Thesis & Defense

Once the student has completed all the research agreed upon at the prospectus meeting, they must write a PhD thesis and successfully complete an oral defense. Students are encouraged to begin planning their defense well in advance and carefully review all policies, procedures, and deadlines outlined below. 

Please note that all members of the Thesis Committee must actively participate in the defense meeting. While it is desirable for all committee members to participate in person, at least three (3) committee members must participate in person. Any deviation from this policy is considered exceptional and must be petitioned for approval by the Department through the Thesis Defense Form. 

PhD Completion Timeline Policy

ECE adheres to CIT's policy on PhD completion timelines. The CIT policy is as follows: "Passing the PhD Qualifying Examination admits a student to candidacy for the PhD degree for a period of no longer than six calendar years. If, at the end of this six-year period, the PhD has not been awarded, the student must reapply for admission to the graduate program and will be judged competitively with other students applying at the same time." Students wishing to obtain an extension due to special circumstances must submit a formal petition at least one semester prior to the expiration of their defense timeline. 

Thesis Defense Process 

Step 1: Submit the Thesis Defense Form

Once the PhD thesis is written, and the student is ready to schedule the defense, the student must submit the Thesis Defense Form. This form is essential as it gathers key details about the defense. This form must be completed at least two weeks prior to the defense date. 

After submission, the Academic Affairs Office will review the form and all information provided to ensure the student has satisfied ECE policies and requirements. If the proposed thesis committee differs from the student’s prospectus committee, or if the student is requesting any policy exception, the request will be reviewed by the GSC Chair for approval.

Once the review process is complete, the Senior Ph.D. Advisor will follow up with the student through the Pre-Defense Email. This email serves as confirmation that the student is approved to proceed with the defense and will also include the student’s ProQuest account information and additional post-defense instructions. 

Step 2: Complete the Oral Defense 

The oral defense is a public examination open to all members of the Carnegie Mellon community. All four members of the Thesis Committee must actively participate in the defense meeting. While it is desirable to have all committee members participate in person; at least three [3] committee members must participate in person. Any deviation from this policy is exceptional and must be petitioned for approval from the Department via the Thesis Defense Form. 

Due to 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.

Step 3: Complete Post-Defense Steps 

After defending the thesis, students must complete all required post-defense steps, which includes: 

• Submission of the final thesis to ProQuest 📚. 
• Completion of the Certification Steps Form ✅

In addition to these ECE requirements, CIT has its own requirements pertaining to the thesis and defense process. This site includes instructions for the document standards and format. Students should pay particular attention to the format of the thesis title page and required content of the acknowledgements section.

Per CIT requirements, all defenses should be completed at least two weeks prior to the final grade deadline of a given semester. Doing so should grant students sufficient time to make necessary revisions and complete all post-defense paperwork prior to the end of the semester. Any deviation from this timeline is discouraged and may hinder a student’s ability to graduate on time. Such deviation from the cited timeline may be subject to additional departmental approval and should be discussed with the Academic Affairs Office well in advance of the planned defense. 

Please note: Students who do not successfully complete the dissertation, defense, and all defense-related paperwork prior to the final grades deadline of a given semester may be required to register for the following semester, and thus the faculty advisor will be responsible for supporting the student for an additional semester with tuition and stipend. 

After the defense, the Academic Affairs Office will review additional paperwork that will need to be completed prior to a student’s degree certification with the student.

Thesis Defense Deadlines 

To graduate in a given semester, students must complete all post-defense steps before the next semester begins, in accordance with the CMU academic calendar.

Although departments may have additional time to process certification in S3, students must complete all graduation requirements before the following semester begins. 

SUMMER 2026

Summer 2026 Certification Deadline: Friday, August 21st, 2026

 If you want your degree to be certified within the Summer 2026 semester, you must defend your thesis and complete all-post defense steps by August 7th. This deadline is set by ECE to ensure the Academic Affairs Office has sufficient time to process your post-defense paperwork (and obtain signatures from the ECE Department Head and the Associate Dean), and certify your degree by the Summer 2026 certification deadline. 

While the Summer certification deadline is fixed by the Registrar, we endeavor to be flexible with the Post-Completion Defense Steps deadline (August 7th, 2026). Although we cannot guarantee certification if this deadline is missed, we will do our best to expedite the process.

FALL 2026

Fall 2026 Certification Deadline: Friday, January 15th, 2027

If you want your degree to be certified within the Fall 2026 semester, you must defend your thesis and complete all-post defense steps by January 1st, 2027. This deadline is set by ECE to ensure the Academic Affairs Office has sufficient time to process your post-defense paperwork (and obtain signatures from the ECE Department Head and the Associate Dean), and certify your degree by the Fall 2026 certification deadline. 

While the Fall certification deadline is fixed by the Registrar, we endeavor to be flexible with the Post-Completion Defense Steps deadline (January 1st, 2027). Although we cannot guarantee certification if this deadline is missed, we will do our best to expedite the process. 

Tuition Adjustment Deadlines

If you are an ABD student receiving a stipend or tuition support from CMU (ECE), you may qualify for a tuition adjustment if you finish early in the fall or spring semesters as described in the university’s Doctoral Student Status policy. To qualify, you must be registered full-time (36 units). To meet these deadlines, ECE encourages students to complete the post-defense steps at least one week before.

• 100% tuition reimbursement for advisors: If a student completes all Ph.D. degree requirements and is certified by September 30th (in the fall), or February 28th (in the spring), tuition will be adjusted to $0. 
• 50% tuition reimbursement for advisors: If a student completes all Ph.D. degree requirements and is certified by October 31st (in the fall), or March 31st (in the spring), tuition will be adjusted to 50% of the full-time tuition. 
  
  After October 31st (in the fall), or after March 31st (in the spring), but BEFORE the first day of the next semester, tuition will not be adjusted, and they will remain enrolled for thirty-six units for the semester. 
• Fees will not be adjusted after the semester course add deadline.
• Tuition will not be assessed in the summer, except for students who return from All But Dissertation In Absentia status and who are registered for thirty-six units. For those students who are certified by June 15th tuition will be adjusted to $0; for those who are certified by July 15th tuition will be adjusted to 50% of the full-time tuition. For those who are certified after July 15th but BEFORE the first day of the next semester, tuition will not be adjusted, and they will remain enrolled for thirty-six units for the semester.