Prospectus

All PhD students registered full-time are required to prepare a Thesis Prospectus (also known as a proposal) within four semesters following the successful completion of the PhD Qualifying Examination. Part-time students must propose within six semesters following the Qualifying Examination.

This time clock begins in the semester following the Qualifying Examination. A calendar year has three semesters (spring, summer, and fall). If a student leaves for a semester to return to industry, this four-semester clock is stopped. However, the time clock for the overall PhD program is not stopped. The PhD prospectus clock stops when the student leaves and resumes at the start of the semester when the student returns. Students who have not met their PhD Prospectus Requirement within the four-semester time limit must discuss a revised timeline with their advisor prior to the semester Graduate Progress Review. 

Prospectus Description 

The Thesis Prospectus is both 1.) an informal written description of the problem to be investigated and the expected accomplishments of that investigation and 2.) an oral presentation to the Prospectus Committee for review and recommendations. Both Prospectus Requirements must be completed at least one semester prior to the final defense.

Prospectus Format

The Thesis Prospectus write-up should be no more than 25 double-spaced pages in length—although prospectuses that are on the order of five to 10 pages are encouraged. The Prospectus should include the following:

• An explanation of the basic idea of the dissertation topic
• An explanation as to why this topic is interesting
• A statement as to what kind of results are expected
• A convincing argument as to why these results are attainable in a reasonable amount of time

Furthermore, the Thesis Prospectus should not be:

• A summary or abstract of the dissertation
• The first chapter or part of the dissertation
• A technical report
• A survey of the field
• An annotated bibliography

Students should discuss the presentation format of their Thesis Prospectus with their faculty advisor. Typically, a student is expected to provide a 45- to 60-minute presentation on their prospectus, then participate in a Q&A-based discussion with their committee. 

Students can download a prospectus template from here.

Prospectus committee

The Prospectus Committee consists of at least four members, including the student's advisor. At least two members of this committee must be ECE faculty, and at least one member must be from outside the department. Faculty members from other departments who hold courtesy appointments in ECE are considered to be inside the department. Faculty members who hold adjunct appointments in ECE are considered outside the department. All committee members must hold a doctoral degree. 

All committee members must actively participate in both the Thesis Prospectus meeting and Defense. While it is desirable to have all committee members participate in person, at least three committee members must be physically present, while the remaining can be remote. Any deviation from this teleconferencing policy is exceptional and must be petitioned for approval from the department via the Prospectus Declaration Form. Because of the nature of the ICTI dual-degree program, teleconferencing requests by ICTI students will be approved by default. 

It is expected that any committee members participating remotely will have full audio and visual access to the presentation via teleconferencing equipment. It is the responsibility of the student to provide teleconferencing access to committee members participating remotely. Students can email help@ece.cmu.edu for assistance in setting up teleconferencing equipment.

Please note that all of the faculty being remote is not sufficient to justify the student being remote. The student is expected to be on campus (whichever campus they register at) for the prospectus presentation. If the student plans to be remote for either the prospectus or defense, they must petition the GSC for permission, fully explaining their circumstances

Prospectus Procedure 

To initiate the prospectus process, students must complete and submit the Prospectus Declaration Form (Google Form). This form must be submitted at least two (2) weeks prior to the anticipated prospectus date to allow sufficient time for review by the Senior Academic Advisor, Greta Ruperto, and the Graduate Studies Committee (GSC). Students are encouraged to submit the form as early as possible, even if the exact date of the prospectus has not yet been finalized. An approximate timeframe (e.g. "last week of the Spring semester") is acceptable, provided that all other require committee and exam details are known.

The prospectus committee must be formally approved by the Senior Academic Advisor and the Graduate Studies Committee (GSC) before the student may proceed with scheduling the prospectus presentation. 

Students are expected to begin scheduling their prospectus with their committee before completing the Prospectus Declaration Form. However, students may not proceed with the prospectus presentation unless and until their committee has been formally approved by the Senior Academic Advisor, Greta Ruperto, and the Graduate Studies Committee (GSC). Any prospectus scheduled prior to committee approval should be considered tentative. 

After the form has been submitted, students will be notified by the Senior Academic Advisor of the status of their prospectus committee. 

• If the committee is approved, the student may proceed with the prospectus presentation.
• If the committee is not approved, the student will be asked to make any necessary changes to the prospectus committee before proceeding. 

Completion of the Prospectus Requirement

Following the prospectus presentation, committee members are asked to endorse the Prospectus Committee Form. A committee member's signature on the form confirms approval of the prospectus. In some cases, committee members may request revisions or additional changes to the prospectus before providing their endorsement. The prospectus requirement is considered complete once all required signatures have been obtained on the Prospectus Committee form. The Senior Academic Advisor, Greta Ruperto, will coordinate the collection of signatures and notify the student once the process has been completed. 

Post-Prospectus Advising Review 

Upon completion of the prospectus proposal, the Senior Academic Advisor, Greta Ruperto, will notify the student via email confirming that the prospectus requirement has been completed. If the student has satisfied all degree requirements except the thesis defense, the student may be informed of their eligibility for All But Dissertation (ABD) status. If additional requirements remain outstanding, the student should schedule a meeting with the Senior Academic Advisor to review their degree progress.