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Psychology > Graduate Programs > Information for Current PhD Students > Ph.D. Degree Timeline

Ph.D. Degree Timeline – Procedures, Suggested Timeline, and Notes

NOTE CAREFULLY: The Petition for Admission to a Doctorate is NOT the same as the Petition for Advancement to Doctoral Candidacy. Admission to a doctorate is normally granted in the final semester of the master's program, allowing students to maintain uninterrupted student status as they progress from the MA to the PhD program. Advancement to candidacy takes place only after the student has completed the master's degree and any deficiencies identified when the student was admitted to the doctoral program.

Details of the comprehensive examination process vary across concentrations.

Semester preceding first full semester as PhD ñ Petition for Admission to a Doctorate

  1. For students who are obtaining a UH Masterís degree, it is often helpful to complete this in the same semester in which the UH Master's degree is obtained; students entering the PhD program with a Master's degree in psychology earned at another institution do not need to petition for admission to the Doctorate as their admission to UH will be into the doctoral program.
  2. The student obtains approval from the advisor or other faculty members to serve as advocate for doctoral candidacy (see below).
  3. The student applies to the concentration for permission to submit a Petition for Admission to a Doctorate. Petitions include past accomplishments in the Department, plans of study, timeline, and a copy of a CV. The concentration considers the Petition and submits a recommendation of support or no support to the Chair of Graduate Studies.
  4. The student submits the Petition to the Chair of Graduate Studies, who will approve or deny based upon the concentration's recommendation.

I. First Semester

  1. Appointment of an advisor by program or concentration coordinator.
  2. Discussion of pre-program deficiencies with advisor and Chair of Graduate Studies.
  3. Formulation of degree plan with advisor; specifies required courses (including dissertation credit).

Advancement to Candidacy

  1. The student discusses advancement to candidacy with his or her advisor
  2. The student submits Doctorate Student Progress Form (SPF) I: Advancement to Candidacy, plus CV and statement of purpose, to the Chair of Graduate Studies. The faculty at large vote on advancement, and the student is notified after the meeting at which the vote is taken.

II. Third or Fourth Semester – Comprehensive Exams

  1. Committee consists of 5 members, the majority of whom are members of the graduate faculty in Psychology.
  2. The student takes doctoral comprehensive examinations in accordance with procedures established by the program or concentration area.
  3. Students are provided with written results of the comprehensive exams. Students are given two chances to pass the exam. If a student fails the second attempt to pass the exam, he or she may petition the concentration faculty for an additional attempt. Otherwise, the student is terminated from the doctoral program.

III. Third, Fourth or Fifth Semester – Appointment of Doctoral Committee and Approval of Dissertation Topic

  1. The dissertation committee consists of at least 5 members of the graduate faculty, one of whom (the outside member) is from a graduate field other than Psychology or Educational Psychology. It must conform with the department policy on committee composition.
  2. The student submits a written proposal to doctoral committee members. An oral comprehensive exam, which includes a defense of the dissertation proposal, is administered.
  3. The student submits Doctorate Student Progress Form II: Advancement to Dissertation Stage to the Chair of Graduate Studies for approval (Doctoral dissertation committee members sign SPF II).
  4. The dissertation proposal must be approved and SPF II submitted prior to the semester in which the student plans to register for Psy 800 (dissertation).

IV. Sixth Semester – Completion of Final Oral Examination

  1. The final oral examination must be announced two weeks in advance in the University Bulletin and scheduled in a room that will accommodate any faculty, students, and guests who wish to attend.
  2. The student submits completed draft of dissertation.
  3. The final oral examination is administered (defense of dissertation).
  4. The student submits Doctorate Student Progress Form III: Final Examination to the Chair of Graduate Studies for approval.

** Graduate Division requirements include application for diploma, fees, and submission of final copies of dissertation to Graduate Division. **