Ph.D. Progress Requirements and Time-to-Degree

To maintain satisfactory academic progress, Ph.D. students must reach the milestones outlined above by their respective deadlines, namely:

WQE:  End of 2nd year (6th quarter)

Breadth:  End of 3rd year (9th quarter)

POF:  End of 3rd Year (9th quarter)

OQE:  End of 4th year (12th quarter)

Final Defense:  End of 6th year (18th quarter)

The maximum time to satisfactorily complete all Ph.D. requirements is 6 years or 18 quarters. Graduate students are limited to a maximum of 12 quarters of appointment in academic apprentice teaching titles and a maximum of 18 quarters in a combination of academic apprentice teaching and research titles.

Each year during spring quarter, the entire faculty evaluates the academic progress of all Ph.D. students. A summary of each evaluation is sent by email to all students and their faculty advisors. These notifications indicate if the academic progress of students has been satisfactory or unsatisfactory. In the case of the latter, notifications outline corrective steps and time frames necessary for the students to attain satisfactory progress

At the end of the fall quarter, the faculty progress tracking committee evaluates the progress of students who were given summer or fall deadlines to meet in their spring progress tracking letters.

Students who fail to meet requirements may be recommended for termination of graduate study. Ph.D. students may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons, including:

Failure to maintain a grade point average of 3.25 in all courses and in any two consecutive quarters.

Failure of the University Written Qualifying Examination.

Failure of the University Oral Qualifying Examination.

Failure of the final oral examination (defense of the dissertation).

Failure to satisfy the Computer Science breadth requirement.

Failure to complete major and minor fields in a timely manner.

Failure to maintain satisfactory progress toward the degree within the specified time limits.