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phd examination committee

phd examination committee

UC Davis Graduate Studies

Doctoral qualifying exam.

MANDATORY IN-PERSON PARTICIPATION IN THE QUALIFYING EXAMINATION  In accordance with the Doctoral Qualifying Examinations Policy (Revised March 22, 2024), QE’s must be held fully in-person with the option to include up to one committee member participating remotely, other than the QE chair.

The Doctoral Qualifying Examination (QE)

Qualifying exam topics.

  • Student Eligibility
  • Applying to take the QE
  • Committee Selection
  • Not Pass & the Second Exam

Advancing to Candidacy

  • Forms & Policy Links

The Qualifying Exam Application (via GradSphere)

Purpose of the Qualifying Exam

All UC Davis doctoral students must take a Qualifying Examination (QE) to demonstrate they are prepared to advance to candidacy, undertake independent research, and begin the dissertation.  Doctoral students may have no more than two opportunities to pass the QE.  

The QE evaluates the student’s preparation and potential for doctoral study, including:

Strategies for Success

Review proven QE tips, gathered by students in Professors of the Future, on  Acing Your Qualifying Exam .

  • Academic preparation in the field, and sufficient understanding of the areas related to the dissertation research.
  • Knowledge and understanding of the literature in the field, and the ability to evaluate and integrate those concepts.
  • Knowledge and understanding of relevant research methods and applications.
  • The viability and originality of the research proposal, and the ability to communicate those topics.

Information below is included in the Doctoral Qualifying Examination policy .  The QE must be an oral exam, 2-3 hours in length, and may include a written component covering both breadth and depth of knowledge.  Specific format is determined by the graduate program degree requirements which have been approved by Graduate Council.  Graduate Council specifies that Qualifying Exams must also have the following essential characteristics:

  • Be Interactive
  • The examiners must be able to ask questions, hear the answers, and then follow up with another question or comment in response to the student's initial reply. Committee members, individually and collectively, must be able to engage in a discourse with the candidate on topics relevant to the candidate’s area of competence.
  • Be a Group Activity
  • In addition to the ability to follow up to one's own questions, it is also very important for all examiners to hear all of the questions and all of the student's responses, plus have the ability to interject an alternate follow-up question. The collective wisdom of a group is generally greater than that of the individual. Further having other examiners present serves to moderate the group, to ensure that one examiner does not ask questions that are either trivial or too difficult, and that any one examiner is neither too friendly nor too obstreperous. Thus, to optimize the examination process and evaluation of the candidate, the committee as a whole must collectively: 1) experience the discourse with a candidate, 2) evaluate the candidate’s performance, 3) determine the length and content of the examination, and 4) moderate the demeanor of the candidate and the members of the committee.
  • Be Broadly Structured
  • Based on the candidate’s past academic, research, and scholarly record and the performance on the examination, the candidate must broadly demonstrate sufficient competence in the selected disciplinary area, which must go beyond the limited area of scholarship associated with a dissertation topic. Further, the candidate must demonstrate the capability for integration and utilization of knowledge and skills that are critical for independent and creative research, thereby qualifying them for advancement to the research-intensive phase of doctoral education.

Student QE Eligibility

To be eligible to take the exam, a student must:

  • Be enrolled in the quarter in which the exam will be conducted, or if the exam is held during a break between quarters, the student must have been enrolled in the previous quarter and be enrolled in the subsequent quarter.  
  • Maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 in all course work completed.
  • Have completed all degree requirements (including coursework and language examinations), with the possible exception of any requirements being fulfilled during the quarter the QE is to be held.

Applying to take the QE

The exam may not be held until a QE application has been approved by Graduate Studies.  QE applications are due to Graduate Studies at least 30 days prior to the expected exam date.

