Department of Botany
College of Letters and Science

Graduate Student Handbook: Doctoral Degree Requirements

Curriculum & Graduate Program Coordinator

Mark Connolly

mark.connolly@wisc.edu

Degree Requirements for Ph.D. Students

See the “Record of Student Progress, Botany Ph.D. Degree” worksheet for a more concise timeline.

1)  Academic Advisory Committee Meeting

All entering graduate students meet with the departmental Academic Advisory Committee (AAC) at the beginning of the first semester, usually during orientation week. If a major professor has been selected, he or she may participate in the meeting. The AAC answers questions about the Botany graduate programs and advises the student on making up deficiencies, meeting general course requirements, and formulating a program that will lead to an advanced degree in the time allotted. If a major professor has not been selected, a member of the AAC serves as temporary advisor.

Prior to the AAC Meeting, the Graduate Program Coordinator provides each student with a

  • Graduate Program in Botany policy book
  • Record of Student Progress
  • Academic Advisory Committee Meeting Worksheet
  • Track Worksheet, multiple worksheets can be provided if a student has not selected a track
  • D. Minor Agreement Worksheet
  • Certification Meeting Worksheet

Students enter their prior coursework and grades on the Academic Advisory Committee Meeting Worksheet. If a student is ready to select a track, he/she enters relevant prior coursework and grades on a track worksheet. Students do not need to enter the same course on both worksheets. Students should be prepared to discuss the recommended prior coursework and the track requirements as they relate to their background and future program with the AAC.

A copy of the Record of Student Progress and complementary worksheets (i.e., Academic Advisory Committee Meeting Worksheet, Track Worksheet, Ph.D. Minor Agreement Worksheet, and Certification Meeting Worksheet) for each student is kept in the student’s electronic file (google docs, BOX for students entering after Fall 2015.) As requirements are completed, each student is responsible for updating his/her information.

2)  Selection of Major Professor, Vice Major Professor, and Ph.D. Committee

Students select a major professor and a vice major professor as early as convenient within the first year of graduate studies.

The major professor is primarily responsible for directing the student’s coursework in their selected track, supervising the student’s research and preparation of their dissertation, and chairing the Ph.D. Committee during the Certification Meeting, Preliminary Exam, annual meetings, and Final Oral Exam. The major professor may specify appropriate requirements in addition to those listed here. The major professor also is responsible for monitoring satisfactory academic progress toward a degree at the end of each semester. The vice major professor assumes the major professor’s duties when the major professor is unavailable.

Students form a committee by the end of their first year of graduate study. In most cases, the committee is formed earlier. A Ph.D. Committee consists of at least 5 members: at least 3 Botany Faculty and at least 1 UW Graduate Faculty outside the Botany Department. A majority of the committee members must be Botany faculty. If a Minor Option A is selected, the minor professor will be a member of the Ph.D. Committee. At least 4 committee members must be UW Graduate Faculty. The committee can change in composition, in consultation with the major professor, depending on the student’s needs (e.g., the student may find a substitute for a committee member who is not available for the final oral examination.)

3)  Selection of a Track in Botany

Students select a track as soon as possible but no later than the Certification Meeting. Depending on when the track is selected, students fill out the relevant track worksheet for the Academic Advisory Committee Meeting or Certification Meeting. The AAC or the Ph.D. Committee advises the student on available courses that could fill track requirements. Students can also use the track worksheet to record courses that meet the Botany Department’s minimum credit requirement and seminar requirement. A copy of the track worksheet is kept in the student’s electronic file. Each student is responsible for updating his/her information.

For more information, see the “Course Requirements” section of this document.

4)  Selection of a Minor Field of Study

Each Ph.D. student completes a program of integrated and related courses in a minor area. Students select a minor field of study prior to the Certification Meeting and no later than half- way through their minor coursework. In all cases, the minor plan must be developed and approved in consultation with the student’s major professor, minor professor (if applicable), and Ph.D. committee.

