1. Establish a committee by submitting the program of study form to the Graduate School
2. Determine the research process and timeline

Determine what writing style to use (e.g. APA or MLA).  Consult with your committee for the standard style of your discipline. Did you know the Fogler Library website has some great citation resources available?

Review the thesis guidelines and utilize the thesis templates before writing the thesis:

1. Word Thesis Template
2. LaTex Formatting Help

Reformat any chapters you’ve sent to journals or other publications to follow the thesis guidelines. 

Provide your Committee with the Thesis

In general you will want to give them adequate time to read through the entire manuscript before your defense.

Schedule your Oral Defense (Examination)

Work with your committee to schedule your defense. Be sure to secure a date, time, and location.

Submit the Notice of Oral Examination

Submit the Notice of Oral to the Graduate School at least 2 weeks prior to the scheduled defense.

Oral Defense

Bring the ‘Oral Examination and Final Project/Thesis/Dissertation Acceptance Form’ to the oral examination and review the Oral Examination Instructions for more information.

Tentative Thesis Submission

Submit your tentative thesis and ensure your advisor(s) submits the acceptance form or statement by the deadline for that semester. The thesis consultants will review for formatting and consistency and return to you when completed. 

After the Defense & the Initial Graduate School Review

You will take any committee recommendations (for content), and any recommendations from the Graduate School (formatting & consistency) to create the final version.

Final Thesis Submission!

Submit your final thesis, final thesis acceptance form, and all other required forms by the deadline for that semester. The thesis consultants will review for formatting and consistency and notify you and your advisor via email of any changes. Once all revisions are completed, the thesis consultants will post your final thesis to @DigitalCommons.

Electronic Thesis & Dissertation Account

In order for the Graduate School to post the final electronic version to @DigitalCommons, you must create an account and enter pertinent information about your research.  Instructions on how to create the account can be found here.