Department of GeologyGraduate Handbook

Revised August, 2015

Department Head - Lewis OwenDirector of Graduate Studies - Craig Dietsch

Academic Director - Krista SmilekFinancial Administrator - Kate Cosgrove

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CONTENTS

GENERAL DEPARTMENTAL DUTIES ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 4 FINANCIAL SUPPORT …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 4

University Graduate Scholarships (UGS)Graduate Assistantship (GA)

Teaching Assistantship (TA)Research Assistantship (RA)

Departmental Fellowships (DFs)Nevin M. Fenneman Doctoral FellowshipWycoff Scholarship Fellowship

Endowed Funds for Support of Student ResearchGeology Research FundWalter H. Bucher FundNevin M. Fenneman FundSedimentology FundJenks FundK.E. Caster FundJohn L. Rich Fund

University Research Council (URC) Summer FellowshipsGeology Department Summer StipendsGraduate Student Governance Association Research AwardTax Status of Financial AwardsOutside Employment

GRADUATE CREDIT POLICIES .....................................................................................................................................6GRADING ....................................................................................................................................................................7MAINTAINING GRADUATE STUDENT STATUS ...........................................................................................................7

Required CoursesMinimum Credits/Registration RequirementsFull-Time Course LoadPart-Time Course LoadReduced Course Load (International Students)Minimum Academic Performance

TIME TO DEGREE ...................................................................................................................................................... 7Master’s DegreeDoctoral Degree

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MASTER’S DEGREE .......................................................................................................... 8General InformationTime LimitsFinancial SupportPrincipal Advisor & Advisory CommitteeApproval of Initial Research SummaryApproval of Research ProposalThesis Completion, Defense, and GraduationTime Table for Completion of Degree RequirementsMaster’s Thesis

4 Plus 1 MS ProgramREQUIREMENTS FOR A DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY DEGREE .................................................................................... 11

General InformationAdmission to the Doctoral ProgramTime Limits

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Financial SupportAdmission to Candidacy

Advisory Committee SelectionInitial Research SummaryResearch ProposalCandidacy Exam

FormsTime Table for Completion of Degree RequirementsFormats for Dissertations

GRADUATE STUDENT RIGHTS ..................................................................................................................................... 17Right to Review RecordsNon-discrimination PolicyAcademic Dishonesty

GRADUATE STUDENT GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES ....................................................................................................... 18

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GENERAL DEPARTMENTAL DUTIES

All students receiving departmental or University support are required to carry out certain general departmental duties. These include, but may not be limited to, the following:

Proctoring examinations. Registration for and attendance of the weekly Geology Colloquium (GEOL7025) during all semesters in

residence. Assistance with the departmental Colloquium as requested. Participation each year in the departmental four-day field trip in early fall semester. Mentoring undergraduate students.

From time to time, students may be called upon to do special jobs, such as assisting at prospective student fairs, participating in the Graduate Recruitment Weekend, etc. The Department Head, Director of Graduate Studies, or Academic Director will make these temporary assignments.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT

The Geology Department and the University of Cincinnati provide financial support on an academic-year basis for many graduate students in the form of teaching assistantships, tuition scholarships, endowed fellowships, and research assistantships funded by faculty. Students who are paid on departmental funds are expected to take part in training applicable to graduate student success, including teaching, assisting with field work or field trips, grant writing, and attending guest speaker presentations. Financial support is limited to a maximum of two years for M.S. students and four years (beyond the M.S.) for Ph.D. students. Support beyond the first year is contingent upon evidence of satisfactory progress toward completion of degree requirements. All students receiving departmental and/or University financial support must be full-time, i.e. registered for a minimum of 12 graduate credits each semester during the academic year. The current stipend is $15,000 for the academic year.

Graduate students may obtain financial support from several sources. Financial support options include a Graduate Assistant Scholarship (GAS)/Graduate Incentive Award (GIA), Graduate Assistantship, Departmental Fellowship, and a Departmental Summer Research Fellowship.

Graduate Assistant Scholarship (GAS)/Graduate Incentive Award (GIA) - The GAS and GIA are university-funded scholarships that cover all or part of a full-time or part-time student’s tuition and fees. The GAS is for graduate students who are graduate assistants (GAs) and receive their stipend through payroll. The GIA is for graduate students who are GAs or on departmental fellowship and receive their stipend through Student Accounts.

Graduate Assistantship (GA) - A student awarded a GA receives 9 months of financial support during the academic year in the form of a stipend and full tuition remission (GAS). The stipend amount changes from year to year and is currently $14,000. Students receiving a teaching assistantship (see below) are expected to assist teaching one or more classes or laboratory sections per semester, while those a receiving the less common research assistantship (RA, see below) are expected to carry out specific research assignments in collaboration with their principal advisor.

Teaching Assistantship (TA) - A TA is a professional academic appointment with the expectation that the recipient will gain useful experience as teachers of Earth Science and improve their general communication skills. Graduate TAs are assigned to specific courses. Course assignments may remain the same throughout a given academic year, but typically change from year-to-year or semester-to-semester to provide TAs with more diverse teaching experience and to even out possible inequities in the teaching load. Any questions about TA assignments should be brought to the attention of the Academic Director for clarification.

