Your dissertation is an original piece of research of publishable quality that focuses on an important, currently unanswered question. Your Dissertation Committee supervises your dissertation from its proposal to its completion. You should meet with your Dissertation chair at least two (2) times per year and with your whole Committee annually (by June 1 of the year in question). Prior to the Committee meeting, you should submit your Annual Dissertation Report to the Committee and, afterwards, obtain your Committee members’ signatures and submit the form to the GGC. Failure to submit this report will result in your being dropped from the Program.
If a problem appears with the pace of your progress, the GGC will arrange a conference to discuss the matter with you and your Dissertation Committee chair. The Graduate Group expects that you will submit up to three drafts of the dissertation to your Committee. You will submit the first draft two months in advance of deposit date set by the University; the second draft, one month in advance of the deposit date, and the third (and final draft) one week in advance of your defense.
3e.1. Dissertation Defense: You will defend your dissertation to your Committee and, with their approval, offer a public Colloquium afterwards. Your Committee may ask you to make minor revisions to the dissertation before you deposit it with the University. Upon completing your defense and Colloquium, submit the signed Final Dissertation Reportand to the Graduate Group Administrator. These forms indicate the acceptance and certification of the dissertation.
3e.2. Deposit of Dissertation: The University has strict regulations concerning the deposit of the dissertation. Be sure to review these rules early and often as they are unalterable. Consult the Dissertation Formatting Guide found at https://provost.upenn.edu/dissertation-depositto become familiar with the required format and various deadlines that must be met in order to graduate at a particular time. The schedule is contained in the Graduate Degree Calendar at the University of Pennsylvania Office of the Provost and is online at https://provost.upenn.edu/graduate-degree-calendar. You should be aware that the University rigorously enforces these regulations and schedules and makes no exceptions. It is your responsibility to know these schedules and adhere to them.
When you submit your dissertation in fulfillment of the requirements for a degree, it becomes the property of the University of Pennsylvania, governed by the University’s copyright and patent policies.) You do have options about its release to the public. See https://provost.upenn.edu/dissertation-embargo-guidelines.
