1. Doctoral Defense Digest: Preparation, Process, Peculiarities, and (Pink) Paperwork Ben Treweek Graduate Skills Seminar Austin Student Chapter of the Acoustical Society of America February 15, 2019

2. Overview of Process Pass the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam in Acoustics
Become a Ph.D. Candidate
Write the Dissertation
Submit Pre-Defense Paperwork
DEFEND!
Addendum: CELEBRATE!
Submit Post-Defense Paperwork

3. Writing the Dissertation
START WRITING EARLY!
Acquire the LaTeX template (included in ZIP); some useful packages to add:
amssymb: symbols like ≳ for “greater than approximately”, etc.
graphicx: enhanced support for graphics
notoccite: number bibliographic citations once chapters start, not in Table of Contents
caption and subcaption: useful for arrangement of multiple plots in a figure
Generally, send chapters to your advisor one by one, then make edits accordingly
Don’t be afraid to get on their case if they’re taking a while!

4. Pre-Defense Process
Make sure you are registered in ME or EE x99W: DISSERTATION
Pick a date and schedule with your dissertation committee
Four weeks before defense: Send all committee members a complete copy of your dissertation
Complete “Request for Final Oral Examination” form
Type and print on PINK paper (found on 5th floor of ETC)
Get signatures from your committee; proxy signatures allowed
Get signature from Graduate Adviser (currently Dr. Wei Li)
Two weeks before defense: Submit above form to MAI 101 with…
dissertation front matter (committee membership page, title page, abstract, table of contents, list of figures/tables)
additional forms (human participants, restricted regions)
Canvas Copyright Tutorial grade printout showing 100%
One week (or so) before defense: “Report of Dissertation Committee” form (used to be “gold form”, but no more) ed to you and your adviser; BRING A COPY OF THIS TO YOUR DEFENSE
NOTE: The first semester you are a Ph.D. candidate, you register in ME or EE x99R: DISSERTATION
You can pick a date however you like, but professors really don’t like to have to click through dozens of options in a Doodle poll, so it helps to narrow things down by picking a two-week period (or so) and eliminating all times when they have to be teaching classes
NOTE: Electronic signatures are acceptable as well; I had to do this with Wei Li

5. DEFENSE
Talk should be around the length of a seminar: minutes to leave time for clarifying questions and public questions at the end
Your committee is the audience; include enough for the talk to flow, but do not worry about bringing the entire room up to speed
Closed session: audience leaves, you and your committee remain
Committee members usually ask questions one by one
“Could you clarify this?”
“Did you consider [alternative method]?”
“What might be the implication of [tangentially related idea]?”
Leave the room so your committee can make you sweat for a bit…
Shake hands, get signatures on “Report of Dissertation Committee” form; electronic signatures allowed, but NO PROXY SIGNATURES!

6. Post-Defense Process
Apply for graduation; Spring 2019 deadline is Friday, April 19
NOTE: If your defense is after the deadline, you must do this BEFORE you defend
Complete exit surveys
Association of American Universities Data Exchange
National Science Foundation Survey of Earned Doctorates
Submit electronic copy of dissertation; NO MORE CHANGES!
Turn in required printed pages
“Report of Dissertation Committee” form
“Statement on Research with Human Participants” form
“Statement of Research in Restricted Regions” form
Copyright Tutorial on Canvas showing 100% grade
Dissertation front matter
NOTE: It’s not clear whether the “Statement of Research in Restricted Regions” form is needed, because it IS NOT listed on the “Deadlines and Submission Instructions” website, but it IS listed in the instructions for the pink form… so, to be safe, have one anyway

7. Peculiarities
What if a member of your committee cannot attend your defense?
This is not a deal-breaker, but only ONE committee member can be absent, and it CANNOT be the supervisor
What if a member of your committee can no longer be on your committee (e.g., cannot sign “Report of Dissertation Committee”)?
Two possibilities:
Prior to 30 days before defense: submit “Request for Change in Doctoral Committee” form removing them
Within 30 days of defense: same form as above, but additional attachment with removed member’s signature
Both cases above: Supervisor, Co-Supervisor, Graduate Advisor, and Graduate Dean all need to sign
NOTE: Only four (4) committee members needed officially, but it is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED to get at least one more
NOTE: A committee member who attends remotely (e.g., Skype) does NOT count as absent

8. Useful Links
ME PhD Checklist:
Final Oral Examination Guidelines:
Deadlines and Submission Instructions: