Dissertation Prospectus and its Defense

Once your Comprehensive Examination is passed, your next job is to organize your Dissertation Committee; prepare your Dissertation Prospectus; and successfully defend it in front of your Dissertation Committee.

Your Dissertation Committee consists of four graduate professors, including one from outside the English Department, who guide, direct, read, and approve your dissertation. The Dissertation Chairperson must be a tenured or tenure-track member of the University of New Mexico faculty and have regular graduate faculty approval. See the UNM Catalog for more on the Dissertation Committee.

The Dissertation Prospectus and its Defense must be completed within six months after the doctoral student successfully passes the Comprehensive Exams. While Dissertation Committees may require different formats, the Graduate Committee recommends that the dissertation prospectus be a 10-15 page document (excluding bibliography) that asserts the dissertation’s thesis, explains its methodology, provides a literature review or statement of significance, and outlines chapter organization. There is a persuasive element to the Dissertation Prospectus that makes it much like a formal proposal, so it is not simply an announcement of a dissertation topic but a document created with and under the advisement of the dissertation committee and works to gain the committee’s support and approval.

The doctoral student will defend the dissertation prospectus in a formal event before the student’s Dissertation Committee, leading to a mark of “Accept” or “Resubmit.” “Accept” might still involve revisions to the prospectus; “resubmit” indicates the student has a six-month extension to produce and defend an acceptable dissertation prospectus. The Dissertation Committee should have the dissertation prospectus at least a week before its defense. The Graduate Committee recommends that the Dissertation Committee discuss with the student during the defense the strengths and weaknesses of the proposed dissertation project; that the Dissertation Committee provide as much concrete advise for the success of the dissertation project; and that, if it requires re-submission, it is the responsibility of the Dissertation Committee’s chairperson to work closely with the student to produce an acceptable dissertation prospectus.

The prospectus and its successful defense are considered fundamental requirements for the student’s academic progress towards the doctoral degree. Students will be considered qualified for the ABD Teaching Assistant pay raise and the one-time Teaching Assistant course release only after the student successfully defends the dissertation prospectus, and the prospectus is approved by the Director of Graduate Studies. Any student who does not produce an acceptable prospectus after the second defense will be considered as not making satisfactory academic progress, which could lead to the suspension or withholding of a TA contract.

Regardless of the outcome of the defense, it is the student’s responsibility to file a completed Dissertation Defense Form, available from the Graduate Advisor, the Director of Graduate Studies, and the Department website.