CREDITS/GRADE REQUIREMENTS

A total of approximately 90 credits is required, 60 of which must be earned at the University of Washington. The University requires 60 credits earned before scheduling the General Exam, and requires a cumulative GPA of 3.0 for graduation. Coursework taken toward the M.S. degree is applicable toward the Ph.D. degree.

• 45 credits minimum must be from the Computer Science course list

• 15 credits may be in supporting fields such as: engineering, mathematics, natural sciences, business administration, linguistics, philosophy, psychology, or medicine.

• 40 credits must be in 500 level courses or above

• 18 credits at the 500-level must be completed in order to pass the breadth component of the Qualifying Evaluation. See the document Ph.D. and M.S. Qualifying Requirement for specific details of qualifying courses.

• At least 4 CSE courses numbered 500 or above (or graduate courses in related disciplines approved by the Qualifying Committee) must be completed for graded credit, in addition to the 6 courses taken to satisfy the breadth component of the Qualifying Evaluation. At least 2 of these 4 additional courses must be CSE courses (or waivers of CSE courses), unless there is written approval by the student's research advisor and the Qualifying Committee. Students may petition to count graduate courses completed at other schools toward this requirement, if the course is equivalent in depth to a graded CSE graduate course. We will not consider waivers for non-CSE graduate courses.

• 27 credits must be Computer Science 800 (dissertation)

• Completion of two quarters of teaching assistantship within the department.

PH.D. QUALIFYING, GENERAL, AND FINAL EXAM PROCEDURES

1. Creditable Passage of the Ph.D QUALIFYING EVALUATION: See the document Ph.D. and M.S. Qualifying Requirement for specific details.
   • COURSES: Select the Quals courses you wish to take and complete these, remembering to consult with instructors if there is doubt about course progress.

   • PROJECT: Approximately TWO WEEKS before the oral presentation of the project: 1) Determine a mutually agreeable time for the presentation with the two faculty advisors. 2) Reserve a conference room on the Web. The usual length for the oral presentation is about 45 minutes, with additional time for questions, so the room should be reserved for an adequate period. 3) Notify the Graduate Advisor of the date/time/title and the two faculty advisor names for announcement.

   • At the beginning of each quarter except summer, an announcement will be made asking students who have completed or are in the process of completing the course and project requirements to sign up for passage of the Qualifying Evaluation in that quarter. The faculty will meet later in the quarter to make the decisions.

   • A Master's degree is earned upon passing the Qualifying Evaluation. To formally apply for the degree, submit a Master's Degree request to the Graduate School during the first seven weeks of the quarter in which the degree is to be completed. See the Graduate Advisor for details.

2. Creditable Passage of the GENERAL EXAM: This oral exam is normally taken at the end of 3 years or 1.25 years after the Qualifying Evaluation, whichever is later. In this exam the student must demonstrate depth of knowledge on one principle subject. See the document The General Examination for specific details.

   NOTE: Before scheduling the exam, the Graduate School requirements for completion of 18 graded UW credits and a total of 60 credits must be met.

   • As early as possible before the exam you must select and officially set up your Ph.D. Supervisory Committee; choose a major advisor, and at least two additional Computer Science committee members; at least one member should be from outside the immediate area of research. You must also identify a Graduate School Representative (GSR); the Graduate School no longer makes this assignment. The GSR must be a UW graduate faculty member who does NOT have adjunct status in the department. Neither can the chair of the supervisory committee have an adjunct appointment in the home department of the GSR. The GSR and the supervisory committee chair cannot have a budgetary relationship. Notify the Graduate Advisor of the committee names and she will submit them to the Graduate School. Graduate School Memo 13 details the rules for membership on the Ph.D. Supervisory Committee.

     IMPORTANT: Keep your GSR apprised of your progress and of your expectations for your exam dates so that s/he can be sure to attend. The student is responsible for finding a substitute for the GSR should s/he not be able to attend the examination.