  • If requesting an external committee member (employed outside the UC) - fill out the Justification for Proposed External Member Participation within the QE application in GradSphere. Upload proposed member CV.
  • Up to one committee (never the QE chair) member may be approved to participate remotely by the program
  • Justification for fully remote requests must be entered in the QE application in GradSphere
  • If you are participating in a Designated Emphasis, and haven't yet submitted an application, complete the DE Application via GradSphere.  
  • After initiation, the QE application is routed to the graduate program advisor (and DE chair if relevant) for approval.
  • External Member Requests are determined by the Associate Dean for Students, and require additional review time.

Reconstituting & Rescheduling the QE

  • Students may change their QE committee membership prior to the exam by submitting a Reconstitution of Committee Membership Request via GradSphere.  The eligibility of the committee will be re-evaluated according to the standards listed below.  
  • Once the QE application has been approved, students and programs do not need to notify Graduate Studies if the exam date is changed - the date listed on the QE Report will be recorded in the student's record.  

The QE Committee

QE committee selection and recommendation vary from program to program, and students should discuss the membership with their Graduate Advisor and major professor.  Graduate Studies evaluates the eligibility of the committee and individual members using the regulations included in the Doctoral Qualifying Examination policy.  The QE Chair and committee members should be selected to avoid any real or perceived conflict of interest.

  • QE Committee Chair Requirements
  • • The Chair of the QE committee must be a member of the student’s graduate program and either a UC Davis Division Academic Senate member or a UC Davis Academic Federation member. • The student’s major professor may be a member of the QE committee, but may not serve as the QE Chair.
  • QE Committee Membership Requirements
  • • The QE committee must include four or five members, as included in the graduate program degree requirements. • A student or program may petition Graduate Studies for one additional member beyond the number required by submitting a brief statement of explanation with the QE application.  Most often additional members are requested for students in a Designated Emphasis. • At least three of the members must be members of the student’s graduate program. • At least three members of the QE committee must be members of the Academic Senate of the University of California. • At most two members of a 5-person committee or one member of a 4-person committee may be from categories that include non-Senate faculty. • At least one committee member who is not a member of the student's graduate program, unless the program has an approved exception.  
  • Students in Designated Emphases
  • • In cases where a student is completing one or more Designated Emphases (DE), at least one committee member must be affiliated with each DE.   • Students must have an approved DE application prior to taking the Qualifying Exam.  
  • Optional External Member - not employed by a University of California
  • • At most one member may be a faculty member from another university outside the UC system or a scholar from outside academia.  

Outcomes of the QE

QE Committees must inform the student of the result of their QE immediately following the exam.  QE Chairs report the results to Graduate Studies by submitting the Qualifying Examination Report via GradSphere . A memo of explanation from the QE Chair must be submitted along with the QE report for any result other than unanimous pass.  More information about the QE results is available on the QE Regulations .

  • The committee unanimously decides the student passed the examination and is prepared to advance to candidacy for the doctoral degree.  No conditions or additional requirements may accompany this decision.
  • The QE Report must specify whether the student is required to retake all or part of the examination, list any additional requirements, and state the expected timeline for completion of requirements before retaking all or part of the exam. The format of the second attempt may include a retake of all or a specific portion of the exam, a rewritten proposal, a paper addressing the areas of deficiency, or an alternate format determined by the QE committee and approved by the Dean of Graduate Studies.  The second QE may include multiple components (e.g. responding to committee questions in writing and then retaking the oral exam), but requirements must be stated in full on the QE Chair memo.  Requirements may not be added or determined necessary after submitting the memo to Graduate Studies. 
  • The committee unanimously determines the student failed the examination due to significant deficiencies, and the student is not currently prepared to continue in the doctoral program.  A unanimous fail on either the first or second exam is a recommendation of the student’s disqualification from the degree objective. 
  • If the QE committee is unable to reach a unanimous decision on pass, retake, or fail, the QE chair will inform the student that the committee is divided, that the majority and minority are making recommendations subject to further review, and that the Administrative Committee of the Graduate Council or its designee will make the final decision with all available input.  In the Split QE memo, the QE Chair must include the number of committee members supporting each decision, and the recommendations from each side.  The QE Chair should not identify the names of committee members supporting each decision when discussing the results with the student or in the Split QE memo

First QE Retake & the Second Exam

Students who receive a Retake in their first QE are permitted one additional opportunity to pass the exam.  The second exam may take a different format depending on which parts of the exam the student needs to retake, and how the committee can best evaluate the clearing of the deficiencies noted in the first exam.  Committees may require students to submit a rewrite of their proposal or written response to committee concerns/questions.  They may require students to retake all or portions of the examination (e.g. the oral portion, but not the written, or the proposal portion, but not the field foundation knowledge portion).  Committees may combine requirements (e.g. a written response and retaking the oral exam). 

