Thesis
Several graduate degree programs at UT Tyler require a thesis. A student seeking a degree should consult the appropriate section of this catalog to determine if a particular degree requires a thesis.
Guidelines and Procedures
Students considering enrollment in a thesis course should obtain a copy of Guidelines for Preparation of Thesis or Dissertation at The University of Texas at Tyler. These guidelines describe procedures for typing, formatting, and submitting the thesis. Thesis guidelines also may be found on the University website at the following address: http://uttyler.edu/graduate/thesisguide.pdf
Enrollment
Students required to write a thesis for their degree must register for a thesis course each semester, after research has commenced, until the thesis has been accepted.
Oral Defense of Thesis/or Thesis Substitute
If a thesis or thesis substitute is required, a final oral defense also may be required by the program. The oral defense should be held only after all members of the committee have had adequate opportunity to review a draft of the master’s thesis/substitute. The advisor is responsible for determining that the draft is in an appropriate form for committee evaluation. If substantial revisions are necessary, they should be completed before the final oral defense is scheduled. The committee may, at the time of the final oral but no later, require alterations and corrections, but these should constitute relatively minor changes agreed to by a majority of the committee members. The advisor is responsible for verifying that the changes required by the committee have been made.
All committee members are expected to be present at the defense. The final oral is open to the public. A thesis/substitute is accepted only after the approval of a majority of the examining committee members.
Failure of Examinations
A master’s candidate who fails the oral defense may not take the examination a second time until at least three months after the first attempt. A student who fails an examination for the second time becomes ineligible for further graduate work. Upon request from the student’s director of graduate studies, The Graduate School may grant a student a third and final opportunity to take the oral defense.
Thesis Submissions Deadlines
The final PDF copy of the thesis, prepared under standards as defined in Guidelines for Preparation of Thesis or Dissertation must be submitted via email to the director of Graduate Student Services for the mechanical check no later than two weeks before the last day of final exams of the semester of intended graduation. The PDF version must include a scanned copy of the signature page with all signatures present. After making any required changes, resubmit the PDF of the entire thesis/dissertation (including a scan of any signature pages) via email to the director of Graduate Student Services. Students will then receive a signed Thesis/Dissertation Approval Form and Electronic Thesis/Dissertation Submission Form, as well as information on author rights and instructions for submitting the thesis/dissertation in electronic format to the Robert R. Muntz Library.
Theses are regarded as publications and will be made available to the public once they are approved and submitted to the Graduate School.
Grading Policy
A student registered for thesis who does not submit the approved thesis to the dean or graduate coordinator of the appropriate college before the thesis deadline for that semester will receive an incomplete “IP” grade. Once the thesis has been accepted, previous “IP” grades for thesis work will be changed to credit “CR”. A maximum of six semester hours of thesis credit may be applied to the masters degree.
Approval
The completed thesis must be approved by the thesis advisor, and the college graduate coordinator or dean before the student will receive final certification for the degree.