I. Doctoral Degree Requirements
The Academic Senate Regulations mandate that doctoral students meet requirements governing minimum academic progress. Departments may have degree requirements (i.e., units and/or core course GPA) that exceed Graduate Council's minimum.
Academic Residency
To establish academic residency a doctoral student must be registered and enrolled in courses of instruction, research, or study totaling or equivalent to at least 4 units of upper-division or graduate work during a regular term; registering for at least 2 units in two six-week summer sessions may be substituted for one of the required quarters. Full-time status requires 4 units in a summer session.
Doctoral Students will spend a minimum of six quarters in residence at the UC Santa Barbara campus pursuing a program of full-time study and research; three consecutive quarters of this residence must be completed in regular session before advancement to candidacy. Attendance in two consecutive summer sessions in the same summer may be used as one of the six quarters of required residence.
Degree Milestones
The term "degree milestone" is used to refer to the steps graduate students take to complete a doctoral degree, including the following:
- completion of language, methodology, and other departmental requirements;
- nomination of faculty to serve on doctoral qualifying examinations or dissertation research;
- passing of screening and/or qualifying examinations;
- completion of the dissertation, including the dissertation defense when required; and
- Each candidate for the doctoral degree must present a dissertation demonstrating the ability to contribute significantly and independently to the major field. The candidate's doctoral committee guides the student in this work and judges the merit of the completed dissertation. Approval of this dissertation by each member of the doctoral committee is required for the degree. [Senate Regulation 355B]
• NOTE : Students receiving a D.M.A. will submit a research document.
The University sets no unit requirement for the Ph.D. or Ed.D., but instead requires satisfactory performance on qualifying examinations and the doctoral dissertation. Departments may require that specific courses be completed along with a minimum number of units, ranging from 48 to 72. If the department sets specific coursework and/or unit requirements for the doctorate, these should be consistently and clearly stated in the department's General Catalog narrative, department handbook, and posted on the department's Web site.
Language and Screening Exams
Departments vary in their language and methodology requirements. Departments must notify the Graduate Division when a student has satisfied the department's language(s) requirement, so that these may be noted on the transcript, along with the appropriate date. Departments that conduct screening examinations do not need to report the results to the Graduate Division unless the student fails the examinations and is then recommended either for dismissal or a terminal master's degree.
Timely Degree Progress
Please refer to Section E.
Doctoral Advancement
Departments set different requirements for the qualifying examination(s) and dissertation proposal process. In some departments, the examination process is used to prove fundamental background knowledge and general intellectual readiness prior to the student's formulating a dissertation proposal. In these cases, the dissertation proposal is finalized and accepted by the student's committee subsequent to passage of the oral qualifying examination. In other departments, students must defend their dissertation proposal along with proving mastery of the field in order to advance.
To be advanced to candidacy for a doctoral degree, according to the Academic Senate Regulations, students must:
- Have satisfactorily completed all preliminary requirements established by their department and by the Graduate Council, including maintenance of a GPA not lower than 3.0 in all upper-division and graduate courses completed since admission to the doctoral program. This coursework must be free of any units of unfinished coursework (i.e., courses in which the student has an Incomplete, No Grade, or No Record). [Academic Senate Regulation 350.D.2] • NOTE : Some departments establish GPA and individual course grade standards greater than the Academic Senate B/3.0 GPA. Students should check carefully on departmental requirements for good standing and adequate progress toward degree completion.
- Have been registered for three consecutive quarters prior to the quarter of taking the examination and be registered the quarter the student intends to advance to doctoral candidacy. Students' spring quarter registration protects their student status over the summer until fall quarter (i.e., students taking their qualifying exams during the summer do not have to pay summer fees).
- Students on a spring quarter approved leave of absence or in lapsed (unregistered) status and who wish to take their qualifying exams during the summer must register for a minimum of 4 units during a six-week summer session.
- • NOTE: If a student was in lapsed status who wishes enroll in a summer session does not need to file a Reinstatement Petition, however, the Petition is required for enroll in the subsequent fall quarter.
- Have passed written examinations required by the department and an oral examination conducted by a doctoral committee nominated by the department and appointed by and responsible to the Graduate Dean under policies established by the Graduate Council. An oral examination is mandatory; written examinations are at the discretion of the department. All members of the committee must participate in the oral examination for it to be valid. This examination is usually open only to voting committee members. The doctoral committee must include at least three UC ladder faculty members. Two members of the committee must be UC Santa Barbara ladder faculty from the student's department, one of whom will be appointed as chair or co-chair. Recommendation of the appointment of additional committee members is at the discretion of the department. [Senate Regulation 350.D.2]
All committee members must sign the Doctoral Reporting Form II and indicate if the student has passed or failed. The committee then submits the form to the Graduate Division.
- Advancement : In order to advance to candidacy, a majority of the committee must vote in favor of the student passing.
