Doctoral Program Advisory Committee

Commencement Picture

Each student’s program is guided by a major advisor and an Advisory Committee. Their purpose is to give continuity of direction and counsel and provide intellectual stimulation from the earliest days of residency through the completion of the doctorate. The major advisor, in consultation with the student, selects the Advisory Committee, subject to review and approval by the Engineering Academic Programs Committee and the Dean of the Graduate School.  Once the Advisory Committee has been selected, the Doctoral Program Advisory Committee form must be submitted to the department head and Graduate School.

The Advisory Committee provides advice to the student and specifically sets requirements within the applicable program, Graduate School, and University regulations, which the student must meet in pursuit of the doctorate. The student has the responsibility of interacting with the Advisory Committee and keeping them informed of his or her progress. The Advisory Committee has a minimum of four members. The major advisor serves as Chairman. At least one of the other members, in addition to the major advisor, must be from the department and one other must be from another department in the College of Engineering. All members of the committee must be members of the Graduate Faculty of the University of Arkansas and three (including the major advisor) must possess full Graduate Faculty status.

The Advisory Committee must be kept at its full complement throughout the graduate career of the individual student. In the event of a vacancy on the Committee (occasioned by resignation, faculty leave, or inability to serve), an appropriate replacement must be made prior to the making of any committee decision. In the case of resignation, the committee member must formally resign in a letter to the Graduate School. The major advisor must write a letter to add a new member, and the form specifying membership in the Advisory Committee must be resubmitted.

All decisions of the Advisory Committee are made by majority vote. The major advisor is responsible for transmitting Advisory Committee decisions to the Engineering Academic Programs Committee and the Dean of the Graduate School.

In addition to advising and program planning, the Advisory Committee is also involved with the administration of the qualifying examination, the supervision of the preparation of the dissertation, and the administration of the Final Examination on the dissertation.

The Doctoral Program Advisory Committee is appointed immediately after the student submits a Declaration of Intent to study in a doctoral program. It evaluates the student’s preparation and fitness for graduate study at the doctoral level. If the student has chosen a major adviser to direct the doctoral research, that professor chairs the Advisory Committee. The Program Advisory Committee develops the student’s program of study and monitors progress in it. This group may or may not have the same composition as the Doctoral Dissertation Committee.