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Prevention Science

Prevention Science

Advising

Each student is advised by the professor whose research or expertise corresponds with the academic interests of the student. The role of the advisor or supervising faculty member is to provide advice about possible coursework for the degree, to approve the selection of specific courses within the student’s program, and to provide feedback about student progress. Students should contact an appropriate faculty member for more information on advising.Doctoral Program Requirements

Proposed Ph.D. Program Schedule

  1. The sequencing of course offerings favors admission in the Fall semester.

  2. Prerequisites, if any should be completed in the first year of study if possible, and must be completed prior to advancement to doctoral candidacy.

  3. Toward the end of the first year of doctoral study, the Program of Study should be established and presented to the Graduate Studies Committee for approval.

  4. By the end of the second year of post-master's study, organized coursework in the program of study should be near completion, and the comprehensive examination should be taken.

  5. Following successful completion of the comprehensive examination, the student may be advanced to candidacy.

  6. In the year following the successful completion of the comprehensive examination, the dissertation proposal should have been defined and presented to the Dissertation Committee.

Students should ensure they complete the requirements for their program using the Degree Plan Checklist and Doctoral Progress Report Checklist. Students also should submit their Proposed Program of Study for their Doctoral Degree.

Establishment of Doctoral Program of Study

During the first year, each student will work with a supervising faculty member to develop an individualized program of study. The program will be based on the student’s research interests. This will outline the coursework the student will take to complete the degree.

This Program of Study will be presented for approval to the Graduate Studies Committee toward the end of the student’s first year. It will include any and all coursework deemed necessary to meet the degree requirements described below in Required Coursework.

Doctoral Student Evaluation

Ph.D. students must make satisfactory progress and will be evaluated for satisfactory progress each year. The evaluation will be based on completion of coursework, GPA, and research involvement.

  1. Incompletes. Graduate students are expected to complete courses within the time frame of the semester. In unusual cases where this semester framework is not in the best interest of the student, the professor may report the symbol X (incomplete) in place of a grade. The student must then complete the course requirements and the instructor must report a final grade by the end of the grade reporting period in the student’s next long-session semester of enrollment (i.e., spring or fall semester). If this deadline is not met, the symbol X is converted to the symbol I (permanent incomplete). The symbol I cannot be converted to a grade. The GSC considers two or more grades of incomplete including permanent incompletes as unsatisfactory progress. (TAs, GRAs, etc., may acquire no more than two grades of X or one grade each of X and I. Students cannot have two or more grades of I.)

  2. GPA. The student is expected to maintain the minimum overall GPA of 3.0 required by the Graduate School. This overall GPA pertains to all coursework within the major department, outside the department and also to the overall combined GPA.

  3. Research Involvement. It is the responsibility of the student to meet with the supervising faculty member to be certain that all research expectations are made clear. Students who are not actively involved in research will be considered as not making satisfactory progress.

Doctoral Candidacy

The Ph.D. program for Prevention Science involves students applying for doctoral candidacy. To be considered a doctoral candidate, students must pass a comprehensive exam in addition to their required courses. The exam is taken at the end of the spring semester of their second year, and after submitting a first-authored presentation at a professional conference. In order to advance to candidacy, the following requirements must be met:

  • Grade point of at least 3.0. Including a grade of B or higher in all coursework. Any grades lower than a B are subject to further review.

  • At least one (1) abstract or proposal submitted to a professional conference

  • Present research results at professional conferences

  • Progress toward publishing research in peer-reviewed journals

The exam requires students to discuss health theories and design a research study. This includes a comprehensive review of literature on a specific topic. The outcome of the examination will be either:

  • Advance to candidacy

  • Advance to candidacy with conditions

  • Continue in program without advancement

  • Drop from program

Students who advance to candidacy will complete their dissertation. This involves establishing a dissertation committee of Kinesiology and Health Education faculty in consultation with their graduate adviser.