{"id":6984,"date":"2021-01-22T10:17:57","date_gmt":"2021-01-22T15:17:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sciencescosmaincms.cm.ucf.edu\/sociology\/?page_id=6984"},"modified":"2023-05-10T10:59:39","modified_gmt":"2023-05-10T14:59:39","slug":"dissertation-milestone-guidance","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sciences.ucf.edu\/sociology\/graduate\/dissertation-milestone-guidance\/","title":{"rendered":"Dissertation Milestone Guidance"},"content":{"rendered":"

Below are the steps to complete your coursework, exam, candidacy, and dissertation milestones.\u00a0<\/strong>
\nNote that steps 1-5 must be completed prior to advancing to candidacy and enrolling in dissertation hours. <\/em>
\nPlease refer to the <\/span>Academic Calendar<\/a> for <\/span>registration and candidacy deadlines.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Step 1: Formal Coursework Completion\"\"<\/strong>
\nComplete all required core, methods, theory, and area of concentration courses. Review your myUCF GPS<\/a> to make sure you’ve completed all the formal coursework.<\/p>\n

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Step 2: Qualifying Exam<\/strong>
\nThe Sociology PhD qualifying exam should be completed after completion of all core\/required courses, and all courses in your Major Area of Concentration. The exam is offered at\u00a0the\u00a0beginning of the Fall\/Spring semesters. You should email the Graduate Director<\/a> the semester before you plan to take the exam, to let them know you would like to be added to the exam in the upcoming semester. Once you pass the exam, you are eligible to defend your dissertation proposal.<\/p>\n

Note: Most students enroll in Doctoral Research hours the semester they take their exam. Please contact socadmissions@ucf.edu<\/a> if you would like a GPS review<\/a> to <\/em>determine if this is appropriate in your particular case. It is wise to review your GPS in MyUCF each semester to make sure you are fulfilling your requirements as well.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Step 3: Dissertation Committee Formation<\/strong>
\nThe semester before you plan to defend your proposal, you should choose a dissertation committee chair, and work with them to choose members of your advisory committee.<\/p>\n

Dissertation Committees must have one Chair, two Department members, and one member outside of the Department.<\/p>\n

Please refer to the Dissertation Committee Formation<\/a> page for more information on this process, including step-by-step instructions.<\/p>\n

Note: the committee formation process can take several weeks (3 weeks or more) for processing and approval, so make sure you complete this step as early as possible.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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Step 4: Complete your CITI\/Academic Integrity Training<\/strong>
\nBefore you can defend your proposal and advance to candidacy, you will need to complete the CITI\/Academic Integrity training on your myUCF to-do list.<\/p>\n

You can visit https:\/\/graduate.ucf.edu\/graduate-guide\/academic-integrity<\/a> for more information about the training, and for instructions on creating your CITI account to complete the CITI portion of the training.<\/p>\n

Visit the Academic Integrity Workshops<\/a> page to register for the four Academic Integrity workshops required.<\/p>\n

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Step 5: Defend Proposal (Candidacy Exam)<\/strong>
\nOnce you have passed your qualifying exam, formed your committee, and completed all your training, you are ready to defend your proposal, also known as the “candidacy exam”.<\/p>\n

Make sure you check your myUCF Graduate Plan of Study (myUCF>Other Academic Dropdown>Graduate Plan of Study) to ensure that you have completed all the requisite requirements prior to your proposal defense. More information about the GPS can be found here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

You will work with your committee to schedule your proposal.\u00a0 Once you\u2019ve scheduled the proposal, email socadmissions@ucf.edu <\/a>to let them know the time & date of the defense.<\/p>\n

Once your proposal defense is done, the Graduate Admissions Coordinator will contact your Dissertation Chair, and will work with them to get the necessary approval form completed and processed.<\/p>\n

You are now ABD! Congratulations!<\/p>\n

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Step 6: Enroll in Dissertation Hours<\/strong>
\nIn the semester following your proposal defense, you will be able to enroll in Dissertation Hours.<\/p>\n

You need a total of 15 dissertation hours by the end of the program. Three hours is considered full-time, but you can enroll in up to nine per semester if you want to complete all your hours in 2-3 semesters.<\/p>\n

To enroll in these hours, you will need to complete a Restricted Registration Agreement<\/a>. You will complete this form with your Dissertation Chair each semester you enroll in dissertation hours.<\/p>\n

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Step 7: IRB Approval
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

For any research that involves human subjects, whether it is direct contact with humans, surveys, or analyses of secondary research data that originally came from humans etc., you\u00a0must<\/strong>\u00a0submit your protocol through Huron to the Institutional Review Board for approval\u00a0before<\/strong>\u00a0commencing new research, or before you start analysis of any secondary research.\u00a0 This includes research that you are conducting under another researcher\u2019s approved protocol (e.g., when your advisor\u2019s name is listed as investigator on a larger project and your study is a part of that protocol).\u00a0\u00a0 As the investigator of your thesis or dissertation, your name should be listed as \u201cinvestigator\u201d on your IRB submission.<\/p>\n

The reason you must do this in advance is to ensure you are using the data properly.\u00a0 If you already have an approval letter with your name listed as \u201cinvestigator,\u201d then please email it to socadmissions@ucf.edu so they can update your IRB checklist as Approved<\/u>.<\/p>\n

If you and your faculty advisor are 100% sure your research does not involve any human subjects\/human data\/specimens, then you do not need to submit to the IRB. Instead, please have your dissertation committee chair write an email to socadmissions@ucf.edu<\/a> (Bridgett Burk) to update the checklist as Waived<\/u>. If your research is already completed and your advisor has confirmed that it does not involve any human subjects\/human data\/specimens, you do not need to submit for retroactive approval, and your program assistant can update the checklist as\u00a0Waived<\/u>.<\/p>\n

If there is any question about the nature of your research and you are unsure if IRB approval is needed:<\/strong><\/p>\n