Year Two

Original Research Proposal

• The topic must be original research demonstrating your creativity. It may be inspired by your research rotations or thesis lab.

• A topic and proposal title must be approved by your Primary Research Advisor. Your complete proposal must be reviewed by the area advisor or a designee well before final submission as revisions may be required.

Proposal Guidelines

1. Students who are eligible for the NSF fellowship should follow the NSF graduate fellowship guidelines and format. Submission of the application to NSF is required by the fall deadline of Year 2.

2. Students who are not eligible for the NSF fellowship should identify another graduate fellowship for which they are eligible, subject to approval by the Area Advisor. Timely submission to the relevant program is required.

3. When no suitable substitute program is available (as confirmed by the area advisor), the student will follow the NSF format and submit the proposal for evaluation to the area advisor by the NSF deadline.

Seminar Requirement (CHEM 290)

• This requirement must be completed before taking the Advancement to Candidacy Exam.

• This course requires delivery of a seminar related to your group’s research.

• A letter grade of B or better must be achieved in CHEM 290.

Advancement to Candidacy Exam

Exam Guidelines

• The Candidacy Examination is comprised of oral and written components based primarily on the student's dissertation research field and is administered by the student's Candidacy Committee, formally established with the approval of the Graduate Division.

• The examination should be taken by the end of the sixth quarter, normally the spring quarter of the second year and all students must complete the exam no later than the end of the summer quarter following the second year.

• If the exam is failed, the student will have one opportunity to repeat. 

Exam Purpose and Evaluation

• The purpose of the exam is to test whether the student is adequately prepared to carry out an original dissertation research project.

• The student's performance will be evaluated on the basis of demonstrated understanding of the research field, general knowledge of the discipline, and on research work completed by the time of the exam.

Exam Requirements

Written Research Summary

• Two weeks prior to the candidacy exam, students are required to submit a 3-page research summary to their committees. The research summary must be written using the following guidelines:

  • Up to 3 pages total, including 10-15 references and 2-4 figures

  • Standard 8.5" x 11" page size

  • 1" margins on all sides

  • No less than single-spacing (approximately 6 lines per inch)

  • 11 point or higher font, except text that is part of an image

  • Do not use line spacing options such as “exactly 11 pts” that are less than single spaced

  • Times New Roman font for all text, Cambria Math font for equations, and Symbol font for non-alphanumeric characters

  • PDF or Word Document file format only

Oral Examination

• At least three weeks’ notice is required. Once a day and time has been agreed upon by all members of the committee you must schedule a room (online) for your candidacy exam and notify the Staff Graduate Program Advisor of the following: 

  • Date, Time, and Location of your exam

  • Committee Members (indicate chair)

  • Written Research Summary

Any changes in the membership of your committee must be arranged through the Staff Graduate Program Advisor for approval by the Faculty Graduate Program Advisor and submitted to Graduate Division via a Form IA.

The Candidacy Committee reports the results of the examination to the Staff Graduate Program Advisor, who will forward the required forms to the Graduate Division. When the oral examination is passed, the student must pay the $50 advancement to candidacy fee charged to their BARC account. The student is advanced to candidacy effective the first quarter following the exam in which the student is registered (students completing the exam in the fall will be advanced for winter, students taking the exam in the winter will be advanced for spring, etc.).