Achieving PhD Candidacy

Supervisory Committee:

Once students begin preparing for their General Exam, the Advisory Committee is disbanded and the student proposes members for the Supervisor Committee (with the exception of the Internal Reviewer). This occurs at least four months prior to taking their General Examination. The following links are helping in establishing the Supervisory Committee:

• Supervisory Committee Form
• PhD Supervisory Committee Policy
• UW Graduate School Guidelines for Supervisory Committee

INSC 600

In preparation for taking their General Exam, students register for INSC 600. To register for INSC 600, students must establish their Supervisory Committee first. Students register for INSC 600 for as many quarters as needed to prepare for the exam. INSC 600 Registration Form

General Exam

The purpose of the General Examination is to assess the breadth and depth of the student’s knowledge and critical analysis of major areas in the information field. The Examination is used to evaluate the student’s potential to complete a doctoral dissertation successfully, including the development of the student’s independent intellectual voice.

Students are eligible to take the General Exam when they reach sixty credits, have eighteen numerically graded credits, and complete their required course work. Officially scheduling the General Exam is done through the UW Graduate School and needs to occur at least three weeks prior to the oral component of the exam. In addition, the student must be enrolled in classes the quarter in which the exam is scheduled. The Graduate School determines if the student has met the minimum requirements to take the exam. The room for the exam can be scheduled through the Dean’s Office in MGH 370. Prior to the exam, the PhD Program Advisor or Program Administrative Assistant will print the exam warrant and give it to the Supervisory Committee Chair
After completing the exam, the Supervisory Committee Chair submits the signed warrant, as well as a copy of the exam questions, to the Student Services Office. The PhD Program Advisor or PhD Program Administrative Assistant updates the exam results with the Graduate School and with the iSchool Human Resources staff.

The following links provide more information about the General Exam:

• iSchool General Exam Policy
• UW Graduate School General Exam Scheduling
• Graduate School Guidelines for the General Exam

PhD Candidacy:

Upon successful completion of the General Exam, the student is identified and designated as a Candidate for the PhD in Information Science and is awarded the Candidate’s Certificate.

After achieving Candidate status, the student devotes his or her time primarily to formulating a dissertation proposal, preparing for the dissertation proposal defense, conducting and completing the research, writing the dissertation, and preparing for the Final Exam of the dissertation.