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The Graduate School requires a TA to work no more than 20 hours per week. All work assignments should relate specifically to the course to which the TA is assigned. Teaching assistant duties may include:

• Preparation and presentation of lectures and laboratories in undergraduate courses. • Assisting in the preparation of teaching materials for lecture and laboratories. • Assisting in the preparation and proctoring of examinations. • Assisting in the grading of exams, homework, and laboratory exercises. • Assisting in audio-visual presentation of class materials. • Tutoring and advising students on a one-to-one basis, and Maintaining regular office hours.

Research Assistantship (RA) - An RA may be assigned if the student’s advisor has appropriate grant support. Research assistants are excluded from teaching responsibilities, although RAs may have specific departmental duties that will be determined by agreement between the recipient, the supporting faculty member, and the Director of Graduate Studies. An RA should work no more than 20 hours per week.

Departmental Fellowships (DFs) - DFs may be awarded to outstanding incoming graduate students, as well as to outstanding PhD students in their final year of support. A fellowship provides 9 months of financial support during the academic year and full tuition remission. The stipend awarded is typically $15,000 per academic year. These awards carry no teaching duties, but recipients are expected to make substantial progress in coursework and research leading to completion of their degree. DFs includes full tuition coverage.

Endowed Funds for Support of Student Research - The Department has a number of endowed funds that may be used to support student research, instruction, and travel. Applications for such funds must be made before the actual expenses are incurred (i.e. apply for fieldwork support prior to leaving for the field, not after returning). IRS regulations require receipts for all reimbursements; therefore detailed records and receipts must be kept. One requirement to be eligible for these funds is that the student must have first applied to one or more sources of external funding (e.g. grants-in-aid from GSA, AAPG, Sigma Xi, Smithsonian, etc.). Unless otherwise noted, requests should be directed to the Director of Graduate Studies, who will confer with the Graduate Policy Committee and the Department Head regarding allocation of funds. The funds available to students and their designated purposes are:

General departmental funds - supports research and travel by graduate and undergraduate students and is available to all students in the Geology program. The maximum award for a MS student is $350 and $600 for a PhD student.

Walter H. Bucher Fund - provides travel money to geology students presenting a talk or poster at a professional meeting. To request support, a student must write a letter to the Head of the Department at least two weeks before the meeting and include a copy of the abstract, a letter of acceptance of the abstract, and a budget. Expenses of student presenters will be covered to a maximum of $350 for one student author, $450 for two student authors, and $550 for three student authors.

Sedimentology Fund - supports research by graduate and undergraduate students in sedimentology. To obtain support, letters of application should be directed to Professors Algeo, Brett, and Maynard. Awards up to $1,000 are granted.

K.E. Caster Fund - supports graduate research in paleobiology. To obtain support, letters of application should be submitted to Professors Brett, Meyer, and Miller.

John L. Rich Fund - supports graduate research in remote sensing and geomorphology.

University Research Council (URC) Graduate Student Research Fellowship - Graduate students have the opportunity to obtain summer funding in one of two ways; through the University Research Council (URC) Graduate Student Research Fellowship or the Geology Department Summer Stipend (see below). The University Research Council, administered through the College of Arts and Sciences, currently awards $3,000 summer research fellowships. Students who are awarded a URC Fellowship will receive additional support from the Department of Geology. Graduate students from the

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Geology Department are in competition with those from other physical science departments (chemistry, physics, and mathematics) for 10-12 awards per year. Proposals submitted by geology graduate students are also automatically eligible to be considered for Geology Department summer stipends, which are discussed below. Check with the Director of Graduate Students for when proposals are due for faculty review. Further information can be found via the University Research Council funding site at http://webcentral.uc.edu/urc2/apply/programinfo.cfm.

Geology Department Summer Stipends - The Department provides a $3,100 two-month stipend for support of research by students who remain in residence during the summer. The summer stipend will be awarded to students in good standing who have applied for a University Research Council (URC) Summer Fellowship. The primary objective of these awards is to allow the student to continue working on a specific degree in a timely fashion. A Master’s student is eligible for one summer of support and a PhD student three summers of support. In order to qualify for this award, a student is expected to submit a research proposal to the Director of Graduate Studies describing (1) the project, (2) work to be completed during that summer, and (3) a detailed budget. This proposal must be presented to the Director of Graduate Studies along with a letter of recommendation from the student’s advisor that addresses the importance of the proposed work for the student and the appropriateness of the proposed budget. A departmental committee will evaluate proposals for summer support and make recommendations regarding which proposals to forward to the college-wide URC committee. Successful applicants must submit a report to the Director of Graduate Studies outlining their specific research accomplishments during the previous summer by mid-fall semester (check with DGS for exact deadline).

Graduate Student Governance Association Research funds - Students may receive a maximum of $400 in conference related travel awards in a fiscal year. See http://www.uc.edu/gsga/StudentAwards.html for details.

Tax Status of Financial Awards - Stipends paid to graduate students that require no services as a condition of receipt are tax-exempt. Scholarships and fellowships generally fall into this category, including UGS awards. Students receiving tax-exempt scholarships or fellowships must file a W-4 form indicating exemption at the time of their appointment. Graduate Assistantships are taxable because teaching, research, or other services are required of the recipient, and the University will withhold taxes from monthly stipend checks. Questions concerning the tax-exempt status of any particular award should be addressed to the Office of Human Resources.

