Dissertation Defense

NOTE: Some program policies may be more stringent than Institute Policy. Contact Program Coordinator and your advisor.

Residency requirements post-proposal differ by programs in IC:

Program	Post-Proposal Residence Requirement
CS PhD	One-term post proposal residence requirement
HCC PhD	One-term post proposal residence NOT Required
ROBO PhD	Minimum of 6 months post-proposal requirement
ML PhD	Minimum of 6 months post-proposal requirement

Before Announcement

Advisor approves dissertation is ready
Committee approves
3 weeks reading time is reasonable

Announcement

Send announcement emails to:

Must submit to Office of Graduate Studies at least 15 calendar days in advance with committee names.

Also post to git.cc.general and git.announce newsgroups at least 15 working days prior. Include: day/time/place, title, abstract, committee members. Provide electronic copy to PhD Program Coordinator.

Format

Student presentation
Q&A period → chair asks non-committee/non-GT-faculty to leave → committee asks more questions → student leaves
Committee deliberates in closed-door session

Committee Outcomes

Approve without corrections
Approve with minor corrections (advisor approval only)
Require resubmission with major changes — full committee re-approval required
Not approve

May recommend one additional defense if resubmitted with major changes or not approved.

Candidate makes corrections → committee signs form → format meets published guidelines → submit to GT Office of Graduate Studies by deadline (typically 12–14 days before last day of classes).

Committee

Advisor is chair
At least 5 members
At least 1 from outside CoC (another unit at Tech or external, with Ph.D.)
Majority must have CoC faculty appointment
Co-advisors count as 1 member regardless of number
Need only 3 at proposal time (5 recommended)
All should be present for defense (conference calls allowed in hardship cases)

Sub-pages

HCC Specifications

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