Cratis D. Williams School of Graduate Studies

The purpose of the thesis or dissertation document is to present that knowledge to the scholarly community in a clear, concise, and professional manner that is appropriate to the discipline. Students enrolled in degree programs in which they will complete a thesis or dissertation are expected to plan, execute, and report on a research project or creative endeavor that creates, analyzes, assesses, or otherwise advances knowledge in the discipline of study.

Important Deadlines for Thesis/Dissertation Defense

Submission Deadlines for Thesis/Dissertation Manuscripts

Submission of a defended final draft of the thesis or dissertation is due in the Graduate School by no later than the dates listed below. Your final draft will be reviewed by the Graduate School readers, and additional changes may be necessary before the completed copy is approved. Completed theses/dissertations must be turned in on or before the completed thesis deadline. Late submissions will NOT be accepted.

*A "Completed Thesis" includes the final, edited copy ready for publication, with all required forms submitted.

Approval of Thesis Committee

1. Work with your program director and faculty to determine a committee of graduate faculty. The committee chair must be a "Full Member" of the graduate faculty from the home program. Additional committee members may have "Affiliate Member" status.
2. The committee chair will electronically submit the thesis committee form (dynamic form). All committee member names and emails MUST be listed on the committee form, along with the department chair, and all signatures must be obtained. Please keep in mind that the committee chair will need the student's name, Banner ID, degree, and email before filling out the form. External members outside of the university can access the form, but they will need to create an account with Dynamic Forms when prompted in order to sign. Once all signatures are obtained, the form will automatically route to the Graduate School for approval, and the committee chair will be notified when approval is received. Students will not be cleared to register for thesis/dissertation hours (5999, 6999, or 7999) until the committee form is submitted and approved. If you need to change a committee member later, inform the Graduate School by submitting a Committee Change Form to thesis@appstate.edu.
3. Prepare and present your thesis idea via a prospectus or summary. The individual program determines the scheduling, style, and length of your prospectus. Consult with your advisor for more information.
4. Acquire IRB/IACUC/IBC approval (if needed) for research involving humans, animals, or biohazardous materials. You may NOT collect any data until you complete the appropriate training and receive the necessary approval from the Office of Research Protections, so it is important to allow sufficient time for this approval to be secured.

Approval of Dissertation Committee and Prospectus

1. Work with your program director and faculty to determine a committee of graduate faculty. The committee chair must be a "Full Member" of the graduate faculty from the home program. Additional committee members may have "Affiliate Member" status.
2. Prepare and present your dissertation idea via a prospectus or summary. The individual program determines the style and length of your prospectus. Consult with your advisor for more information.
3. Acquire IRB/IACUC/IBC approval (if needed) for research involving humans, animals, or biohazardous materials. You may NOT collect any data until you complete the appropriate training and receive the necessary approval from the Office of Research Protections, so it is important to allow sufficient time for this approval to be secured. Your committee membership form and prospectus must indicate the date on which you applied for IRB approval, and attach the IRB letter if approved. If approval is pending, you must submit an attestation verifying that data collection will not occur until IRB approval is finalized.
4. Electronically submit your prospectus (or summary), the signed dissertation committee form, and a copy of your IRB/IACUC/IBC approval letter or attestation (where applicable) as attached PDF files to the Graduate School at thesis@appstate.edu. Make sure to copy (cc) all committee members on the email. All committee member names and the department chair MUST be listed on the committee form. Signatures on the form may be electronic or a scanned copy of "wet" signatures. You will not be cleared to register for thesis/dissertation hours (5999, 6999, or 7999) until these items are submitted and approved. If you need to change a committee member later, inform the Graduate School by submitting a Committee Change Form.

Completing Your Research

1. Once you have received notification that your committee and/or prospectus is approved, you may submit a Special Course Form to request registration in thesis or dissertation hours. 
2. Begin and/or continue gathering and analyzing your data.
3. Attend workshops if you need assistance with document layout in MS Word or with particular data analysis strategies. Your advisor can help you identify these workshops.
4. Determine what publication style you need to use and also review the Graduate School's Thesis/Dissertation Handbook. Your program may require you to use a style that is also used in a journal in your field. In such cases, please provide publication guidelines when you submit your thesis to the Graduate School. If your program/advisor does not have a particular style required of you, we recommend using APA.
5. Format the manuscript per the Thesis/Dissertation Handbook, with input on organization and format from your committee. Also refer to your disciplinary style guide (e.g., APA, MLA). 
6. Make sure that your front matter adheres to Graduate School guidelines. (The Publications & Special Projects Coordinator is available to review manuscripts for front matter and style guide issues. Email thesis@appstate.edu to make an appointment.) Refer to the How to use the updated thesis and dissertation formatting template video [YouTube video] and download the video transcript  [docx] to learn more about how to use the Styles function in Word to create accessible manuscripts.

Defend the Thesis/Dissertation - Scheduling and Notification of Defense

You must defend your research. Because the "final" (post-defense), and "completed" (post-Grad School review) thesis/dissertation manuscripts must be submitted to the Graduate School by the established deadlines, the defense should be scheduled to allow time to make final, post-defense corrections to the manuscript before submitting it for Graduate School review.

The defense should be scheduled and held no later than six weeks before commencement in the semester you will be graduating.  See the above deadlines for scheduling your defense.

At least two weeks before the defense, you should submit a close-to-final draft of the entire manuscript to all committee members. The draft should be complete and in acceptable format.

1. Within one week, the committee should return the draft to the committee chair with written criticisms and statement of conditional approval. In some cases the committee will meet directly with you as a group or individually to go over comments with you.
2. If the committee recommends substantial changes, the chair will typically meet with you to decide on the best plan of action.
3. The Committee Chair sends an email invitation for the defense, with the abstract included, to the following people: faculty members interested in the topic (minimally all faculty in the department), the Department Chair, the Program Coordinator/Director, the Dean of the college, the Dean of the Graduate School, and other graduate students in the department or program. This notification should be sent at least four working days before the defense.

Please see section 2.1 of the Graduate Thesis and Dissertation Handbook for further details and requirements for the thesis/dissertation defense process.

Graduate School Review and Approval of Thesis/Dissertation Manuscripts

Once you have successfully defended, you will work with the Graduate School to complete this process.

1. When all committee-requested corrections are made after the defense, your Committee Chair must send an email to thesis@appstate.edu, copying you and all committee members, along with the department chairperson, by the "final" (post-defense) deadline, and include:
   1. An electronic copy (PDF format) of the full, post-defense corrected manuscript
   2. Written verification that the thesis/dissertation was approved by all committee members
   3. Indication of what style guide was used for the manuscript (e.g. APA 7th Ed., or if journal guidelines were used, a copy of (or link to) the editorial guidelines must be included)
2. The Graduate School thesis/dissertation reader reads the document, and notes any corrections to be made. The Graduate School will return the "marked" copy along with a feedback form listing the required corrections.
   1. At this time, you will also receive the Open AIR ETD Release Form. You are required to return this signed form along with your corrected manuscript to thesis@appstate.edu. The Release Form authorizes the Library and the University to share your document through the online library (Open AIR).
3. Once any required corrections have been made, return the corrected manuscript and the signed Release form to the Graduate School (email to thesis@appstate.edu) by the "Completed" (post-Grad School review) deadline. If you have made all corrections and there are no further changes needed, you will be told that you are "cleared for binding."
   1. NOTE: If all corrections have not been made, you will be provided with information on what needs further correction.
4. A final approved ("cleared for binding") manuscript and the signed Release Form are required for your degree to be conferred.