Outside Employment - GA, DF, or SRF (not UGS) support is an investment made by the Department of Geology in its graduate students and their research with the understanding that the student’s focus will be devoted mainly to the pursuit of the student’s graduate degree. Therefore, recipients of GA, DF, or SRF support are prohibited from simultaneously holding other employment outside of the Department without the prior approval of the Director of Graduate Studies and the Head of the Department.

GRADUATE CREDIT POLICIES

Graduate credit can only be earned for those courses at this University that are listed as graduate in the Schedule of Classes (6000-level or higher), which can be accessed via the One Stop website, or which have been approved in writing by appropriate program authority for inclusion in the curriculum. Students who have completed graduate work at other schools may petition the Director of Graduate Studies for transfer of credits earned elsewhere to be applied towards a MS or PhD at the University of Cincinnati. A graduate student earning graduate credit by taking a 6000-level course, which are dual-level courses (available for both undergraduate and graduate credit), may be required to complete academic work beyond that required for the undergraduates in the course.

GRADING - see the Graduate School Graduate Student Handbook for information on final exams, grade reports, grades assigned to repeated research courses, pass/fail grades, and grade changes.

MAINTAINING GRADUATE STUDENT STATUS

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Maintaining graduate student status signifies that the student is actively engaged in making progress towards his or her degree and meeting program requirements. A University of Cincinnati graduate student must hold a baccalaureate degree or its equivalent and must have been accepted for admission into graduate study by the appropriate graduate program.

Required Courses - each graduate student is required to enroll in the following courses: Geology Colloquium (each semester), Four Day Field Trip (fall semester only), Graduate Research (fall semester of first year of residence), and at least one credit of MS or PhD Research credit (each semester).

Minimum Credits/Registration Requirements - To maintain graduate status at the University of Cincinnati, a student must register at UC for at least one graduate credit that contributes to degree requirements in an academic year. Credits that are audited or in which a student receives a W or UW do not count toward the minimum credit requirement. A student whose status has automatically terminated because of failure to register during an academic year will no longer be considered a graduate student but may seek reinstatement. Also note that students must register for at least one graduate credit hour during each semester (excluding summer semester) if they are using University resources such as libraries, University housing, campus laboratories, office space, equipment, recreational or computer facilities.

Full-Time Course Load - Students must be registered for 10 or more graduate credits each semester to be considered full-time students, 12 graduate credits if holding a Graduate Assistantship. Audit credits do not count toward full-time status and may not be supported by a University Graduate Scholarship.

Part-Time Course Load - Students who can devote less than full time to graduate study may register for the number of graduate credits judged by their program advisors to represent the appropriate fraction of a full-time load. Students should confer with their program to ascertain program policies pertaining to part-time student status.

Reduced Course Load (International Students) - Once an international student has finished all required course work and will no longer be enrolling full time, she/he may choose to enroll with a reduced course load. In order to do this, the student must obtain the ”reduced course load certification” from UC International Services. See the UC Graduate Handbook for detailed information.

Minimum Academic Performance - A student must accumulate a grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.0 to obtain a master’s degree at the University of Cincinnati. At least two-thirds of the minimum graduate credits for the degree must be at a level of B or higher. A doctoral student must maintain a grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.0 in all doctoral course work.

TIME TO DEGREE

Master’s Degree

The minimum requirement for the Master’s degree is the equivalent of one academic year of full-time graduate study, consisting of at least 30 graduate credits completed to the satisfaction of the student’s program.

The student whose undergraduate training has been insufficient should expect to spend more than one year fulfilling the requirements for the degree.

All master’s requirements must be completed no later than five years from the date of matriculation into the degree program for students beginning their program autumn 2007 or thereafter.

All master’s requirements must be completed no later than seven years from the date of matriculation for students beginning their programs prior to autumn 2007.

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Doctoral Degree

The doctoral degree will be granted for no less than the equivalent of three years of full-time graduate study, consisting of at least 90 post-Baccalaureate or 60 post-Masters graduate credits.

The University states that all requirements for the doctoral degree must be completed within nine consecutive years of the date of matriculation into the program (up to five years pre-candidacy and four years post-candidacy).

A doctoral student must be enrolled for at least 10 graduate credits (12 if awarded a Graduate Assistantship) in his or her program in each of four semesters (including summer semester) during a span of five consecutive semesters or three consecutive summer semesters.

See the Graduate School Graduate Student Handbook and speak with the Academic Director for information on extensions of time to degree, reinstatements, readmission, and leave of absence.

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MASTER’S DEGREE

General Information - The Master’s degree is intended to provide the student with course work at the graduate level and a research experience in geology. It requires at least 30 graduate semester credit hours, including any thesis or research project. At least 20 of the graduate semester credit hours applied toward a MS degree must be derived from formal course work, i.e., any course taken for graduate credit for which the graduate student receives a letter grade of A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, or C.

Students enrolled in full-time graduate study must register for a minimum of ten graduate credits per semester if not receiving assistantships or fellowships. Students receiving assistantships or fellowships must register for 12 graduate credit hours each semester they are funded (audited and undergraduate credit hours do not count toward the 12 hours). A student must not exceed 18 total credit hours (graduate, undergraduate, or audited) per semester.

