A) Time of Assignment: All students will be matched with a faculty pre-dissertation adviser (PDA) in their second year in the doctoral program. Students who enter the doctoral program after completing the M.A. program in our department would get a PDA in their first year in the doctoral program.
B) Purpose of advising: The purpose of the PDA relationship will be to assist the student in preparing to make the transition from course work to dissertation research.
C) Method of assignment: The Graduate Program Director will arrange the advising assignments, taking account of student field interests, a fair distribution of faculty advising assignments over time, inter-personal factors, and other relevant considerations. Both the student and the faculty member must agree to an advising assignment.
D) Frequency of Meeting: It is suggested that each faculty PDA meet with her or his advisee(s) at least 2 times each semester. The faculty member is expected to take the initiative to set up meetings.
E) Reports:
1) Every student in the PhD program will fill out a self-report form every semester, starting in
the student’s second semester in the doctoral program.
2) The report should be drafted by the student and discussed with the adviser before
submission. In the student’s first self-report, the student will indicate the progress made in the program since entering the program, as well as the tasks remaining to be completed in the program. In each successive self-report, the student will indicate progress made since the previous report was written as well as tasks remaining to be completed. The student’s adviser will sign the report and add her/his comments.
3) If any problems have been identified in the student’s progress, the report should outline what steps have been taken to address the problems. If need be, the student and/or the adviser can request a meeting with the Graduate Program Director to discuss the issues.
4) The self-reports must be handed in to the student’s adviser by December 1 in the fall semester and May 1 in the spring semester.
5) The student’s adviser will provide a copy of the self-report to the Graduate Program Director, to be kept in the student’s departmental file.
F) Change in Advisers: Interests and plans can change, and sometimes the chemistry between student and adviser may be wrong. Either student or adviser may therefore request a change of adviser at any time. The GPD will consider any such request and, if the issues cannot be resolved, will arrange an alternative adviser.
G) End of Pre-Dissertation Advising Relationship: The PDA relationship will end when the student establishes a working relationship with a faculty dissertation supervisor, who thereafter will serve as the student's adviser. There is no expectation that a student's PDA will become that student's dissertation supervisor, although such an outcome is not precluded.