VIII.
The Doctor of Philosophy Degree
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The doctoral program
ideally provides a broad integrative approach to the discipline,
and following its successful completion, the student should be
prepared to pursue research as an independent investigator. Doctoral
students undergo intensive course training which can be highly
specialized due to the flexibility in the design of the Course
Program. Students entering a PhD program are expected to complete
degree requirements within 6 years. Extension of the 6-year limit
will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the GSC. A summary
of PhD graduation requirements and detailed information regarding
forms, filing dates, the composition and conductance of written
and oral examinations, etc., is presented in section 9 of the
Graduate School Handbook. Students entering a MS program who are
later approved for a PhD program will be expected to complete
the requirements for both degrees within 8 years. Students in
the PhD program may be registered for research in absentia for
not more than two years (eight quarters). This policy applies
to students with or without financial support. The PhD program
in Horticulture and Crop Science consists of:
A. Choosing an advisor
and a student advisory committee(SAC).
- See The Advisor
and The Advisory Committee (section V)
- detailed SAC approved
research proposal with a copy to the GSC is required by the
end of the 3rd quarter of study
B. Academic program.
- a minimum of 135
credits in graduate-level courses
- courses must be
listed in a Graduate Course Program
during the second quarter of enrollment
- courses must be
approved by the SAC and by the Horticulture and Crop Science
GSC
- Seminar requirement
under Course Requirements (see section
VI,A,1)
A
significant portion of PhD degree course work should be taken
in fundamental sciences outside the Department. A student entering
the program with a Master's degree may request that the GSC review
previous course work and, if it is considered to be equivalent
to that listed on the Course Program, the GSC may allow up
to 45 credit hours to be applied to the 135 hour requirement
for the PhD degree.
The
format of the proposal should be provided by the advisor. Students
are encouraged to develop their own research projects rather than
base their work on a proposal of the advisor.
C. Candidacy Exam.
After
completing most of the formal course requirements for the PhD,
the student becomes eligible for the Candidacy Examination, a
comprehensive review of knowledge in the area studied and in related
areas. The Candidacy Examination for the PhD degree consists of
written questions from members of the SAC and an oral examination
by the full SAC. The student must file a Doctoral Notification
of Candidacy Exam form with the Graduate School at least two
weeks prior to the oral portion of this exam. The purpose of the
Candidacy Exam is to determine if the student possesses the requisite
knowledge and philosophical attitude to be admitted to candidacy
for the PhD degree, if the student needs to enroll in additional
coursework, or if the student should terminate graduate study.
In the context of the Candidacy Exam, the specialty area is taken
in the broadest sense.
- The written
portion of the Candidacy Examination for the PhD degree
consists of written questions from the SAC. The format of this
exam and the timing of its administration are determined by
the individual exam committee members.
- The oral portion
of the Candidacy Examination, which lasts approximately 2 hours,
is normally completed within one month after the written exam.
Questions need not be limited to specific aspects of the research
and may deal with general aspects of Horticulture and Crop Science
and related disciplines. The examination is open to all faculty,
with permission of the advisor.
A
Candidacy Exam Report. The satisfactory completion of both
the written and the oral examination will constitute admission
to candidacy, and the Candidacy Exam Committee must give unanimous
approval for a satisfactory rating. If the examination is judged
to be unsatisfactory and the Candidacy Exam Committee approves,
the student may apply to be reexamined. If a second examination
is permitted, it must be held by the same Candidacy Exam Committee.
The committee may decide to include both the written and oral
portions in the second examination, or may decide to include only
the oral portion if the written proposal was satisfactory. If
the performance on the Candidacy Exam is regarded as unsatisfactory
on two attempts, the student will be denied candidacy to the doctoral
program in this department.
D. Dissertation.
- the student must
submit a complete, typed, thesis draft to the SAC for approval
prior to the Final Oral Exam.
- a final copy of
the dissertation must be submitted to the Graduate School within
five years following the successful completion of the Candidacy
Examination.
- a bound copy of
the dissertation must be submitted to the Departmental main
office in Columbus. It is the student's responsibility to pay
for these copies to be bound.
The
dissertation is a scholarly contribution to knowledge in the student's
chosen area of specialization. The presentation and discussion
of research in the dissertation should demonstrate a high level
of knowledge and the capability to function as an independent
scholar. The student must submit a complete, typed, thesis draft
to the SAC for approval prior to the Final Oral Exam. Format must
follow the Graduate School Guidelines for Preparing and
Submitting Theses, Dissertations and D.M.A. Documents.
If the dissertation is acceptable, each Dissertation Committee
member indicates approval by signing the Draft Approval/Notification
of Final Oral Examination form, which must be submitted to
the Graduate school no later than two weeks before the date of
the Final Oral Exam. A final copy of the dissertation must be
submitted to the Graduate School within five years following the
successful completion of the Candidacy Examination or the candidacy
will be canceled (see section E below). A bound copy of the dissertation
must be submitted to the Departmental main office in Columbus
and the OARDC Library.
E. Final Oral Examination.
The
SAC makes up the Final Oral Examination Committee (FOEC), together
with a representative from the Graduate School who is appointed
by the dean of the Graduate School. The composition of this committee
must be approved by the dean of the Graduate School. The oral
examination is closed to those outside the FOEC. The FOEC
meets with the candidate to pursue questions concerning general
principles, historical perspective, originality, independence
of thought, and ability to synthesize ideas and interpret data,
as well as assessing the quality of the research represented by
the dissertation. Each examiner indicates judgment by signing
the Final Oral Examination Report form that must be submitted
to the Graduate School no later than two weeks before commencement.
The result of the examination will be considered satisfactory
if the FOEC votes approval unanimously or with one dissenting
vote. If the examination is judged to be unsatisfactory, a second
examination may be scheduled, subject to the approval of the FOEC.
Following satisfactory completion of the Final Oral Exam, the
committee can signs a Final Approval/PhD Dissertation form,
which must be submitted to the Graduate School along with a bound
final copy of the dissertation.
F. Exit Seminar.
The
exit seminar is a one hour public seminar (Columbus and Wooster
via satellite link) presenting the major results of the dissertation
research. This seminar is scheduled at the beginning of the final
quarter of attendance, and public announcements are circulated
to the faculty and students of the Department. The final seminar
will count as one of the required seminar presentations.
