Advancement to Candidacy
A student is advanced to candidacy after successful defense of the dissertation proposal and with the recommendation of the Ph.D. program and after verification of the student’s program of study. All research involving human subjects, animal care and use, and biosafety conducted by faculty, staff or students in any program at PSU must have the appropriate research approval. The Ph.D. program must request advancement by submitting the Request for Advancement to Candidacy form (GO-23) to the Graduate School. The Dean of the Graduate School retains final approval authority for advancement to candidacy.
A doctoral candidate has a minimum of four months and a maximum of five years from the effective date of advancement to candidacy to complete all requirements for graduation, including defense of the dissertation and its final approval by the Graduate School (doctoral programs may have stricter requirements). Candidates must be continuously enrolled during that period. Failure to meet this time limit will result in cancellation of admission to the doctoral program.