Time Limits - Masters students are expected to have the final draft of their thesis completed and defend their thesis by spring semester of their second year. A student with a non-geology Bachelor’s degree may require addition time to complete their degree. The maximum time allowed by the University for completion of the Master’s degree is seven years from the beginning of the first semester in residence. Students not in residence must register for one credit hour each academic year (one credit hour per semester for international students) to maintain candidacy.

Financial Support - Departmental support will be awarded to qualified students usually for a maximum of two years. Additional support for a Master’s student may be available if (1) a student’s advisor provides funding from non-departmental sources, such as grants, or (2) a student generates funding through an extra-departmental scholarship.

Principal Advisor & Advisory Committee – The student must have their Advisory Committee established by the end of fall semester of the first year. The student’s principal advisor will assist the student in choosing two individuals to serve on the committee. At least one member of the committee must be a faculty member of the University of Cincinnati Department of Geology. For committee members outside of the University, a CV for the external member must be submitted to the Academic Director. The CV will then be sent to the Graduate School for approval. As soon as the committee has been formed, the student must notify the Academic Director and submit a form signed by each of the committee members. The form is available in the main office. Once the form is completed, it should be returned to the Academic Director and will be added to the student’s file.

Approval of Initial Research Summary - By the end of the first semester, the student must have met formally with his/her Advisory Committee. The committee must approve the Initial Research Summary, which should include a summary of proposed research and a schedule for completion. Immediately following the first committee meeting, the student must submit a Committee Meeting Report to the Academic Director for filing. The report should include any coursework that the committee members recommend the student take throughout their residency. Any subsequent

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changes in the details of the declared program must be approved by the student’s committee. The Committee Meeting Report form is available in the main office. Approval of Research Proposal - At least one week prior to the committee meeting scheduled for the student’s second semester in residence, he/she must submit a Research Proposal to the committee members that includes:

Statement of Problem - a two to five page summary of the problem to be addressed in the Master’s research. Background - this section should be two to five pages in length and include relevant information related to the

geologic setting of the study, previous work on the research problem, and the primary methods to be employed in the study.

Reference List - a reasonable thorough and up-to-date compilation of published literature relevant to the project. It is expected that the student will have read many or most of the published literature on the list by the time of this committee meeting and that they will be able to respond knowledgeably to questions from the committee members about relevant published literature.

These documents will be reviewed and evaluated by the committee, and a summary of comments of the committee members will be appended to the Committee Meeting Report for this meeting. The form should be submitted to the Academic Director for filing. Ultimately, revised versions of these documents should be incorporated in the student’s thesis.

Thesis Completion, Defense, and Graduation - each student is expected to complete their degree by the end of spring semester of the second year in residence. The student must submit their final thesis to their Advisory Committee at least three weeks prior to the final thesis defense. The student then emails a PDF of the final thesis to the faculty at least one week prior to the thesis defense (emailing a PDF is preferable). The student should meet with the Academic Director by the end of the third semester in residence to create an individualized timeline for thesis completion, defense, and graduation.

Time Table for Completion of Degree Requirements - Master’s students are expected to comply with the following time table for completion of degree requirements unless other arrangements have been agreed upon by the principal advisor and Graduate Program Director. Failure to meet requirements in a timely manner may be grounds for termination of support in subsequent years. Faculty advisors are expected to cooperate with and assist students, as appropriate, in meeting the requirements of this time table:

Timing of Master's degree Requirements9

Year Fall Semester Spring Semester

First

1. Advisory interview before classes start.2. Establish thesis advisor and thesis Advisory Committee.3. Present Initial Research Summary to committee.4. Submit a Committee Meeting Report and copy of the Initial Research Summary to the Academic Director.

1. Submit URC and grant-in-aid applications.2. Hold a committee meeting where the Research Proposal is presented for approval.3. Submit a Committee Meeting Report and a copy of the Research Proposal to the Academic Director.

Second

1. Hold a committee meeting.2. Complete Committee Meeting Report and submit to the Academic Director.3. Meet with the Academic Director to discuss thesis completion, defense, and graduation timeline.

Timeline for thesis completion, defense, and graduation*:1. Apply for graduation by end of 3rd week of semester.2. Submit final thesis to committee by beginning of 8th week. 3. Schedule final defense with Academic Director.4. Email final thesis to faculty by beginning of 9th week (to account for Spring Break the 10th week).5. Defend thesis by end of 11th week.6. ETD due end of 12th week.

*This timeline serves as a guide and may be altered. This timeline was created based on the ETD submission date of the 2014-2015 academic year and may differ from year to year.

Master’s Thesis - The Master’s thesis should constitute the approximate scope of at least one published paper. Hence, emphasis should be placed on testing a well-defined hypothesis and/or thorough documentation of a single geological problem. Ideally, theses should be formatted as manuscripts appropriate for submission to a particular journal and formatted for that journal (see instructions to authors in journals or on the journal’s website). Because publications favor relatively short and concise articles rather than large, extensive documents, emphasis should be placed on concise writing (25-50 pages) with, if needed, extensive data appendices. It is strongly encouraged that Master’s students submit their work for publication. The thesis must also be submitted electronically to the Graduate School. For detailed instructions concerning thesis submission and graduation, see http://grad.uc.edu/student-life/graduation.html.

