The culmination of each student’s graduate career is the Final Exam, or dissertation defense. This is an opportunity for the student to present their dissertation research in a public forum, and to discuss this work in depth with their Supervisory Committee.
The Final Exam Timeline is also available in the form of a checklist.
Timeline
Before Final Exam
| Task | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Review Graduate School Thesis Submission Deadlines Review Graduate Final Thesis Submission Instructions and Guidelines |
|
| Receive approval to graduate from Supervisory Committee | |
| Upload Supervisory Committee Report to Annual Committee Meeting Document Portal | At least 3 months before exam |
| Schedule graduation advising meeting with Maia | At least 3 months before exam |
| Set Final Exam date with Supervisory Committee
The UW Graduate School and the MCB Program requires the Chair and GSR to attend the Final Exam. Virtual attendance by the Chair and/or GSR requires prior approval by the MCB program. |
At least 3 months before exam |
| Establish three member Reading Committee and send list to Maia
The Chair is required to be on the Reading Committee |
At least 3 months before exam |
| Email Maia confirmation of draft submission timeline | At least 3 months before exam |
| Hold draft submission timeline meeting with Reading Committee | At least 3 months before the exam |
| Reserve venue for Final Exam
For assistance, email: |
As soon as Final Exam Date is set |
| Submit thesis to Reading Committee | According to draft timeline |
| Schedule Final Exam on MyGrad | At least 3 weeks before exam |
| Email your dissertation details (title, date, time, location) to Alice Ven MCB will promote your defense via social media, email and print |
At least 3 weeks before exam |
| Receive Committee Signature Form, MCB Exit Survey and other exam materials from Alice Ven | At least 3 weeks before exam |
| Activate Electronic Thesis/Dissertation (ETD) account through UW ETD Administrator Site | At least 3 weeks before exam |
| Send Reading Committee Electronic Thesis Approval Instructions | At least 3 weeks before exam |
Day of Final Exam
Remember to bring all required documents to your final exam.
| Required document | Submission instructions |
|---|---|
| Committee Signature Form | Entire committee must sign by hand or digitally using Adobe signature. Send signed form to Maia. |
After Final Exam
| Task | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Submit MCB Exit Survey | Last day of quarter |
| Format thesis for submission to ETD | One day before submission |
| Upload dissertation to ETD | By 11:59 p.m. PST on last day of quarter View UW Academic Calendar for exact date (last day of finals week) |
| Doctoral Dissertation approval by Reading Committee submitted via MyGrad | By 11:59 p.m. PST on last day of quarter |
| Upload survey of Earned Doctorates (via SED) | By 11:59 p.m. PST on last day of quarter |
Information about thesis submission
To graduate, students are required to submit an Electronic Thesis/Dissertation (ETD) and a Committee Approval Form to the Graduate School through the UW ETD Administrator Site. In addition, your ETD must eventually be made available openly on the web. For more information about ETD deposit and dissemination, review the UW Graduate School website.
Have questions about ETD publishing? Contact the UW Libraries ETD team.