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VIII.1. PhD Program Requirements
VIII.2. The Qualifying Examination
VIII.3. The Dissertation Prospectus and Admission to PhD Candidacy
VIII.4. Milestone Extensions
VIII.5. Dissertation Submission Requirements
VIII.6. Dissertation Defense Requirements
VIII.7. Residence Requirements
1. PhD Program Requirements
The general requirements for the doctor of philosophy degree are:
- satisfactory completion of a qualifying examination, dissertation prospectus, and admission to candidacy,
- a minimum total of 72 semester credits beyond the bachelor’s degree, at least 36 of which should be coursework credit hours,
- a minimum of 20 semester credit hours of appropriate research credits,
- completion of an ethics in research training module,
- meeting or exceeding academic standards prescribed elsewhere in this catalog, including maintaining at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA,
- at least 2 consecutive semesters of residence as a full-time student,
- a dissertation that conforms to standard American English style and usage, and
- satisfaction of all departmental- or program-specific requirements.
At least 4 academic years of full-time graduate study beyond the baccalaureate degree are normally required to earn a doctorate. PhD candidates already holding graduate credits from another institution may request to apply them to the credits required for the PhD, under terms of section GEP VI.4.f. Applying Credits from Outside Institutions .
The graduate student’s major professor approves the total number of research credits that the candidate may carry, consistent with departmental, continuing registration, and other requirements.
The graduate student’s major professor can recommend to the dean of graduate education a program requiring more credits than the minimum indicated above if it believes that this is in the best interests of the student.
2. The Qualifying Examination
Doctoral students must pass a qualifying examination within the first two years of enrollment. The qualifying exam has two components to demonstrate the student’s aptitude for advanced doctoral work: 1) proficiency in the foundational material of his or her discipline, and 2) possession of basic research skills and drive needed to complete an advanced research degree.
Each program develops its own procedures and standards for evaluating the “knowledge” and “research” components, which need not be evaluated together. The fundamental knowledge component typically examines undergraduate- and core graduate-level knowledge of the discipline. Basic research skills include critical analysis of peer-reviewed literature and the ability to develop hypotheses and devise methods to test them. Students may demonstrate research skills formally or informally in a variety of ways, such as a research methods course, small projects inside or out of a class, writing a proposal, presenting a conference paper or abstract, making significant contributions to the major professor’s research activities, etc. PhD programs are expected to provide opportunities for students to learn and practice their research skills, and be evaluated on them, within the first two years of study.
The Qualifying Exam has three possible outcomes. A Pass indicates that the student has demonstrated competence in both the knowledge and research components and is approved for continued study in the PhD program. A Conditional Pass indicates that the student fell short of competence in one or both components. The department will promptly advise the student as to how the condition(s) may be removed and will grant the student up to one year to remain in the program and establish competence in both components. Failure to remove the conditions prior to the specified deadline is grounds for dismissal from the program. A No Pass indicates that the student has fallen substantially short in one or both categories and is not approved for continued study in the PhD program.
Regardless of the exam outcome, students will be eligible for a nonthesis MS degree after completing the qualifying exam, provided that they have met the degree requirements and have not already earned the same degree from South Dakota Mines.
Students entering the PhD program must complete the qualifying examination within the first two years in the program and have a qualifying exam report on file with the Graduate Office prior to the start of their third year in the program.
3. The Dissertation Prospectus and Admission to PhD Candidacy
The Dissertation Prospectus is a plan describing the content and format of the dissertation in sufficient detail to allow the student’s examining committee to evaluate the scope and value of the work to be finished and to judge that its completion would warrant a PhD degree. The format of the prospectus is determined by each program and may be modified to suit the circumstances of individual students, for example, a student starting on the research versus one who has already published one or more papers.
When the major professor and student judge the prospectus ready for examination, they will assemble a graduate committee, as described in GEP V1.1 , to examine the prospectus and determine whether it constitutes a satisfactory basis for a dissertation. The committee may request changes and re-examine the prospectus, if needed, prior to approval. When the committee approves the prospectus, they are formally appointed as the graduate examining committee and the student is admitted to PhD candidacy.
Admission to candidacy is encouraged as soon as possible after the qualifying examination; however, PhD students must qualify for admission to candidacy no later than two years after passing or conditionally passing the qualifying exam. In addition, appointment of the committee and admission to candidacy must be completed no later than the start of the semester in which the student defends.
4. Milestone Extensions
Students with significant extenuating circumstances may, with the approval of the major professor, petition the Dean of Graduate Education for exceptions from the deadlines for degree milestones including the program of study, qualifying examination, and admission to candidacy. Such circumstances may include long-term illness, health issues, part-time student status, extensive remedial coursework, or other factors that substantially diminish the student’s ability to pursue the degree according to the established timeline. The student will consult with the major professor and present a petition to the Dean of Graduate Education that explains the reasons for the request and presents an alternate timeline for completing the remaining milestones of the degree. If approved, the student will be held to the alternate timeline, and the consequences of not meeting milestones of the alternate timeline will be the same as those of not meeting milestones of the standard timeline. Students should be aware that assistantship or other funding may be affected by time extensions.
5. Dissertation Submission Requirements
The dissertation is expected to advance or modify knowledge and demonstrate the candidate’s technical mastery of the field of study. Refer to section GEP VI.5. Thesis/Dissertation Submission Requirements for information on the submission of the PhD dissertation.
6. Dissertation Defense Requirements
Refer to section GEP VI.6. Thesis/Dissertation Defense Requirements for information regarding the scheduling and conduct of the dissertation defense.
7. Residence Requirements
PhD students are required to spend at least 2 semesters as a student in residence at South Dakota Mines unless an exception is granted to the program by the dean of graduate education, the Council of Graduate Education, and the Faculty Senate. To request an exception, the department head or program coordinator must submit an alternative residence plan which outlines how the department/program will ensure that non-resident students receive adequate access to mentoring and research facilities.
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