4 Plus 1 MS Degree - The 4 plus 1 program is designed for University of Cincinnati students who wish to obtain a Masters degree as a terminal degree for work in industry or secondary education. It is not intended to substitute for a normal two-year, research-intensive MS degree and is primarily a course-intensive program with a lesser research component.

Students in this program should declare their intent to proceed with the additional year of Master’s level study and identify an advisor, willing to supervise the program, by no later than the fall semester of their senior year. It is expected that students will develop a detailed outline and preliminary work on a short research topic, as a senior thesis, which can be extended as a short project in the fifth year. This is not a substitute for the undergraduate capstone and is also not intended to be a thesis scale project, but will result in a short (10-15 page), potentially publishable essay with references and illustrations to be completed before the end of the fifth year. Otherwise, the primary responsibility of the student will be completion of no fewer than 40 hours of graduate or combined upper level undergraduate/graduate courses. This should be started during the student’s senior year and must be over and above the six upper level courses required for the BA/BS degrees. It is expected that students will carry a load of at least 16 credit (4-5) hours of actual course work during the fifth year. The course work should include training in at least one area outside of Geology. Recommended courses include Geography GIS-related courses, Biology, and/or Chemistry courses.

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Tuition costs for the fifth year of study are entirely the responsibility of the student and under no circumstances will students be supported on departmental funds as teaching or research assistants.

REQUIREMENTS FOR A DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY DEGREE

General Information - The PhD degree is intended to prepare the student for a career track involving independent research. It requires at least 90 post-Baccalaureate or 60 post-Masters graduate credits, equivalent to three years of full-time study. If approved, credits from a Master’s degree program may be applied toward PhD requirements. All PhD students must complete and successfully defend a dissertation prior to graduation. The dissertation should demonstrate an ability to produce and analyze new data, to express understanding of scientific problems, to critically evaluate scientific data, hypotheses, and interpretations, and to demonstrate the capacity for independent work, and should represent publishable research in peer-reviewed journals on a significant problem.

Admission to the Doctoral Program - A graduate student may be admitted into the doctoral program if: The student has completed an MS degree at an accredited institution of higher education. The student is near completion of an MS degree at an accredited institution of higher education and plans to

finish this degree no later than the end of the second semester of residence at the University of Cincinnati. For students entering the doctoral program without a completed MS degree, timely completion of the MS degree will be one criterion evaluated during the student review that takes place during the second semester of residence.

The student is considered to show exceptional academic promise before or during his/her first year in residence. Upon recommendation of the student’s Advisory Committee and approval by the faculty, the student may be invited to enter to the PhD program directly without first obtaining an MS degree.

Time Limits - The doctoral degree will be granted for no less than the equivalent of three years of full-time graduate study. All requirements for the doctoral degree must be completed within nine consecutive years of initial enrollment. This nine-year period includes a maximum of five years to attain candidacy and a maximum of four years beyond candidacy. A period of seven months must elapse between admission to doctoral candidacy and receipt of the degree. A doctoral student must be enrolled for at least 10 graduate credits (12 if funded by a Graduate Assistantship) in his/her program in each of four semesters during a span of five consecutive semesters. Students not in residence must register for one credit hour each academic year to maintain candidacy.

Financial Support - Departmental support will be awarded to qualified students generally for a maximum of four years for a student entering the PhD program with an MS degree and five years for a student entering with a Bachelor’s degree. To maintain eligibility for financial support beyond the second year, PhD students must meet the following conditions:

Successful completion of a proposal defense by the end of the second semester of the second year in residence.

Documentation by the student’s Advisory Committee each semester of continued progress toward completion of the dissertation.

In addition, in order to be eligible for a fourth year of departmental support, a doctoral candidate must meet either or both of the following conditions by the end of his/her third year in the program:

The candidate must be first author on a manuscript submitted to a referred journal, based on research that is part of the candidate’s doctoral research.

The candidate must be first author on a publication that has already appeared in a referred journal, based on research conducted while the candidate was enrolled in the Department’s doctoral program.

While no more than four years of departmental funding will be provided to a PhD student, the student or his/her advisor is free to pursue and obtain funding for additional years of support from outside sources. For a student or advisor who generates one (or more) years of support from external sources during the earlier part of his/her doctoral program,

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applications for departmental support for the fifth or subsequent years in residence will be considered on a case-by-case basis if the student has not reached the limit of a total of four years of departmental support.

Admission to Candidacy - Because the PhD is primarily a research degree, the doctoral candidacy procedure for the Department of Geology places emphasis on evaluation of the candidate’s preparation to conduct doctoral research. The procedure not only provides an opportunity to examine the student’s knowledge of his/her chosen subdiscipline, but also serves to focus the student’s attention on the planning and execution of a high-quality research project. Towards this end, the candidacy examination is centered primarily on the preparation and defense of a dissertation proposal. Students should begin to formulate a research plan, in consultation with their major advisor and Advisory Committee, by the end of their first academic semester in residence. In the following months, adequate time should be devoted to developing the background and expertise needed to conduct the planned research, and data collection (in the field and/or laboratory) during the first year in residence is highly desirable. The nature of this preparation will vary from student to student, but should generally include enrollment in appropriate courses, substantial review of pertinent literature, a pilot study to test the feasibility of the proposed project, and submission of grant proposals to agencies and organizations, such as the Geological Society of America, the Society of Sigma Xi, the Paleontological Society, and the American Association of Petroleum Geologists. The importance of an early start on the formulation of the dissertation cannot be over-emphasized. It insures that the student will be prepared to produce and defend a well-conceived dissertation proposal no later than the end of the second semester of the second year in residency and that the student will move quickly forward on dissertation work following admission to candidacy.

