/Institutions/MGH-Institute-of-Health-Professions/json/2020-2021/PhD-Program-Manual-local.json

/Institutions/MGH-Institute-of-Health-Professions/json/2020-2021/PhD-Program-Manual.json

PhD Program Manual > Academic Requirements > Program of Study (See Appendix) > Dissertation > Dissertation Process

Dissertation Process

Following approval of the membership of the Dissertation Committee by the Executive Committee, the dissertation process proceeds as follows:

 

1. The student, in consultation with his/her research supervisor, prepares a Prospectus document that will essentially comprise the initial draft of Chapter 1 (see Dissertation Format below) and a detailed description of the methods that will be used to complete all the research being proposed for the three studies that will comprise the dissertation. It is expected that the student will already have been pursuing some of this research prior to the prospectus stage, and that the results of this work would be included in the prospectus document. The prospectus should be completed and approved as soon as possible following successful completion of the Qualifying Examination (typically within a semester or two).
2. The student distributes the prospectus document to his/her Dissertation Committee. Then the Chair of the Dissertation Committee schedules a “Prospectus Meeting/Hearing” of the entire Committee to occur at least two weeks after the distribution of the prospectus document. The prospectus meeting provides an opportunity for the student to receive feedback about both conceptual and methodological issues involved in the proposed research prior to completing the studies. 
3. At the Prospectus Meeting the student gives an oral presentation that is based on the prospectus document, and answers questions raised by the Committee about the proposed work. The Committee will then decide if modifications need to be made to the proposed work and these will be documented as requirements for the dissertation research to proceed.
4. The Chair of the Dissertation Committee is responsible for communicating in writing the outcome of the prospectus meeting to the PhD Program Director and Program Coordinator. Students are expected to complete the prospectus process as soon as possible after passing the Qualifying Examination – typically by the end of the second year in the program.
5. Once the Prospectus is approved and the dissertation is underway the student must:
   1. Meet at least once per term as a group with the Program Director and/or Associate Director (plus any other interested faculty) to briefly describe and discuss their progress. A written summary (not to exceed 500 words) of the progress made since the last group meeting must be provided to the Program Director and Associate Director (copy Program Coordinator) prior to the meeting.
   2. Provide a formal update every term to their dissertation committee that includes a report of progress made since the last update, problems encountered, planned changes/modifications to the research plan (must be approved by the committee), and plans for the next term. It is strongly recommended that this be done in person with the committee. A detailed written report to the committee can be substituted when a face-to-face meeting with the committee is not possible.
6. The student completes all the work that is required by his/her Dissertation Committee including the submission of manuscripts for publication – this process is expected to take two-three years. The dissertation document is then completed and distributed to the Committee at least two weeks before the scheduled oral defense.
7. The Chair of the Dissertation Committee schedules the oral defense, which will include a public and private session. The public session is open to the public and consists of an oral presentation (approximately 45 minutes) about the dissertation by the student and a brief period for questions (approximately 15 minutes) from the audience following the presentation. The private session occurs after the public session and involves just the student responding to questions from the Dissertation Committee in a closed meeting.
8. After the oral defense is completed, the Dissertation Committee will meet in executive session to decide by majority vote if the student has successfully fulfilled the dissertation requirement, or if additional steps must be taken.