Minor options for Ph.D. students in the Botany Department are:

Option A (external): requires a minimum of 9 credits in a single department/major field of study or completion of a graduate certificate program (e.g., Bioinformatics). This option requires approval of the minor department or the graduate certificate program and selection of a minor professor who serves on the student’s Ph.D. committee. The minor professor suggests and approves courses required for a minor/certificate in the specified program. If available, the other program’s minor or certificate agreement form may be used instead of the Botany Department’s Ph.D. Minor Agreement Worksheet.

Option B (distributed): requires minimum of 9 credits in one or more departments. This option requires the approval of the Botany Department Chair. Students complete a Ph.D. Minor Agreement Worksheet during the Certification Meeting. Option B has the following stipulations:

  • The plan may include a course in Botany or cross-listed with Botany that is outside the student’s area of emphasis. For example, an Ecology student might include a course in Plant Physiology or Plant Biochemistry. This course may NOT be counted toward the requirement for 6 graduate level credits in Botany while in residence at UW-Madison but may be counted toward the student’s track requirements.
  • Up to 3 credits in directed study (e.g. Botany 699) may be counted toward the minor if the work involved is outside the student’s area of emphasis.
  • No research credits (e.g., Botany 990-996) may be applied toward the minor.
  • Graduate level courses (the equivalent of UW-Madison courses at 300 and above level) taken prior to enrollment in the UW-Madison Botany Ph.D. program may be counted toward the minor requirement. However, the Graduate School does not accept coursework taken more than 10 years ago to be applied towards the minor; the Graduate School will accept up to 5 credits of coursework that was completed 5 to 10 years prior to admission to a UW-Madison Ph.D. program.
  • At least one non-seminar course outside of the Botany Department must be taken while in residence in the Ph.D. program at UW-Madison.

All minor courses must be at the 300 level or above. A cumulative GPA of 3.00 or higher on all minor coursework must be maintained. Courses may not be audited or taken for pass/fail or credit/no credit. Courses with an “S” grade are acceptable. One graduate seminar course outside the student’s area of emphasis or outside the Botany Department may count toward both the minor and the external seminar requirement for Ph.D. students.

A copy of the Ph.D. Minor Agreement Worksheet or program-specific form is kept in the student’s electronic file. Each student is responsible for updating his/her information.

5)  Certification Meeting

Students meet with their Ph.D. Committee by the end of the first year of study to determine what courses in addition to major requirements (e.g., courses for the student’s selected track, seminar courses, and minimum credits) and minor requirements are required or recommended. These courses are listed on the Certification Meeting Worksheet that the student receives from the Graduate Program Coordinator. A minimum of 4 committee members must be present during the meeting. A copy Certification Meeting Worksheet is kept on file in the Graduate Program Coordinator’s office. Each student is responsible for updating his/her information.

6)  Completion of Coursework

Prior to earning dissertator status, Ph.D. students must complete a minimum of 32 credits while in residence at the UW, including:

  • Courses required for their selected track,
  • Six (6) credits within the Botany Department (can also fulfill track requirements),
  • Two (2) seminar courses, including one outside the student’s track and/or outside the Botany Department,
  • Courses to complete the Minor Field of Study
  • Courses assigned by the Academic Advisory Committee and/or the student’s PhD Committee (usually completed by the end of the second year of study)

The 32 credits can be comprised of coursework, seminar courses, and research credits. Students, who start or return to their program during or after the Fall of 2014, are required to complete a minimum of 51 graduate degree credits. More information (e.g., GPA requirements, course levels, etc.) is detailed in the “Course Requirements” section of this document.

Each student is responsible for updating his/her Record of Student Progress as each of the above requirements is completed. A copy is kept on file in the Graduate Program Coordinator’s office.

Exceptions are subject to approval of the student’s Ph.D. Committee.

Dissertators enroll in exactly 3 credits per semester. In each semester, a dissertator may take 1-3 credits of courses or seminars that are essential to their research. Dissertators may not audit classes. Dissertators, who are summer RAs, fellows or trainees, or who expect to graduate in summer, enroll in the 8-week general session for 3 credits.