     NOTE: This Ph.D. Supervisory Committee remains effective for the Ph.D. Final defense unless changes are required. A committee must have at least four members (including the GSR), who must be able to participate in the General or Final Examination. (Teleconference participation is permitted for all members of the committee except the GSR.) Once scheduled, the exam will be considered official if a minimum of four members attend or participate--the chairperson, the GSR, and two others. If there are co-chairs, both must participate in the exam; they count as two of the four members who must attend/participate. To make changes to the committee, see the Graduate Advisor.

   • Approximately two months BEFORE the exam, see your major faculty advisor to obtain/discuss the papers on which you prepare your written report. When you receive the papers or "charge", be sure to notify the Graduate Advisor, who will note the beginning of the study period.

   • At least THREE WEEKS BEFORE the exam, a Request for General Examination must be submitted to the Graduate School the Request for General Examination to schedule officially the exam. 1) Before the three-week deadline, contact all committee members (including the GSR) and determine a mutually agreeable time, 2) reserve a conference room on the Web, 3) contact the Graduate Program Advisor to prepare the Request for General Examination form.

   • At least TWO WEEKS BEFORE the exam your written review of the papers should be given to your supervisory committee. *Important*: remind all committee members of the exam date, and make sure all committee members have a copy of your paper, including the GSR member.

   • AFTER the exam: the warrant will be signed by the Supervisory Committee, the Graduate Advisor will make a copy of the warrant for your permanent file, and will deliver it to the Graduate School.

3. Preparation of DISSERTATION acceptable to your Supervisory Committee.
   • See the Style and Policy Manual for Theses and Dissertations which tells you all you need to know about formatting and filing the dissertation, fees to pay, etc. Here is the template you can use to format your master's thesis or Ph.D. dissertation.

4. Creditable Passage of the FINAL EXAM: This is a public oral presentation and defense of your dissertation. In preparing for this exam you must:
   • Approximately 2 months BEFORE the exam, check the membership of your Supervisory Committee, clarify who plans to attend the exam, begin discussion of possible exam dates. Notify the Graduate Advisor of any changes to the committee so that she can notify the Graduate School.

   • Approximately one month BEFORE the Exam, appoint three faculty to the Dissertation Reading Committee. These faculty are a subset of the Supervisory Committee. The chair of the Supervisory Committee usually serves as the chair of the Reading Committee. Give the names to the Graduate Program Advisor who will notify the Graduate School. Begin to finalize discussions of the exam date with your committee.

   • THREE WEEKS IN ADVANCE of the Final Exam date, you MUST officially schedule the exam with the Graduate School. Ahead of the 3-week deadline, contact each committee member to work out the time/date of the exam, and reserve a conference room on the Web. Contact the Graduate Program Advisor to send the Request for Final Examination, which must be submitted to the Graduate School that will generate the warrant to be signed at the defense. Signatures (email "signatures" are accepted) of all members of the Ph.D. Supervisory Committee are required on the Request for Final Examination. *Important*: remind all committee members of the exam date, and make sure all committee members have a copy of your dissertation, including the GSR member.

   • After successfully completing the exam, the warrant will be signed by the faculty present at the exam. The signatures of a minimum of four members--chair(s), GSR, and other member(s)--are required for the exam to be considered official by the Graduate School. The Graduate Program Advisor will photocopy the warrant for the permanent student file and deliver it to the Graduate School.

   • The Graduate School must receive: 1) the signed warrant 2) the required copies of your dissertation 3) the Graduate School survey packet.

   • You must submit to the department: 1) An electronic copy of your dissertation or a url to your dissertation (to the Graduate Advisor); your advisor may also wish to have a copy.

DEADLINES TO GRADUATE:

• To graduate in current quarter everything must be turned in by the LAST DAY OF THE QUARTER.

• You will graduate the following quarter if you submit everything AFTER THE LAST DAY OF THE QUARTER. Late submission is possible without registration for a $250 fee. See Graduate Degree Late Fee.

• You have 60 days after taking the final exam to turn in your dissertation. If the 60th day falls after the last day of the quarter, you my avoid registration by paying the late submission fee described above.