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Dissertation and Thesis Requirements

Each college and/or department may have its own guidelines for the development and completion of the dissertation or thesis, including the formation of the committee. The student shall choose a dissertation or thesis committee in consultation with their faculty advisor, as follows:

  • A thesis/dissertation committee must be comprised of at least three and no more than six members.

  • One member may be from outside the department.

  • One member may be from outside UTRGV.

  • A majority of the committee members must be fulltime faculty members in the department conferring the degree.

A master’s student considering the thesis option should contact the graduate program director in the first semester of enrollment for specific procedures. A doctoral student should refer to the dissertation requirements and procedures in the program’s degree information or contact the doctoral program director.

Each college and/or department may determine its own guidelines for scheduling thesis/dissertation oral defenses, as follows:

  • Thesis/dissertation oral defenses cannot be scheduled after the last class day of the semester in which the student intends to graduate. For Fall 2020 the last class day is Wednesday, Dec. 2, for Spring 2021 the last class day is Wednesday, April 28, for Summer I 2021 the last class day is Friday July 2, and for Summer II 2021 the last class day is Wednesday Aug. 11.

The manual detailing the University requirements for the format and submission of a dissertation or thesis is available on the Graduate College’s website.

Deadlines for the submission of the final draft and the finalized copy of the thesis or dissertation can be found on the graduate website. Students who do not submit a draft by the draft deadline will not have their thesis or dissertation title listed in the commencement ceremony program.

In unusual circumstances, thesis/dissertation chairs may request extensions to these deadlines in writing to the Graduate College. Extensions to the final submission deadline will be granted by the Dean of the Graduate College only when special circumstances warrant doing so.

The thesis and dissertation requirement will not be considered complete until the student has uploaded a final copy on the ProQuest website that has been approved by the Graduate College and the student submits a signed “Certification of Completion of Thesis or Dissertation” form to the Graduate College.

All submissions and payments for copies of manuscripts and copyright are done online at the ProQuest website. Students are not required to purchase copies for the UTRGV Library; however, programs, departments, or colleges may require the purchase of additional copies of the thesis (at additional binding expense to the student). Students may order personal copies at his or her discretion. If you select to purchase a copyright, payment is required after uploading your manuscript to ProQuest.