Ph.D. Program
Also see the Graduate School's Minimum Degree Requirements and the Food Science Department's Criteria for Satisfactory Progress.
Major programs
For admission to the program leading to the Ph.D. degree with a major in Food Science, an applicant must hold the M.S. degree or its equivalent and must have a record demonstrating the ability to undertake more advanced studies. An accepted applicant must complete the course requirements of the department, and requirements for a minor in a related field, e.g., biochemistry, microbiology, chemistry, engineering, nutrition, economics, or business. After passing a preliminary examination, a candidate must satisfactorily complete original research, prepare a thesis, and participate in the departmental teaching program. The final oral examination is administered by a committee of five faculty members from the major and minor departments and deals primarily with the thesis.
The Doctor of Philosophy degree is the highest degree conferred by the University. It is a research degree and is never conferred solely as a result of any prescribed period of study, no matter how faithfully pursued. Minimum credit and other requirements are listed below, but the degree is only granted on evidence of general proficiency, distinctive attainment in a special field, and particularly on ability for independent investigation as demonstrated in a thesis presenting original research or creative scholarship with a high degree of literary skill.
Minimum Credit Requirement.
The Graduate School recently voted to abolish the residency requirement and to replace it with a minimum credit requirement. Ph.D. candidates must take at least 32 UW-Madison graduate level credits (300 or above) in order for the degree to be considered a UW-Madison degree. This requirement must be completed prior to achieving dissertator status. The two full-time semester requirement no longer applies.
In special cases a student may carry on a portion of his or her program away from UW-Madison when field investigations require it or opportunities for research in a subject of special concern are not available at Madison. A graduate-level course taken at a distance will count toward the minimum credit requirement only if the course is considered a UW-Madison course. Doctoral students may apply for admission to the CIC Traveling Scholar Program, sponsored by the Committee on Institutional Cooperation (CIC). The CIC includes the University of Chicago and the Big Ten universities. The program helps selected students take advantage of unique facilities at another participating university, including special course offerings, research opportunities, laboratories, and library collections.
Students are limited to two semesters or three quarters on the other campus. An applicant must be recommended by the student's graduate adviser, a faculty member at the host institution, and graduate deans at both institutions. A CIC Traveling Scholar from Wisconsin will be registered at UW-Madison and the fees will be collected and kept here. No additional fees will be charged. Credit for the work taken elsewhere will be accepted here.
Minor programs
Individuals working for a Ph.D. degree with a major in another department may elect to minor in this department. Such students must complete a specified program of course work in this department. The minor professor will normally be a member of committees for the preliminary and final examinations. A list of requirements may be obtained from this department upon request.
Major and minor fields
The Ph.D. degree is never granted for a program of miscellaneous studies. The program as a whole must be rationally unified, and all courses must contribute to an organized program of study and research. Courses must be selected from groups embracing one principal subject of concentration, called the major, and from one or two related fields, called the minor. The major field is normally co-extensive with the work of a single department or with one of the subjects under which certain programs have been formally arranged. A major may be permitted to extend beyond the above limits with the prior approval of the Dean of the Graduate School.
The minor, whether Option A or B (see below), is designed to represent a coherent body of work, taken as a graduate student, and should not be simply an after-the-fact ratification of a number of courses taken outside the major department. To ensure coherence, a minor program must be approved by the appropriate department and the minor agreement form must be filed with and approved by the Graduate School at the time the preliminary warrant is requested before the student can be admitted officially to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree.
Minor Option A
Supplementary to the major field of study, a candidate is required to offer a minor field consisting of a minimum of 10 graduate-level credits in a single degree program; the courses are to be prescribed and examination administered by the department concerned. Students interested in an Option A minor should check with the minor department for details. Cross-listed courses are permitted if distinct from the major area of study as judged by the major department. Completion of the Option A minor is certified by the chairperson of the minor department of the minor professor (so long as this person is not also serving as the major professor).
Minor Option B
When a department determines that the needs of one of its doctoral students will best be served by preparation not available as a departmental minor, it has the alternative of permitting the student and adviser to develop a special program in lieu of the minor. To meet the requirements of this option a student must complete a minimum of 12 graduate-level credits in two or more departments outside the major, in related courses selected for their relevance to a particular area of concentration. Cross-listed courses are permitted if distinct from the major area of study as judged by the major department. The student must have formal approval from the major department, both for the request to choose this supporting field option and for the content of the proposed program. In addition, the major department is responsible for setting standards for grade performance, examination, or both, to measure the student's level of preparation in this supporting field. Completion of the Option B minor is certified by the chairperson of the major department.
Interdisciplinary programs
After a student has been admitted by a department, an interdisciplinary program may be proposed by the student and adviser for an area where an appropriate formal doctoral program does not exist. All such proposals require the approval of the Dean of the Graduate School, who then appoints a committee of five professors to supervise the proposed doctoral program for an individual student. For more information contact the Ph.D. office, 229 Bascom Hall, (608) 262-3011.
Admission to candidacy
A student is officially admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree after (1) passing the comprehensive preliminary examination in the major field, (2) obtaining approval of the proposal for meeting the minor requirement, and (3) presenting the title or special field of the proposed thesis, approved by the major professor.
Students are not eligible to take the comprehensive preliminary examination until they have cleared their records of all incomplete grades. The Graduate School Office issues a warrant authorizing the department to admit the student to the preliminary examination. When this warrant is appropriately completed and filed with the Dean of the Graduate School, it constitutes a formal application for admission to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree. A Certificate of Philosophy is available as recognition of this achievement if the student so desires. A candidate for the Ph.D. degree who fails to take the final oral examination within five years after passing the preliminary examination is required to take another preliminary examination and be admitted to candidacy for a second time.
Continuous registration
Students who have passed the preliminary examination, satisfied the minimum credit requirement, completed the minor requirements, and completed all the major requirements except the dissertation are required to register each semester until the Ph.D. dissertation is filed in the Memorial Library. If students fail to maintain continuous registration, they will be required to pay a Ph.D. Dissertation and Degree Completion Fee equal to 12 times the current one-credit fee/tuition rate (based on actual Wisconsin resident or non-resident status which existed at the last term of registration). Contact the Graduate School Ph.D. Office for specific information.
Thesis and thesis abstract
The thesis must be the candidate's own work. It may be the result of research enterprises in which others have collaborated, but in such cases the candidate is required to present a substantial portion which represents the candidate's own contribution.
Publication of the doctoral dissertation is required. The University uses the facilities of University Microfilms International, Ann Arbor, Michigan, to provide for publication of the thesis on microfilm and for publication of an abstract of the dissertation in Dissertation Abstracts, a monthly publication. Each successful candidate pays the actual cost of microfilming the dissertation and publication of the abstract.
Details about formal requirements for preparation of thesis and abstract may be obtained in the Graduate School Ph.D. Office, 229 Bascom Hall.
Final oral examination
The department/program arranges a committee with appropriate expertise to afford the breadth and depth sought in their degree examinations. The committee will include at least one member from outside the major department. The major professor will be the chairperson. This committee is submitted to the Graduate School for approval by the Dean. The time and place of the examination are arranged by the major professor. When the candidate passes the examination, the fact is recorded on the warrant provided by the Graduate School. The oral examination covers the thesis and the general field of the major and minor studies; in some cases the preliminary examination may be construed as final for certain aspects of these fields, if the professors in charge of the candidate's work are satisfied with the preparation.
The candidate may not take the final oral examination until all other requirements for the degree have been satisfied. The student's record must be cleared of incomplete grades.