3361:50-77-23. The graduate school: doctoral degree programs

(A) Credit hours/program-specific and university requirements

(1) A minimum of sixty (if the student has earned a master's degree) or ninety (if the student has not earned a master's degree) semester credit hours of graduate work in one graduate program shall be successfully completed for a doctoral degree including credits for dissertation research. In no case, however, shall a degree be granted solely on the basis of accumulated credit hours. The doctoral degree will be granted for no less than the equivalent of three years of full-time graduate study.

(2) Graduate programs shall recommend students for the doctoral degree after they have met all program-specific and university requirements for the degree including satisfactory completion of an approved dissertation or other culminating project.

(3) The final thirty semester credits must be completed under the direction of graduate faculty from the university of Cincinnati.

(4) Prior to admission to doctoral candidacy, doctoral students shall complete a residency requirement of a minimum enrollment of ten graduate credit hours per semester for two out of three consecutive semesters of study including summer.

(B) Candidacy

(1) Doctoral students shall complete a departmental certification process for doctoral candidacy. The nature of this departmental certification process and the rules governing its administration shall be determined by the doctoral program in which the student is enrolled.

(2) A doctoral student shall be admitted to candidacy when he or she has achieved a grade point average of at least 3.0 for all doctoral course work, satisfactorily completed all pre-candidacy requirements as specified by the doctoral program in which the student is enrolled, and successfully completed the departmental certification process.

(3) Once a student is admitted to candidacy, he or she shall register for at least one graduate credit hour in the fall semester of each year to maintain his or her graduate student and candidacy status.

(C) Time limitation

(1) The period from time of matriculation to a doctoral program to candidacy shall not exceed five consecutive years unless otherwise approved by the dean of the graduate school.

(2) The period of time from admission to doctoral candidacy to completion of the doctoral degree shall not exceed four consecutive years unless otherwise approved by the dean of the graduate school.

(3) The period of time from matriculation to graduation shall not exceed nine years regardless of the pre- and post- candidacy periods.

(D) Dissertation

Each Ed.D. and Ph.D. candidate shall produce an approved dissertation that demonstrates high scholarly achievement based on the candidate's original research or creative activity. Other doctoral programs may require students to complete other types of capstone experiences.

(E) Dissertation committee

Following admission to doctoral candidacy and the selection of a research topic and research mentor, a dissertation committee shall be appointed by the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school according to the recommendation of the doctoral program in consultation with the research mentor and student.

(1) The research mentor shall serve as chairperson of the dissertation committee.

(2) A dissertation committee shall be composed of a minimum of three full-time faculty members with professorial rank at the university of Cincinnati. The committee chair must be a member of the graduate faculty.

(3) Individuals with appropriate expertise may be added to a dissertation committee if nominated by the candidate and approved by the committee chairperson and doctoral program. Such persons shall serve without compensation from the university or candidate, and shall be full voting members of the committee.

(F) Final defense of dissertation

Once a dissertation is deemed to be satisfactory with respect to its form and content by the committee, a final defense shall be announced under dissertation defense announcements on the graduate school website.

(1) The defense is open to the public and all members of the academic community.

(2) Under the standard dissertation defense procedure, the candidate will answer pertinent questions put by members of the committee following an oral presentation of the dissertation.

(3) After the committee has completed its questioning, other persons present will have an opportunity to submit questions or comments.

(4) At the conclusion of the defense, the committee will withdraw and render a decision regarding the acceptability of the dissertation and its defense, and report its decision to the candidate. In the case of a favorable decision, this decision shall be communicated to the graduate program and the graduate school. Dissertation approval requires a favorable decision by the candidate's dissertation committee.

(G) Petitions for reinstatement and extension of candidacy

Students may petition graduate council for extension of their doctoral candidacy through their program, college, and the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school prior to its expiration. Students whose candidacy has expired may petition for both reinstatement and extension of candidacy using the same administrative procedure. If reinstatement is approved, the student will be readmitted to candidacy only after satisfying the formal candidacy examination requirements administered by the department. Each department shall establish and publish a policy concerning extension of degree candidacy and requirements for reinstatement into candidacy subject to the approval of the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school.

(H) Publication of dissertations

Dissertations completed as part of the degree requirement for the doctoral degree shall be published and made freely available in hard copy and/or electronic form. A request to delay publication of a dissertation may be made to the vice provost and university dean of the graduate school to allow intellectual property related to the content of the dissertation to be appropriately protected.

Replaces: 3361:50-77-23

Effective: 9/15/2012
Promulgated Under: 111.15
Statutory Authority: 3361
Rule Amplifies: 3361
Prior Effective Dates: 3/16/1978, 10/15/1985, 12/19/2001, 3/21/2005, 7/13/2007, 2/15/2008, 4/7/2008