- Tie Vote : If there is a tie, the chair of the committee should seek resolution with the help of the department chair or Graduate Dean. A student is usually given two chances to pass qualifying examinations.
- Failure to Pass : If the student does not pass, the committee completes the Doctoral Reporting Form II and forwards it to the Graduate Division.
Fees : After students have passed their exams, they must pay the required $90 advancement-to-candidacy fee at the Cashiers Office, Student Affairs and Administrative Services Building 1212. The Cashiers will issue the students two receipts:
- Deposit Recording Advice (half-sheet of paper): take to Graduate Division (along with the Doctoral Reporting Form II, unless the department has already done so); and,
- Cash Register Receipt: take to the Davidson Library Circulation Desk.
When the Doctoral Reporting Form II and the Advancement to Candidacy receipt have been submitted to the Graduate Division, the Academic Services verifies that the students have met the advancement requirements noted above. The Graduate Division will record on the students' transcripts the date of the qualifying exam. The students' class level is change to P2 upon their next registered quarter.
• NOTE : Once advanced, the student is eligible for doctoral candidate borrowing privileges at Davidson Library as long as the student is in registered status or on approved leave of absence.
Reduced Non-resident Tuition for Doctoral Candidates
Effective Fall 2006, the quarterly non-resident tuition fee is waived for graduate doctoral students who have advanced to candidacy for three calendar years. Waiver eligibility begins with the first academic quarter following advancement to candidacy. Leave of absence and unregistered quarters will not extend a student's eligibility. The student will be charged the full non-resident tuition following enrollment at the end of the third calendar year.
• NOTE : Always refer to the "Fee Information" listed on the Office of the Registrar Web site for the current fee schedule.
Doctoral Committees
In most departments, the same doctoral committee is nominated to administer and assess the student's performance on written and oral qualifying examinations, and supervise dissertation work. In some departments, separate committees are nominated for qualifying examinations and dissertation supervision.
Eligibility for service on qualifying examinations and dissertation supervisory committees is governed by Academic Senate Regulations and the Graduate Council. This committee consists of at least three UC ladder faculty members. Two members of the committee must be ladder faculty members from the student's department, one of whom is appointed as chair or co-chair. Recommendation of the appointment of additional members to the doctoral committee is at the discretion of the department. [Am 11 June 70; 23 Oct 86; Am 7 Nov 96; Am 4 Mar 99] Departments submit a Doctoral Form I to the Graduate Division to nominate a doctoral committee for approval by the Graduate Dean.
Persons nominated to serve on or chair committees other than ladder faculty must be approved by the Graduate Council. The special cases of non-ladder faculty, emeriti, research professors, lecturers, professors from other campuses, including other UC campuses, are discussed in Section J.
* NOTE : Affiliated Faculty with zero-percent appointments in the student's department are considered to be members of that department and may be nominated to chair or serve as one of the first two required department members of a doctoral committee.
* NOTE: Lectures with Security of Employment (SOE) or Potential Security of Employment (PSOE) are considered members of the Academic Senate and may be nominated to serve as the third member of a doctoral committee.
The Graduate Division reviews the eligibility of the first three members nominated to serve on a doctoral committee. Recommendation of the appointment of additional committee members is at the discretion of the department and does not require Graduate Division approval. Departments are asked to indicate on Doctoral Form I the current title and departmental affiliation of every faculty member being nominated to serve. The Form I must be signed by the department chair and graduate advisor.
Changes in Dissertation Committees
Committee Form I-A is used to add and remove dissertation committee members as necessity dictates. Changes in committee membership are not unusual, particularly for doctoral students. Form I-A is reviewed by the Graduate Division Academic Services unit and approved by the Graduate Dean.
• NOTE : Students and departments must ensure that their committee forms are up-to-date; and
• NOTE : degrees cannot be awarded when the dissertation signature pages bear names different from the committee of record.
When separate committees are nominated to conduct qualifying examinations and supervise dissertation work, the department must notify the Graduate Division of the change in committee composition using Form I-A. The requirement for three ladder faculty members in the department holds true for both committees.
Dissertation Defense
Each department shall determine whether a public defense of the dissertation will be required of its Ph.D. candidates. If such a defense is required, it may be waived only with the unanimous consent of the candidate's doctoral committee and the approval of the Graduate Council. If a defense is optional, it may be waived with the unanimous consent of the doctoral committee and the approval of the department chair. (Am 7 Nov 96; Senate Regulation 355C)
* NOTE : The Graduate Division cannot award a degree until a Doctoral Form III is received from the department indicating that the student has successfully defended the dissertation, or a Doctoral Form III-A from the department indicating that a defense of the dissertation is being waived for the student in question. There are no blanket waivers for defenses.
* NOTE : All approved committee members must sign the Doctoral Form III or III-A. These signatures must be the same as the signatures appearing on the approval pages of the dissertation.