The written memo from the QE Chair will clarify the requirements of the second exam in full, how the student should carry these out, and provide a specific timeline for meeting the requirements.  Not Pass memos should indicate one or more contact member(s) if the student has questions about the deficiencies in the first exam or the requirements for the second exam. Graduate Studies will review the QE Retake memo, and may follow-up with QE Chairs for clarification if needed.  Once approved, the Associate Dean for Students will write a letter to the student confirming the second exam requirements.  Letters are sent by the Director of Advising to the student, the Coordinator, the QE Chair, and the program Graduate Chair.

Following the second exam end date included in the Retake memo, the QE Chair will notify the student of the outcome and complete the QE Report in GradSphere (noting that it is a Second QE).  The outcome of the second exam may only be Pass or Fail, and follow the guidelines included in the Outcomes section above.  

After passing the QE and prior to the first day of the following quarter, the student will complete the appropriate Candidacy Application (Plan A, B, or C), identifying their proposed dissertation committee. The Candidacy Application will be submitted to Graduate Studies via GradSphere for review and advancement to candidacy.  

Forms, Policies, & Resources

  • Qualifying Exam Application
  • Remote Committee Member Request
  • External Member Request
  • Qualifying Exam Report
  • Second Qualifying Exam Report

QE Policies & Resources

  • Doctoral Qualifying Examinations (GC2005-02)
  • Service on Advanced Degree Committees (GC1998-01) 
  • UC Davis Qualifying Exam Regulations
  • Acing Your Qualifying Exam

PhD Qualifying Exam: by end of G2 year

[Part of the Policies of the CHD, last updated fall 2021; see also area-specific exam guidelines for Applied Math , Applied Physics , Bioengineering , Computer Science , Electrical Engineering , Environmental Science & Engineering , and Materials Science & Mechanical Engineering ]

The qualifying examination should be taken no later than the end of May of the fourth semester (or the end of the Reading Period if the fourth semester is in the fall).  An extension of this deadline will be granted only if the chair of the qualifying committee makes a specific request to the CHD via the “ Request to Delay the Qualifying Exam " form.  If a student is transferring between advisors and does not have a chair of their qualifying committee, the student can make the extension request to the DGS. A recommendation that the examination be held within a few weeks after that deadline as a matter of mutual convenience, or for good and sufficient reasons during the period June through September following the second year of graduate study, will normally be routinely approved, provided the student has a cumulative average grade better than 3.00 (“B”). Marginal students, or postponement beyond the end of September in the fifth semester, will receive careful scrutiny as to the reasons behind the recommendation.

If a student has not received approval for an extension and does not complete the qualifying examination by the deadline of end of May of the fourth semester (or the end of the Reading Period if the fourth semester is in the fall), SEAS may put the student in unsatisfactory degree-progress status with GSAS. At that time the CHD will determine whether the student should lose their monthly research funding support, and whether tuition for the following semester is not to be paid, potentially blocking registration for the following semester.

Exam Committee and Scheduling

The qualifying committee is comprised of four committee members: the research advisor, the research advisor’s nominee, the student’s nominee, and the Dean’s Nominee (assigned by the CHD).  The members of the qualifying committee should be Harvard faculty members, but on occasion faculty members from MIT or other institutions may serve in this capacity with the approval of the CHD.  The qualifying committee so constituted should include at least two SEAS faculty members, at least one of whom should be a senior faculty member (i.e., a full professor).  Usually, the research advisor serves as chair of the qualifying committee; but if the research advisor is not a Harvard faculty member, the research advisor will serve as co-chair with a SEAS faculty member.  Area-specific exam guidelines may specify that the Dean's Nominee is to chair the exam.

