The qualifying exam is administered by the student’s PhD Supervisory Committee, and consists of two parts that satisfy the Graduate School requirement for a “written” and an “oral” component of the qualifying exam:
| (1) Written Qualifier: | (2) Proposal Defense: |
|---|---|
| A written examination covering the candidate’s chosen area of specialization in sufficient depth to demonstrate their preparation for conducting PhD level research | An oral examination involving a defense of the candidate’s written dissertation proposal. At the supervisory committee’s option, it may also include follow-up questions relating to the Written Qualifier (written component) of the exam. |
Consistent with the requirements of the Graduate School, both written and oral components of the qualifying examination must be completed at least one semester prior to defense of the dissertation.
| Written Qualifier (Written Exam) | |
| Timeline | Description |
| No later than the end of the 3rd week of the semester (4th-5th semester) |
Student: Open Grad Tracker Go to Progress Find Written Qualifying Exam milestone Fill out the Qualifying Exam Registration Form (Supervisory or Mentor Committee MUST be finalized in Grad Tracker first) |
| 2 weeks before the exam | Student: 2-page research summary due to committee. The advisor should provide guidelines for content and submission.
Committee Members: Given 2 weeks to write exam based on the research summary provided by the student |
| Student receives the exam: Given 7 days to complete |
Exam completion by student “Take-home exam” format (unless otherwise specified by Committee Chair. See * below) |
| Faculty receives exam: Given 7 days for grading |
Exam grading |
| Faculty discussion: Must happen within 7 days after grading completion |
Supervisory Committee grading discussion |
| Student: Receives results with 7 days after faculty discussion | Notification to student
After your defense, the committee chair will fill out and sign the exam report in Grad Tracker. |
| Proposal Defense (Oral Exam) |
|
| Timeline | Description |
| Preferred: Early in the 5th semester
No later than one month prior to the semesters’ end and 3 weeks prior to the proposal defense date |
Student: Open Grad Tracker Go to Progress Find Proposal Defense milestone Fill out the Proposal [PhD] Announcement.PDF (Student MUST pass the Written Qualifying Exam first) |
| 1-3 weeks before the scheduled proposal defense |
We ask that the form is submitted 3 weeks in advance so there is time for the Committee to sign.
The form must be signed in Grad Tracker at least 1 week before you propose because it must publicly announced 1 week prior (GRAD SCHOOL requirement). |
| 3 weeks before the scheduled proposal defense |
Students are required to schedule a room and/or create a Zoom meeting if necessary. Go to the Mechanical Engineering website – Resources to reserve a room or contact the front desk staff for assistance: 801/581.6441. Make sure you set a password for your Zoom meeting. |
| 1 week after the scheduled proposal defense |
Notification to student
After your defense, the committee chair will fill out and sign the exam report in Grad Tracker. |
1. Written Qualifier (“written component” of qualifying exam)
The student’s supervisory committee will contribute questions for the written exam and will provide a written evaluation of this portion of the exam, including an indication of whether the student will be allowed to proceed to the oral portion of the qualifying examination.
The student will provide the committee with a two-page research summary providing a high-level overview of their research (e.g., motivation, general related work, general goals, general progress), two weeks prior to when the Written Qualifying Exam is scheduled to begin.
The committee will provide written questions to the committee chair within two weeks, which will then be provided to the student. Each Robotics Center member (core or affiliated) must provide at least one question. Committee members external to the Robotics Center may also contribute a question, but it is optional. The exam will consist of at least four questions, but preferably no more than five questions.
*Question Format
The format of each question can be chosen by the committee members. Possibilities include (but are not limited to):
- “Take home” question, to be researched and answered by the student
- A “closed book sit-down” examination, to be written during a fixed period without use of background materials
- An “open book sit-down” examination, similar to (2), but permitting use of reference materials
In all cases, the examination will be written.
Exam Administration and Grading
The written exam must be completed by the student in no more than seven days from the initial question assignment to the submission of answers. Grading must be completed within seven days after the student delivers their answers. Each committee member contributing a question will grade that question and provide a specific, written evaluation of the quality and correctness of the answer. Allowable grades on individual questions are:
P – Pass: A grade of P signifies the answer is above the minimal acceptable performance expected from a PhD student
F – Fail: An F grade indicates that an answer is not up to the standards we expect from our PhD students
The committee shall discuss individual committee member grades within seven days of final grading. A student automatically passes the written qualifying exam if they pass all questions. A student automatically fails the exam if they fail the majority of the questions. In all other cases, the committee votes on pass/fail, and the Director of Robotics Studies may cast a necessary tie-breaking vote.
The grading decision shall be discussed with the student per their supervisory committee chair.
Repeating the Written Exam
A student who fails their first attempt may retake the written exam once in the semester following their first attempt. However, the supervisory committee can, at their discretion, include fewer questions on repeated exams.
Candidates must work with the Robotics Coordinator to schedule exams and complete milestone paperwork.
2. Proposal Defense (“oral component” of qualifying exam)
The “oral component” of the exam should be completed the Fall or Spring semester after the student passes the “written component” of the exam (typically the 5th semester) and at least one semester before the final dissertation defense.
The “oral component” of the qualifying exam consists of a public presentation of the student’s dissertation proposal, allowing time for the public to provide questions and the candidate to provide answers (Q&A). There is also a private portion of the exam where the candidate meets with the Supervisory Committee without the public present for more in-depth Q&A and discussions, as well as follow-up on written exam questions. Finally, the Supervisory Committee excuses the candidate momentarily to allow private committee deliberations, whereupon the candidate is readmitted to the meeting and informed of the committee’s decision. The committee may accept the oral defense of the dissertation proposal as is written, request the student make minor revisions, or the student may fail the oral defense of the dissertation proposal.
Grading
In the case that the student passes the oral defense as is or with minor revisions, the student should provide an updated summary of the dissertation proposal to the Robotics Coordinator within a week of the Oral Defense (upload into Grad Tracker). The updated summary should indicate any minor revisions and should be signed by the committee.
A committee meeting is required if there are major changes in the proposal scope. This should culminate in an updated summary indicating changes and should be signed by the committee and submitted to the Robotics Coordinator.
Repeating the Oral Exam
A student who fails their first attempt may retake the oral exam once in the Fall or Spring semester following their first attempt.