Dissertation and Defense

Dissertation Preparation and Defense


The Dissertation Advisory Committee, in consultation with the Dissertation Advisor, determines when it is time for a student to stop laboratory work and begin to write a dissertation. Once a student has been given permission to write a dissertation, the Program Administrator should be contacted to schedule an appointment to discuss requirements, deadlines, etc.
 

Deadlines

  • Once given approval to defend, the student must defend within 6 months.
  • 6 weeks prior to defense student must submit the defense information form via my.harvard
  • Online Degree Application must be completed by the deadline (consult GSAS Degree Calendar)
    The dissertation must be submitted to the Committee and program administrator 2 weeks prior to the defense.


Dissertation Format 

The dissertation must show original treatment of a fitting subject, contain a scholarly review of the pertinent literature, give evidence of independent research, and be clearly, logically, and carefully written. Students are expected to give a public seminar on their dissertation research. The Ph.D. dissertation is expected to contain a substantial amount of independent research work of publishable quality. In addition to chapters of research, each dissertation must contain Introduction and Conclusion chapters that present the themes of the dissertation and summarize the accomplishments. In some cases, the student has done all of the work in the dissertation; more often portions of the dissertation result from collaborative research. 

In all dissertations containing collaborative results, the dissertation should indicate concisely who contributed to the work. Dissertations should be submitted in their final format, in accordance with the Kenneth C. Griffin Handbook for Students. The Registrar’s Office will review the document for formatting compliance. Formatting errors may prevent the conferral of the degree, and the student may need to apply for the next available degree period. Student can review alumni dissertation in DASH
 

Writing Resources

  • Office for Scholarly Communication (OSC): If your dissertation includes previously published works, it is recommended that authors consult their publishing agreements directly to determine whether and to what extent they may have transferred exclusive rights under copyright.
  • The Open Scholarship and Research Data Services Office is available to help you determine whether you have retained the necessary rights or requires permission. HL_OSRDS@harvard.edu.
  • Harvard Griffin GSAS Fellowships and Writing Center: Offers individual writing consultations and workshops. They also run the Writing Oasis which provides a space for accountability, productivity, and peer support.
  • Academic Resource Center:ARC offers individual coaching, Dissertation Writers Accountability Groups, and many other helpful workshops.
  • iThenticate: A web-based application that enables authors to compare their manuscripts, grant proposals, and other writing against web and scholarly publications to check for similar or duplicate content. This tool is for individual use only and for the similarity checking of an author’s own work.
     

Defense


Public Seminar
The public seminar is limited to 1-hour, including the advisor’s introduction, the student’s oral presentation and acknowledgements, and audience questions and answers. The Defense Committee is required to attend the public seminar; however, it is customary for members of the defense committee to hold their questions until the private oral exam.


Private Examination
A public seminar is followed by a 1-hour private examination. Dissertation advisors may be present, but they must not participate in the exam (e.g., answer questions posed by the
committee). Initially, the student will be asked to leave the room for a few minutes. During this time, the committee will discuss the merits of the dissertation, any issues with the dissertation, and areas they may want to focus on during the exam. The student is then asked back into the room for the exam. Each member of the defense committee will direct detailed technical questions as well as broader questions on the conclusions, impact, and limitations of the research to the candidate based on their review of the dissertation and presentation of the seminar. The Defense Chair will moderate the discussion between the panel and the student. At the end of the examination, the student is once again asked to step out of the room for several minutes. The Committee will discuss any corrections needed for the dissertation and whether these corrections need to be reviewed and by whom. Once the committee determines the outcomes, the student will be asked back into the room, and the Committee provides the student with any changes needed to the dissertation.


Dissertation Examination Committee
GSAS states that the Dissertation Examination Committee must be comprised of three faculty members, including the dissertation advisor. Two of the faculty must be FAS faculty or be a member of the program faculty. The third member can be from outside of Harvard. The chair of the committee must be a member of the program faculty. The Chairperson of the DAC should preferably chair the examination, but students may invite another DAC member to do so. The role of the chairperson is to (a) be impartial, (b) arbitrate problems, and (c) administer the exam.


It is perfectly acceptable to use the DAC committee for the defense committee. It is not a requirement that students choose new committee members.