7)  Teaching Requirement

At least one semester of classroom teaching experience, at 33% or higher full-time equivalent (FTE) rate, is required of all Ph.D. students while in residence at UW-Madison. Prior teaching experience and grader positions do not count. Additional teaching experience is highly recommended.

New Teaching Assistants are required to attend eight hours of training. The College of Letters and Science and the Botany Department conduct training workshops. Graduate students also are required to attend an equity and diversity training workshop before a third semester as a teaching assistant. International students, whose native language is not English, are required to take a SPEAK test prior to the first semester during which they will be a teaching assistant.

8)  Annual Committee Meetings

Each Ph.D. student meets at least once a year with at least 3 members of his/her committee to report progress, receive advice and guidance, discuss possible new directions or approaches, and be certified as making adequate progress toward the Ph.D. degree. Students are responsible for documenting meeting dates on their Record of Student Progress.

9)  Written Proposal of Research

At least 3 weeks prior to the preliminary oral exam, a student submits copies of a written research proposal to each member of his/her Ph.D. committee. The proposal begins with a project summary of 200 or fewer words. The body of the proposal contains a clear and reasoned statement of the questions and hypotheses to be addressed, methods and approaches to be used, the significance of the results expected, and their relationship to ongoing research in the field. The proposal (excluding references) should not exceed fifteen (15 single-spaced typewritten pages.)

10)  Preliminary Oral Exam

The preliminary examination consists of two parts: a written proposal of research and an oral examination. Typically the preliminary oral exam immediately follows a presentation of the proposed research by the student. The preliminary exam is administered by at least 5 members of the student’s Ph.D. committee, including the major and, if applicable, minor professors. The committee will explore the appropriateness of the proposed research topic and approach, with the objectives of evaluating the student’s ability to propose a rigorous and significant research plan and providing advice for improving the research plan.

The oral exam is based on the student’s proposal of research and will test the student’s ability to:

  • analyze biological problems and formulate effective research approaches to such problems,
  • integrate and apply knowledge from a variety of related fields to his/her proposed research,
  • respond articulately to questions regarding his/her research proposal and related fields, and
  • exhibit knowledge of recent advances and perspective on the history and philosophy of scientific investigation in his/her field.

Students will be evaluated by these criteria enumerated and shared with the student

The preliminary exam should be taken by the end of the fourth semester and must be taken by the end of the fifth semester in all but the most exceptional circumstances.

Typically, students schedule their preliminary exam when they have (or will have by the end of the semester in which the preliminary exam is scheduled):

  • satisfied the Graduate School’s minimum resident credit requirement (32 credits),
  • completed all Botany coursework requirements,
  • completed all minor coursework requirements,
  • cleared all Incomplete or Not Reported grades or Progress grades in non-research courses, and
  • satisfied the department’s minimum teaching requirement.

Students contact the Graduate Program Coordinator and submit a “Request for Preliminary Warrant” at least 3 weeks prior to the scheduled preliminary oral exam. The Graduate School issues a warrant authorizing the department to administer the preliminary examination.

The preliminary exam can have one of three outcomes: pass, conditional pass, and fail. A conditional pass signifies that the preliminary exam will continue at a date in the near future when the committee will examine the student on a revised written proposal of research. A fail indicates that the committee recommends, based on the written proposal and/or the oral exam, a student should not be admitted to candidacy for a Ph.D. degree. Students who fail their first attempt at the preliminary examination are entitled to a second chance. Students who fail their second attempt are denied admission to candidacy for a Ph.D. degree.

Successful completion of the preliminary examination is recorded on a warrant from the Graduate School, which is signed by the entire Committee. To become a dissertator, students can receive no more than one dissenting vote from their committee (a missing signature is considered a dissenting vote). The original warrant is submitted to the Graduate School and a copy of the warrant is kept on file with the Botany Department’s Graduate Program Coordinator.

11)  Admission to Candidacy for Ph.D.

A student is officially admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. at the start of the semester or summer following completion of all DISSERTATOR requirements except for the dissertation and final exam.