There are three important steps to achieving doctoral candidacy: (1) Selection of the Advisory Committee, (2) development and writing of a research proposal, and (3) passing the candidacy exam.

Advisory Committee Selection - A doctoral student is expected to have formed a dissertation Advisory Committee by the end of the spring semester of his/her first year in residence. The Advisory Committee should have five faculty members, including the major advisor. In lieu of a single major advisor, students may opt to work with two co-advisors, both of whom will have an equal role in directing and advising the dissertation research. Co-advisors will normally be members of the UC Geology faculty. According to Graduate School regulations, at least one member of the committee must be a member of the graduate faculty. If the major advisor is not on the graduate faculty, at least two other committee members must be. All five members may be from the Department of Geology, but the committee may include outside members from another department within the University, from another University, or from a government research agency. Students must select outside members of the committee in consultation with major research advisors. For committee members outside of the University, a CV for the external member must be submitted to the Academic Director. The CV will then be sent to the Graduate School for approval. If financial problems are expected to result from visits by outside committee members, the issue must be discussed and approved by the Department Head before the outside member may be added to the committee. The student must fill out a Committee Member form and submit it to the Academic Director for filing.

Initial Research Summary - By the end of the spring semester of the first year in residence, the student must submit a research summary to the Advisory Committee during the committee meeting, which introduces the committee to the research project. This summary should include a brief explanation of the research to be done as well as an initial timeline for completion. Any feedback on the summary from the committee should be documented in the Committee Meeting Report. A copy of this report and the summary must be submitted to the Academic Director for filing.

Research Proposal After the student and the Advisory Committee have agreed on a research project, preparation of a ‐research proposal should begin. Although the proposal must represent the student’s own original research and writing, it is expected that the student will consult with Advisory Committee members during proposal preparation. This thorough, well written research proposal must be circulated to and approved by the committee during the spring ‐semester of the second year of residency. Typically, the Ph.D. qualifying exam must be taken before spring break of the spring semester. The proposal must be given to members of the committee at least three weeks in advance of the candidacy exam and emailed to the Geology Department faculty at least two weeks in advance of the exam. The

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committee should advise the student in the preparation of the proposal, but all recommendations should be done verbally without exchange of written comments or rewritten drafts.

The preparation of a written research proposal and its defense at the candidacy exam serves several purposes:

To determine whether the student has the background necessary to carry out the proposed research. To inform the Department of the student’s research interests. Based on this information, it is not uncommon for

faculty to find articles that are relevant to the student’s research or arrange personal contact with researchers who may be of help.

To encourage the student to formulate a structured approach to the proposed research and understand the work it entails.

To encourage the student to formulate an accurate budget and give thought to the funding of the project. To provide the student and faculty with a schedule for research, which may be used to encourage and measure

progress. To provide the student with a formal proposal that may be readily modified for submission to funding agencies.

The research proposal must include:

A proposal summary a one page abstract describing the proposed research, explicitly addressing the NSF ‐criteria of Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts.

A statement of problem the research problem being addressed should be succinctly defined in a paragraph. ‐ A review of previous work a review of literature relevant to the project, which should demonstrate knowledge ‐

of topical literature, particularly current contributions. The contribution and significance of the proposed research/significance of the problem a discussion of why this‐

particular problem warrants doctoral research. The research approach how will the problem be approached? What field or lab work will be done? What data ‐

is required? Will special equipment be needed? The results of the pilot study or preliminary results. Broader Impacts – How does the project benefit science beyond your specific field, or society in general, and

how might its results be disseminated to the public? List of references Budget outline and justification Your CV

The proposal document should be modeled after a standard NSF proposal, and it is strongly recommended that the student review the relevant sections of the current NSF Grant Proposal Guidelines document: https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=gpg

Chapter II A-C and Chapter III A will be most useful.

In brief, the format is 15 pages, single spaced, figures within the text, and including the proposal summary and a ‐schedule of completion included. The schedule should include the research timeline but also the dissertation writing and presentation schedule. The budget justification should be complete and well-considered, and current and pending sources of funding for the project should be indicated. Student stipend and tuition should be included in the budget. Overhead, fringe benefits, other administrative costs need not be considered at this stage. The list of references, budget outline, and CV are to be added to end of the 15 page document and do not contribute to the 15-page limit.

Candidacy Exam - The purpose of the qualifying exam is to assess whether the candidate is prepared to do independent research at the Ph.D. level. This includes the specifics of the research project and all directly relevant background, as well as broader context within the field of study.

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The student should approach this with the mindset of explaining and defending his or her research to a panel of trained scientists who are a mix of experts and non-experts in the student’s field.

Questioning during the exam will be designed to assess the following elements:

Is there a clearly defined, testable hypothesis or scientific question? Will the approach you have chosen sufficiently address the scientific question(s)? Can you do the research (technical skills and methodological background)? Can you explain why you are doing the research (scientific importance)? Can you defend the research choices you have made (familiarity with alternative approaches and explanations,

potential confounding factors; i.e., familiarity with the literature in the field)? Are you familiar with the basic physics/chemistry/biology of the systems you are studying and how they may

change under differing conditions and through geologic time? Can you place the research within a broad context of the Earth sciences?

