The Vote: Pass, Incomplete or Fail Distinction Emergency Absentee

Only the candidate and the approved members of the dissertation defense committee may be present during the defense. Columbia University policy never allows spectators or other individuals to attend a defense. There are no exceptions to this rule.

The defense must be conducted in English.

The examination normally lasts two hours. The candidate is generally asked to begin by summarizing the pertinent background and findings. Such summaries should be limited to five minutes. The Chair of the Committee is responsible for allotting time, normally allowing each faculty member 20 minutes in which to examine the candidate.

Typically examiners provide lists of points they wish to discuss. These points are either substantial or editorial. Unless it is necessary to show that a very poorly written dissertation must be entirely rewritten, examiners should not take up these editorial comments one by one. Examiners should give their sheets of notes on these matters to the candidate, leaving time to examine matters of substance.

When all examiners have finished their questioning, the Chair asks the candidate to step outside and wait for a signal to return. The committee rises on the candidate's leaving and entering.

During the discussion period, the Committee makes its decision on the defense. The three possible decisions are Pass, Incomplete or Fail.

The dissertation is deemed acceptable subject to minor revisions.

The dissertation is revised by the candidate in light of the comments made by the committee, and the revisions are supervised by the student's sponsor. Usually it is not necessary to seek approval from the defense committee for minor revisions, provided the approval card is signed by the sponsor and department/program chair. The defense committee, however, reserves the right to review those revisions. Upon completion of the required revisions, the candidate is recommended for the degree.

The candidate must complete all revisions and deposit the dissertation no later than six months from the date of the dissertation defense. A unanimous vote or a vote with only one dissent in a lower column constitutes a pass. In the case of three votes for pass and two for incomplete or fail, the voting sheet and dissertation must be submitted to the Dean for review and the candidate should be informed that the committee's vote was not conclusive and he/she should await further communication from the Dean.

Incomplete:
The dissertation is deemed acceptable subject to major revisions. Upon completion and acceptance of the required revisions, the defense is considered to be successful and the vote is changed to Pass.

Where a dissertation is considered incomplete (i.e. acceptable subject to major revisions,) the Chair of the Defense Committee is required to form a revisions subcommittee made up of one to three members of the original committee, whose names must be entered as such on the Voting Sheet. Usually the sponsor of the dissertation is chair of the subcommittee; the other members should be those committee members who have made the most extensive objections to the text as it stands. When the student has finished the major revisions, he or she must submit the revised dissertation to each of the members of the revisions subcommittee. Specified revisions must be made and the approved copies submitted to the revisions subcommittee no earlier than three months and no later than one year after the defense unless otherwise directed by the committee. If the revised dissertation is accepted by the subcommittee, each member of the revisions subcommittee must confirm acceptance in writing to the Dissertation Office. Once all these letters arrive, the Dissertation Officer changes the vote from “Incomplete” to “Pass,” and the candidate may deposit the dissertation.

Fail:
The dissertation is deemed unacceptable and the candidate is not recommended for the degree. No candidate may have a second defense unless the Dean considers, upon the evidence provided, that the first one involved procedural irregularities.

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In assessing the dissertation under examination the following guidelines should be followed concerning the question of its distinction:

After the committee decides to the acceptability of the dissertation, they address the question of awarding the degree "with distinction." A vote on this question will be taken by secret ballot. For a degree to be awarded "with distinction" the ballots must be unanimous.

If the examining committee votes to award distinction, a member of the examining committee other than the sponsor must prepare a letter to the Dean outlining the qualities of the dissertation that merit the award of distinction, including the nature of its contribution to scholarship in its field and its broader significance as a contribution to learning. The Dean's Office, which acts on behalf of the Executive Committee of the Graduate School, will maintain a file of such letters of support for review.

Although there can be no rigorous quota on the number of dissertations awarded distinction, the standard of merit should be such that no more than ten percent of dissertations receive distinction. The dissertation may be recommended for distinction only by the original examining committee.

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A committee is permitted to convene in the absence of one member only in cases of extreme circumstance or emergency. If a member of a committee will not be able to attend the defense, the Dissertation Officer must be notified prior to the defense to obtain approval of the Dean. If the Dean grants permission for the defense to take place, the absent member is required to write a detailed letter containing all comments and questions that would normally be raised at the defense and his or her provisional vote. The Chair of the committee will present these questions to the candidate, rule on the candidate’s responses, and signs the voting sheet in the absent committee member’s name.

If the emergency that prevents the member from being present cannot be anticipated, the absent member is requested to comply with the regulations above as soon as possible AFTER the defense. The vote will not be considered final until the required letter has been submitted to the Dean’s Office by the absent member of the committee.

Questions, comments and a vote must be submitted in writing even if the absent committee member participates via conference-call. The dissertation office cannot make arrangements for conference call set-up, projectors or audio equipment.