  • Timing:
    • Warrant requests should happen as soon as the student plans to complete their pre-lim exam at the beginning of that semester, or at the latest three weeks before the date of the exam.
  • Once the warrant is signed it should be returned to the Student Services Coordinator.
  • Dissertator status is effective the next semester. (i.e. completed in Spring, dissertator status in Summer, as long as Graduate School deadlines are met.

To be eligible for dissertator status, a student must have:

  • passed the preliminary examination in the major field,
  • satisfied the Graduate School’s minimum resident credit requirement (51 credits),
  • completed all major and minor coursework requirements,
  • cleared all Incomplete or Not reported grades or Progress grades in non-research courses, and
  • returned the signed preliminary exam warrant to the Student Coordinator.
  • GS policy on dissertator status: wisc.edu/acadpolicy/#dissertationstatus
  • Registration requirements for dissertators are three credits exactly. Those most credits should be as research credits with the dissertator occasionally taking a seminar. IF a student has reason to take more than the three credits, they should discuss with the Student Services Coordinator if it is possible and the procedure.

12)  Annual Presentation of Research Progress

After achieving dissertator status, each candidate for the Ph.D. degree gives an annual public presentation of their research progress. Presentations may be given as part of the departmental colloquium, BITS, at a publicly announced lab meeting, or at a local, regional, or national conference.

13)  Dissertation

A written dissertation based on original research conducted in a formal research course (Botany 990-998) is required. The candidate for the Ph.D. degree provides copies of his/her dissertation to each Ph.D. committee member at least three weeks prior to his/her final oral examination. The dissertation is reviewed and approved by the student’s Ph.D. Committee.

14)  Presentation on Dissertation Research

During the final semester in residence, a candidate for the Ph.D. degree presents a departmental seminar on his/her research. This seminar is treated as a Botany Colloquium with a public announcement distributed to the Botany faculty, staff and graduate students, and any other interested parties at least one week prior to the seminar. No two Defenses in the Department should be scheduled on the same day. If it is necessary that this occur, one must be in the morning and one in the afternoon. The Final Oral Exam often follows immediately after the candidate’s public presentation.

15)  Final Oral Examination

All candidates take a final oral examination administered by the student’s Ph.D. committee. In most cases, this committee will have the same composition as the committee that administered the preliminary oral examination. A minimum of five committee members, including at least three members of the Botany Faculty and one UW Graduate Faculty outside the Botany Department, administer the final oral exam. If the student has completed an Option A minor, a UW Graduate Faculty from the minor department is included on the committee.

  1. D. students and their advisors will continue to seek and appoint 5 active members to constitute their doctoral committee. However, if, when the final PhD exam is scheduled, it is impossible or impractical to have all 5 in attendance, either in person or via Skype, etc., and recruiting a substitute is difficult or inappropriate, Botany Final Oral Examination Committees may proceed with only 4 members.
  2. All 5 doctoral committee members will be considered to be “readers” and expected to provide written and/or oral feedback and suggestions regarding the Ph.D. dissertation.
  3. As stipulated by the Graduate School, PhD candidates must explicitly acknowledge within the dissertation contributions made by others to the work presented. This includes contributions to design or to execute the research, analyze the data, interpret the results, and writing the chapters. Botany MS theses and PhD dissertations will therefore now include a new brief section, immediately following the Table of Contents, that will:
    (a) list the vice(co)—chair of the graduate committee, and
    (b)clearly state the particular contributions made by each co—author(including the student) of all co— authored chapters or published papers included as part of the dissertation.
  4. If there is a co—advisor/co—chair, this individual will be acknowledged on the contributions page above.

(As approved by Botany Faculty April 21, 2017)

Students contact the Graduate Program Coordinator and submit a “Ph.D. Final Oral Committee Approval Form” at least 3 weeks prior to the scheduled final oral exam. The Graduate School issues a warrant authorizing the department to administer the final examination. For guidelines on completing a Ph.D. degree, refer to the Graduate School’s “Dissertation Submission for PhD Students.”