Logistics - The candidacy exam should take place before the end of the spring semester of the second year in residency. The Director of Graduate Studies will schedule two three hour blocks of time per week during which a majority of the ‐faculty are available to attend candidacy exams. A preliminary meeting with the advisory committee is required in the semester of the exam and no later than four weeks before the exam. The purpose of this meeting is to ensure that the student is preparing properly for the exam and has time to make any necessary adjustments before the exam. Students wishing to take the candidacy exam prior to the second semester in the program may do so by arrangement with the Director of Graduate Studies. After successful defense, a copy of the proposal must be given to the Academic Director for filing.

The exam moderator is typically the current Director of Graduate Studies, but can be any active faculty member not currently on leave and not a member of the student’s doctoral committee. The moderator will:

Ensure that the exam is equitably administered. Ensure that all faculty present have the opportunity to ask questions if they wish. Direct a change in topic if a current line of discussion is becoming unproductive. Direct a change in breadth of questioning, e.g., if much time has been spent on very proposal-specific questions

and questions on broader context need to be visited. Read questions from committee members not able to attend the exam. Determine when the exam is concluded. Officially record the voting and recommendations of the faculty.

The exam will be administered by the student’s advisory committee, the Director of Graduate Studies, and at least two additional faculty from the Department of Geology; all faculty not on leave are welcome to attend and participate. Faculty who intend to question the student are expected to have carefully read the research proposal.

The format of the exam shall be a 20 to 30 minute presentation of the proposed dissertation project by the student, ‐ ‐followed by open-ended questioning by the faculty pertaining to (1) specific aspects of the research proposal, (2) general knowledge of the student relevant to the proposed research area, as described above. Questioning will be directed by the exam moderator. Typically, questioning begins with topics specific to the research project and proposal and broadens as the exam goes on. Follow-up questions to delve deeply into a line of discussion are common. When the question and answer session is finished, the student will leave the examination room to permit the faculty to deliberate.‐ ‐

The examining faculty will attempt to arrive at a consensus outcome for the exam and necessary next steps for the student; in the case that a consensus is difficult, all faculty present for the exam will take a majority vote to determine the outcome. There are three possible outcomes: pass, conditional pass, and failure. In the event of a conditional pass, the faculty will decide whether the student is to return before the entire committee to resolve the issues raised or

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whether the student’s committee will be charged with seeing the issues are resolved. In the event of a conditional pass, the exam moderator will:

Prepare a written summary of the issues the faculty have raised and how the faculty recommend that those issues be resolved. The summary should be written and approved by the faculty prior to the close of the meeting, or via email within a week thereafter.

Provide a copy of the written summary to the student and to the student’s Advisory Committee.

If the faculty asks the student to reappear before them for a formal resolution of the issues raised, the moderator is responsible for seeing that the questioning be limited only to those issues raised during the candidacy exam and included in the moderator’s report. Resolution of a conditional pass must generally be made before the end of the same academic year.

Students who failed the exam may opt for a retake at the faculty’s discretion. If the exam is retaken, it must be scheduled before the end of the following academic semester. If the initial exam is taken during the Spring semester, and failed or conditionally passed, the student may retake the exam to satisfy the condition of pass or conditional pass during the Fall semester of the following academic year. Failure of the second exam will result in dismissal from the graduate program and termination of financial support at the end of the current semester. Completion of suitable work to leave with a M.S. is sometimes possible.

Once a student passes the candidacy exam, all members of the Advisory Committee must sign and date a “Candidacy Form,” which may be obtained from the Academic Director or downloaded from the Departmental website. Any committee members not present during the exam may send a short email to the Academic Director stating they agree with the outcome of the exam. The form will then be given to the Director of Graduate Studies to be signed and sent to the Graduate School.

Time Table for Completion of Degree Requirements - Doctoral students are expected to comply with the following time table for completion of the degree requirements. Failure to meet these requirements in a timely manner may be grounds for termination of support. Faculty advisors are expected to cooperate with and assist students as appropriate in meeting the requirements of this time table:

Timing of Doctoral degree RequirementsYear Fall Semester Spring SemesterFirst

1. Advisory interview before classes start.2. Meet with advisor and Advisory Committee to discuss plans to prepare and carry out research project.

1. Submit URC and grant-in-aid applications.2. Establish complete Advisory Committee and submit Committee Member form to the Academic Director.3. Hold a committee meeting where

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3. Submit Committee Meeting Report to Academic Director (meeting involves just the student and advisor).

the Initial Research Summary is presented for approval.4. Submit a Committee Meeting Report and a copy of the Initial Research Summary to the Academic Director.5. Prepare and deliver a talk to the Department describing proposed research project.

Second

1. Hold a committee meeting.2. Submit Committee Meeting Report to the Academic Director.3. Prepare and deliver a talk to the Department describing research project, including relevant background, some research specifics, and the project’s broader context.4. Prepare first draft of Ph.D. qualifying proposal.

1. Submit URC and grant-in-aid applications.2. Finish research proposal.3. Meet with Academic Director to schedule exam.4. Submit research proposal to committee three weeks prior to qualifying exam.5. Email proposal to faculty at least two weeks prior to exam.6. Take qualifying exam!7. Complete Application for Admission to Doctoral Candidacy form and submit to the Graduate Director.

