SCHEDULING YOUR GRADUATE BOARD ORAL EXAMINATION

Committee Member Selection:

The student and student’s advisor compile a list of at least seven candidates to serve on the GBO committee. The final committee consists of five members and two alternates – a total of four must be chosen from inside the department and a total of three from outside.

The advisor notifies the Graduate Program Coordinator of the potential committee members, their titles, employer, and their contact information (phone numbers and email addresses).

If an unapproved non-Hopkins candidate is chosen, the advisor will submit a letter stating why this person should be used, along with the candidate’s CV.

Scheduling the Exam:

When the candidate list is submitted, the advisor and student submit a two or three-week window in which to schedule the exam. This time period must be at least five weeks from the date the information is given to the Graduate Program Coordinator.

The Graduate Program Coordinator schedules the exam and the room according to availability of the potential committee members, notifies the members to keep their calendars open on the date chosen, and notifies the Graduate Board. The notification must be in the Graduate Board’s office 3 weeks prior to the exam.

Official Notification:

The Graduate Board approves the plan and appoints the GBO Committee Chair. The Chair is chosen from the outside committee members. The Chair's official approval is sent to the Graduate Program Coordinator, which prompts the formal date, time, and location notification. A formal letter, along with the formal results form, is sent to the Chair explaining his responsibilities.

Student Responsibilities:

The GBO in the department of Computer Science is intended to assess the student's preparation to undertake his or her chosen dissertation research. To aid such an assessment, the student is expected to prepare a Preliminary Research Proposal, eight to ten pages in length, and to send it to the members of the GBO committee two weeks in advance. Barring objections, the student will also present it briefly at the start of the exam. While it need not be a fully developed thesis proposal, it should give the committee some sense of the student's intended research direction. The Preliminary Research Proposal assists in focusing the exam and helps the committee choose useful questions.

After the exam:

The Committee Chair brings the results form to the Graduate Program Coordinator, who takes them to the Graduate Board.