Each Student’s committee will be evaluated according to the rubric established by the department. These results will be shared with the student.

see appendix for rubric

Successful completion of the final examination is recorded on a warrant from the Graduate School which is signed by the entire Committee. To receive a Ph.D. degree, students can receive no more than one dissenting vote from their committee (a missing signature is considered a dissenting vote). The original warrant is submitted to the Graduate School during the student’s final review, and a copy of the signed warrant is submitted to the Botany Department’s Graduate Program Coordinator.

16)  Final Review and Depositing Dissertation with the Graduate School

After passing the final oral examination and completing any necessary corrections or revisions to the dissertation, the student deposits his/her dissertation with the Graduate School. For guidelines on how to prepare a dissertation for deposit, see the Graduate School’s “Dissertation Submission for PhD Students”. The Graduate School Office of Admissions and Academic Services will review the dissertation for adherence to the formatting requirements and submit the dissertation for publication.

Dissertation submission: follow the Graduate School procedures grad.wisc.edu/currentstudents/degree/

17)  Time Limitation

Normally a Ph.D. degree in Botany is completed within 5 calendar years of residency (four years if the student enters with a Master’s degree). Under exceptional circumstances, a student may petition the Academic Advisory Committee for an extension to complete the degree. The Graduate School allows students 5 years from the date of passing their preliminary examination to take their final oral examination and deposit their dissertation. Failure to complete their degree within this 5- year period may result in the student having to retake the preliminary examination and be re- admitted to candidacy.

18)  Before Student Departure

Before students depart the department before leaving the program or graduating they must:

  1. return all borrowed materials & specimens.
  2. dispose of samples no longer needed
  3. submit manuscripts for publication developed during a student’s graduate work (or make plans with advisor with a timeline for submission.)

CHANGES IN GRADUATE DEGREE STATUS: PhD to MS

There are circumstances in which a student who enters the PhD program decides they want to finish the program early with a MS degree. If they decide they would like to finish with a M.S., they should first discuss this decision with their advisor. The student and advisor should then inform the Botany Student Services Coordinator. Students are advised that if they change their program from Ph.D. to M.S., their guarantee of support also changes to five semesters from the time they entered the program.

Additional Program Requirements/Opportunities

  • Weekly bi-weekly meetings (in most labs)
  • Attending Biology Colloquium and or other relevant campus colloquium as feasible
  • Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research: https://irb.wisc.edu/
  • Internship/fieldwork as expected in particular situations
  • Publishing requirement or expectation: discuss the publishing requirement within your lab with your advisor
  • Study Abroad: multiple study abroad opportunities you may want to take advantage of
  • Individual Development Plan (IDP)

The content of the IDP remains private to the student, but programs may require that students have one and talk with their selected mentor(s) about it. Although the impetus to develop and maintain an IDP lies with the student, many programs check in with students about the progress of their IDPs annually. For more information, visit grad.wisc.edu/pd/idp.

Dissertator Status

  • Steps needed to become a dissertator

Dissertation and Oral Defense

  • Eligibility requirements
  • Program deadlines/time limits and GS deadlines/time limits (Cross-reference with Program Overview and Satisfactory Progress)
  • Scheduling
  • Structure/components/expectations of the dissertation, including research requirements (IRB, etc.)
  • Evaluation/assessment of dissertation
  • Availability of sample dissertations
  • Checklist for Dissertation/Defense/Graduation
    • Associated procedures and forms
    • Requirements regarding publicly announcing the defense
    • Timeline – How far in advance of defense the final draft should be circulated to the committee, etc.
    • Warrant request steps/deadlines; research requirements
  • Graduate School graduation deadlines
  • Graduate School workshop for graduating doctoral students
  • Pre-checks (Graduate School)
  • Final review/deposit
  • Other critical steps to graduation
  • Dissertation Proposal
    • Required components in a proposal (length, sections, citation/bibliography, preliminary field research, literature review, etc.)
    • Guidance on style requirements
    • Samples
  • Guidance on Oral Defense (open/closed defense, length and format of the presentation, etc.)