Third

1. Hold a committee meeting.2. Submit Committee Meeting Report to the Academic Director.3. Prepare manuscript for publication.

1. Submit URC and grant-in-aid applications.2. Hold a committee meeting.3. Submit Committee Meeting Report to the Academic Director.4. Submit manuscript for publication.

Fourth

1. Hold a committee meeting.2. Complete Committee Meeting Report and submit to the Academic Director.3. Meet with the Academic Director to discuss dissertation completion, defense, and graduation timeline.

Timeline for dissertation completion, defense, and graduation*:1. Apply for graduation by end of 3rd week of semester.2. Submit final dissertation to committee by beginning of 8th week. 3. Schedule final defense with the Academic Director.4. Email final dissertation to faculty by beginning of 9th week (to account for Spring Break the 10th week).5. Defend thesis by end of 11th week.6. ETD due end of 12th week.

*This timeline serves as a guide and may be altered. This timeline was created based on the ETD submission date of the 2014-2015 academic year and may differ from year to year. Formats for Dissertations - Dissertations represent significant original scholarship and the primary product of doctoral research. There are two options for the document itself:

1. A traditional dissertation consisting of a single document with several chapters and including consecutively numbered figures and tables interleaved with text and a single reference list at the end. There is no page limit for dissertations and emphasis should be placed on thorough, but concise documentation.

2. An alternative dissertation composed of a series of three or more manuscripts on a closely related theme, which are formatted as individual papers targeted for individual journals. The papers should be appropriate for submission to a referred journal and/or edited book. Each paper will have its own abstract, separately numbered figures, and reference list. The journal/book targeted should be specified on each chapter and the

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format for headings, reference style, figure captions, etc. must follow those of the designated publication. The Graduate School requires that these papers be collected as a single document, submitted electronically, and that the figures and tables be interleaved within the text in appropriate positions (see “Doctoral Student Procedures for a Dissertation Submission” at http://www.etd.uc.edu/Doctoral.aspx). Thus, for successful completion of this option, the individual manuscripts must still be arranged as chapters and paginated consecutively. In addition, the document submitted to the University must include two additional chapters: (1) a brief introductory chapter that outlines the broader goals/objectives and hypotheses tested and relates the separate papers to the common theme, and (2) a brief summary chapter that relates the conclusions of the individual documents to the dissertation and discusses the overall outcomes.

Because it is important for a doctoral student to assemble a record of published scholarship, the Geology Department strongly encourages PhD students to consider the second option of dissertation preparation. In order to qualify for a fourth year of support, all PhD students must submit at least one paper to a referred journal or edited book early in the third year of research. This paper should be considered an increment of the dissertation. Ideally, other papers should also be revised and accepted by peer-reviewed journals. . However, submission and publication of more than one manuscript is not required for completion of the dissertation or degree.

GRADUATE STUDENT RIGHTS

Right to Review Records - Students, once enrolled, have the right to review their educational records, for example, the student file in the Geology Department office, and the records maintained in offices such as Student Records, Dean’s Offices, Student Financial Aid, Career Development and Placement, and Educational Advising. See the Academic Director for advice in regards to obtaining educational record information. See the UC Graduate Handbook for detailed information.

Non-discrimination Policy - The Department of Geology reaffirms the University of Cincinnati ‘s policy that discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, handicap, or ago will not be practiced in any of its activities. Complaints involving the abridgement of this policy should be addressed to the Department Head, Director of Graduate Studies, or Academic Director. Also, see the UC Graduate Handbook for detailed information.

Academic Dishonesty - Academic dishonesty in any form is a serious offense that cannot be tolerated inan academic community. Dishonesty–including cheating, plagiarism, deception of effort, and/or unauthorized assistance–may result in a failing grade in a course and/or suspension or dismissal from the University. Each graduate program or college must adopt and publish procedures for investigating charges of academic dishonesty. These procedures must take into account due process and rules of evidence, and they must conform to the University’s Student Code of Conduct.

GRADUATE STUDENT GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES

The University of Cincinnati provides an opportunity for the resolution of disputes involving graduate students in a fair and collegial manner. The Graduate Student Grievance Procedures establish a formal process for graduate students to request review and redress of certain grievances arising out of their academic relationships with their programs, their colleges, or the University. The grievance begins with a mediation process and may proceed, if necessary, through the more formal fact-finding and decision or appeal processes. In general, however, it is expected that grievances will be resolved by the parties within their programs.

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The procedures are applicable to the following types of grievances: Grievances alleging improper dismissal or suspension from a graduate program. Grievances alleging the improper withholding or termination of financial support of any kind. Grievances alleging any other improper treatment of a graduate student by a faculty member or university

agency except:1. allegations of discriminatory treatment arising from the student complainant’s age, race, gender, sexual

preference, disability, national origin, or religion.*2. allegations of improper evaluation of the quality and quantity of academic work.3. allegations of unfair recommendation for employment or further graduate study.

Note*: Allegations of discrimination will be handled according to the University Discrimination Procedure administered by the Equal Opportunity Office. Allegations of sexual harassment will be handled according to the University Institutional Policy on Sexual Harassment administered by the EqualOpportunity Office (556-5503).

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