Excuse candidate/guests to process/sign/grade. For Zoom presentations members of the
committee are invited to the breakout room for deliberations.
The Committee returns back to the original meeting room and shares the news with the
student.
Ask candidate to present 30-40 minute overview of dissertation; announce title.
Following the presentation, invite questions from Committee Members.
Invite questions, comments from guests.
Excuse candidate and guests so Committee can process.
Discuss as a Committee, agree on grades.
The presentation is graded using criteria of pass, conditional pass, or fail. The
presentation is intended to be a summary of the candidate’s dissertation.
Call candidate back into room.
Student Guidelines
Do not attempt to cover your entire dissertation. Highlight each section and summarize
for the audience the major points derived from literature review.
Share some data with the audience, but do not overwhelm them with lots of numbers.
Demonstrate your ability to understand and present patterns and trends associated
with the dissertation topic.
Attend other doctoral student presentations to familiarize yourself with the process.
Treat this presentation as a professional conference session.
Practice!
Student Preparation of Materials
Be concise and stay focused, using overheads or a computerized presentation. The process
of preparing materials for the defense of your dissertation is similar to that used
in publishing a paper. It may take several drafts to accomplish your purposes. Plan
for this!
This presentation requires you to integrate a great deal of material. Preparing an
outline to guide your efforts will be most helpful. Think about transitions that are
necessary to bring your presentation together.
Preparation of outlines for the audience will strengthen your presentation.
Student Delivery
Be confident and concise.
Don’t worry if you can’t answer all questions. Some issues can be re-framed as future
research agenda.
