Students in EDP PhD are advised by a committee of their own selection that is customized to support their specific research interests and methods.
Degree Milestones
Ph.D. students are already paired with a faculty champion as a condition of admission, who typically also serve as their committee chair. However, to meet the Plan of Study requirements and deadlines, doctoral students must also obtain the commitment of a additional faculty members to serve on their doctoral advisory committee.
First Semester
- Doctoral students thus should actively meet with their advisor and develop a Statement of Intent as soon as possible. This Statement of Intent should be prepared in conjunction with the advisor and can then be used to recruit committee members, starting in the second semester.
- All students are recommended to take CNST 5084: Methods in Construction Research during their first (or second) semester of residency to obtain an orientation to requirements and expectations for construction research.
Second Semester
- Students must choose a major advisor who serves as the committee chair and obtain the agreement of that faculty member to serve in this role no later than their second semester.
- In addition to the major advisor a minimum of three additional faculty must serve on the advisory committee. Students must also obtain agreement of these additional faculty to serve on their advisory committee no later than the end of the second semester of study.
Third Semester
- Doctoral students must have a major advisor who serves as the committee chair and obtain the agreement of three additional faculty member to serve on their committee to sign off on their proposed Plan of Study.
- All committee members indicate their formal commitment to serve via their signatures on the student’s Plan of Study, which is due at the end of the third semester.
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The approved Plan of Study including all required documentation should then be submitted to the Building Construction Graduate Chair, who will review and approve the document and submit it for Graduate School approval.
Other Semesters
The schedule for Advisory Committee meetings for doctoral students is determined by the student’s progress and degree completion goals. Typically, committee meetings may be held
- to review a student’s plan of study and preliminary research proposal,
- to conduct the preliminary exam,
- to hear the proposal defense,
- to conduct a pre-defense, and
- to conduct the final defense.
The Graduate School requires that the committee convene in real time for the preliminary exam and the final defense. All other meetings may be conducted asynchronously, with the student and/or faculty advisor coordinating activities and documenting outcomes. It is the student’s responsibility to keep all committee members informed of progress, particularly any challenges or changes that occur as the research progresses. The means for reporting progress is at the discretion of the committee and may include written updates, individual meetings with committee members, or meetings of the entire committee together.
Additional limitations and requirements of faculty committees are described under
Choosing an Advisor and Advisory Committee in the Graduate Guidebook, or
Graduate Advisory Committees in the Graduate Catalog
