Guidelines

The oral examination is designed to focus on a proposal or prospectus for the dissertation research, in which the student describes the topic, the literature, what he/she proposes to do, and how he/she proposes to do it. The oral is not designed to be focus on a substantial part of the completed dissertation or defense of nearly completed dissertation research.

The oral examination is required by the Graduate Division for the purpose of assuring that the student has sufficient understanding of the field of inquiry in which the dissertation lies to be able to complete the dissertation. In ARE, we examine this mastery with the written preliminary and field exams as well as the oral examination.

The oral examination focuses on a proposal for the thesis research. Prior to the examination, the student is expected to distribute a short (10-page) written proposal for a thesis. A proposal must delineate the proposed intellectual contribution and show its place in the literature. It must contain evidence that the proposed project can be carried to completion. Evidence includes:

• Availability of the data
• Funding for travel to obtain data if necessary
• A sketch of an appropriate model or a sketch of the proof of a proposition if the research is based on theory
• A sketch of the econometric strategy if the research is mainly empirical.

Neither a finished paper, nor preliminary results, nor proof of a proposition are required. The first twenty minutes or so of the exam is a presentation by the student of the proposal. The remainder of the exam consists of questions by the examiners about the proposal and about the underlying field of inquiry in which the proposal lies.

Normative Time

Completion of the oral exam in a timely fashion is an essential part of the timely completion of a high quality dissertation. You will find in your professional career that your university or other employer regularly requires the timely completion of projects. The establishment and enforcement of deadlines is an appropriate and integral part of your professional development. The oral examination is designed to foster its completion within the three-year time frame. Financial incentives are in place to encourage compliance with the oral exam policy.

The oral exam is to be completed by all Ph.D. students before the beginning of their fourth year of graduate studies, ie, no later than the end of the summer of the third year of graduate studies. This includes all leaves of absence except those (as specified by the Graduate Division) due to the Family and Medical Leave Act or other rare exceptions requiring approval by the GAC and Department Chair on an individual case-by-case basis.

Exceptions

Requests for exceptions from the departmental normative time requirements for orals can be made by written petition to the GAC from the graduate student's advisor. Reasons beyond the student's control, such as an extended period of serious illness, are most likely to be approved. A delay in taking coursework is very unlikely to receive favorable consideration. Students who anticipate the need for significant third year coursework must consult the GAC as soon as this becomes apparent. Petitions for an exception are presented to the GAC for a decision and then to the ARE chair for the chair's agreement.

Scheduling the Oral Exam

In the fall semester of your third year, you should receive a memo about your Research Guidance Committee (with an enclosed Petition for a Guidance Committee form) requesting you to choose two ARE faculty members as your Guidance Committee. It is common that the Chair of your Guidance Committee ultimately serves as your Dissertation Chair and the second member serves as the Chair of your Oral Exam Committee, and ultimately as the second ARE member of your Dissertation Committee. But this is not mandatory. The only strict rule is that the Chair of your Oral Exam may not serve as your Dissertation Chair. When they have signed the form agreeing to serve as your Guidance Committee, please return the form to the Graduate Student Affairs Officer.

You are advised to work closely with your main advisor (Chair of your Guidance Committee) until a first draft of the research proposal is acceptable, and then to contact the chair of their orals committee for additional recommendations. After both members of your Guidance Committee have accepted your research proposal, they must sign a form (available from the Graduate Student Affairs Officer) attesting that they have read it, and that you have been approved to take the oral exam.

At least 3 weeks before you intend to take your oral exam, you must choose your orals committee. The orals committee consists of four members:

• The Orals Chair
• Two other ARE faculty members appropriate to your topic
• One member from outside the discipline (a faculty member from another department at Berkeley).

The dissertation advisor and chair cannot be the orals committee chair.

You will submit this committee to the Graduate Student Affairs Officer on the appropriate form and your committee must be approved by the Head Graduate Advisor and by the Graduate Degrees Office before you can take your oral examination. You need to set a date and time for your exam that is agreed upon by all of the committee members before you submit your committee for approval.

Do Not Delay Scheduling Your Exam!

Too many students wait until the end of the time limit and try to schedule their oral during the summer after their third year of graduate studies. This can be very difficult. Nearly all faculty travel during the summer. It can be particularly difficult to coordinate an oral examination with the outside committee member. The Department staff does everything they can to work with graduate students to schedule and complete their orals, but we have no leverage with other departments. Please do not procrastinate on scheduling your oral exam.