link generated with your Boise State student account.
Send the title and abstract to the Computing PhD Program Coordinator for promotion of your defense.
Submit the Graduate College's required Defense Notification Form: https://admissions.boisestate.edu/register/graduate-defense-notification
Note: Announcement of the public presentation to the university community is required and should precede the presentation by at least two weeks.
At the oral defense:
Bring the Defense Committee Approval form with you to your defense.
After the oral defense:
Complete dissertation revisions as specified by your advisor and committee. Formatting requirements are detailed here.
Submit your dissertation to the Graduate Student Success Center via ProQuest ETD. Submission instructions are located here.