[Ed. note: students, be sure to ask your hoped-for advisor's and student's nominees whether they're willing to serve on your qualifying committee before listing them on your Program Plan.  If you're including a non-SEAS faculty member on your committee be sure to provide their CV, or a link to their research webpage, along with your PhD Program Plan on which you list your committee members for CHD consideration.]

Approval of the final program plan and the identification of the Dean’s nominee by the CHD will permit the student to schedule the qualifying examination.  Once the student has agreed upon a time for the examination with all members of the qualifying committee, the student is responsible for contacting the Office of Academic Programs ( [email protected] ) at least two weeks in advance in order to prepare the exam paperwork, and, if needed, to schedule a room. 

The Qualifying Exam is a major milestone en route to the PhD and an important opportunity for the student to engage with their faculty committee and receive formal feedback on their progress. As such, SEAS expects the student and committee to meet together in person for the exam. If after attempting to schedule a time for the full committee to meet together in person it appears that no such time can be found, the student should consult with the Office of Academic Programs about alternatives, possibly including that one or more committee members attend remotely. In all cases the student should take the exam in a classroom or seminar room that includes a blackboard or whiteboard that they can use while answering questions, with sufficient videoconferencing for any remote-attending committee member to view it clearly.

Specifics of the Exam

The qualifying examination has the dual purpose of verifying the adequacy of the student's preparation for undertaking research in his/her chosen field, and of assessing his/her ability to synthesize the technical knowledge already acquired.  The purpose of the examination is not to reassess the student's performance in formal courses; however, evaluation of the student's general knowledge in the major field is appropriate.  The basic judgment to be made is whether the student has demonstrated sufficient mastery of the intellectual skills necessary to conduct research so that a confident prediction can be made that an acceptable doctoral dissertation will be forthcoming in timely fashion.  These skills include the ability to pull together scientific ideas, to formulate technical questions, to recognize answers thereto and to make reasonable judgments on how to seek answers to such questions.

The format of the qualifying examination ordinarily is a two-hour oral examination devoted to the presentation and discussion of one or more potential dissertation topics and to more general questions.  The intent is to test the student's comprehension of his/her chosen research field and to probe the limits of the student's technical knowledge in related areas.  Various groups within SEAS have different customs with regard to the detailed nature of the qualifying examination.  For area-specific exam guidelines, see the Graduate Program Degree Requirements page in each academic area. One role of the Dean's nominee is to assure that comparable standards are applied throughout SEAS.  The qualifying committee should agree among themselves as to what is expected of the student, who should reach out to the committee members in advance of the examination regarding the committee’s expectations.

The qualifying committee may pass or fail the student, or may judge the performance to be inconclusive.  Within its discretion, the committee may stipulate further requirements, such as additional course work, a written examination or presentation of a research proposal, as conditions that must be satisfied.  The research committee (see below) will determine whether these conditions have been met, and so report to the CHD.  Failure means that the student may not re-register, thus terminating degree candidacy.  In the case of an inconclusive performance, after consultation with his/her potential research advisor, the student may schedule a second examination, which must be conclusive. The qualifying committee should explain to the student and report to the CHD its reasons for judging the performance to be inadequate and for granting a second examination.

Students who change degree areas

Students who chose to switch degree areas within SEAS after completing their qualifying exam are ordinarily required to take a qualifying exam in the new area (for example, within Engineering Sciences from Bioengineering to Electrical Engineering or between degrees such as from Engineering Sciences to Applied Physics).  The qualifying exam committee for this exam should appropriately reflect the new degree path. Students must first seek approval of the Director of Graduate Studies and the CHD in the area they wish to transfer and must submit a final program plan for the new degree area to be reviewed and approved by the CHD.

In Academic Programs

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  • Qualifying Exam: by end of G2 year
  • Research Advisors, Committees, and Meetings
  • Dissertation and Final Oral Exam
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