6.3 Pre-candidacy continuous enrollment policy

All doctoral students are required to be enrolled in every semester pre-candidacy (summer session excluded) until graduation. At a minimum, students must be enrolled for at least one credit hour per semester, which may consist of credit(s) for coursework, pre-candidacy dissertation research or independent study hours with the advisor. While the individual graduate programs will monitor the enrollment of all pre-candidacy students, it ultimately will be the responsibility of each student to ensure that they are meeting the enrollment provisions of this policy.

Leave of Absence

Pre-candidacy students who cannot continue in their doctoral program due to extenuating circumstances can request a leave of absence from their doctoral studies on a term-by-term basis for up to a maximum overall leave period of one year. While there are many situations upon which a leave can be requested, such as the birth or adoption of a child or a serious medical condition, a leave will not be granted with the sole reason of financial hardship. 

The initial request for a leave is through the Graduate School's pre-candidacy academic leave form found in Gradforms. Review Graduate School Handbook, Section 3.1 for more details.

Course Requirements

Each PhD student must have a specialization (“major”) that is drawn primarily from one of the core areas of the college. While the definition of the major field may be responsive to individual interests, it is the responsibility of the division and the student’s candidacy examination committee to ensure that the student has an adequate grounding in the representative content of the field. In addition, the student is required to show expertise in the research methods appropriate for the major field chosen and to select a supporting minor cognate field. Fields of specialization may create standardized curriculum requirements to meet the expectations of the discipline or may permit more discretion by the candidacy examination committee whose role is detailed below.

Students pursuing the PhD in Public Health with a specialization in Health Behavior and Health Promotion are required to complete research rotation credits. Research rotation credits are intended to provide PhD students with one-on-one experience working with faculty members on research-related tasks. Appropriate topics for research rotation credits include collaborating on manuscript preparation (which could include literature reviews); working on grant proposals; or collecting and analyzing data. Students are required to complete a minimum of four credit hours of research rotation. It is expected that these credit hours will be completed under the direction of more than one faculty member, and working on different projects, in order to gain maximum experience with research tasks. The exact profile of credit hours for an individual student is subject to negotiation between the student and the advisor.

Curriculum plan approval

The graduate faculty of the College of Public Health delegates the responsibility for establishing course requirements for the PhD student to the division of specialization.

Students admitted to the PhD degree program will work with their advisors to create a tentative curriculum plan during the first term of enrollment. The advisor, the chair of the student's major division, and the ASGC chair must approve the proposed curriculum (see Doctoral Curriculum Approval Form). Note that each approver must be unique, i.e. the advisor, division chair and the ASGC chair must all be different people. The Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies, and/or Associate Dean of Academic and Student Affairs may sign as approvers for the division chair and/or ASGC chair roles as needed to ensure that each curriculum is approved by three different people. In addition, the complete curriculum plan must be approved at least one term before the student attempts the candidacy examination.