DGS Handbook 2024-2025 (2024)

Standard Degree Requirements for All Advanced Degree Candidates

While each degree-granting department and program has its own requirements, all graduate students at Princeton are subject to certain general requirements that have been voted upon by the faculty and are administered by the Graduate School. These uniform requirements are explained below.

Full-time Commitment to Graduate Study
Graduate study at Princetonis a full-time commitment. Graduate students are expected to pursue degree-related work and make use of University resources throughout the year, including the summer months. Graduate students on full support, including summer support, may take up to, but no more than, four weeks of vacation. This includes all regular University holidays and scheduled recesses (fall/spring break). Vacation time should not interfere with a graduate student’s commitment to academic responsibilities, including coursework, research, and teaching.

Residence Requirement
The Graduate School is a community of scholars engaged in ongoing research, discussion, and scholarly exchange. Accordingly, except as approved by their departments and the Graduate School to be enrolled in absentia, candidates for advanced degrees are expected to be present on campus, using University resources to fulfill degree requirements and objectives, a majority of days per week for each academic term. Ph.D. candidates must be in residence for at least one academic year before standing for the general examination.

English Language Proficiency Requirement
In order to take full advantage of the education that Princeton University offers them, incoming graduate students must demonstrate a level of oral proficiency in the English language sufficient to participate successfully in all the various activities that compose a graduate education, including class work, research and research presentations, group meetings and project teams, and teaching undergraduates. The English Language Program (ELP) was created to determine students' English language needs and to provide instruction and support to non-native speakers of English. The Graduate School requires that all non-native speakers of English who have not earned their undergraduate degree in a U.S. college or university, and who scored below 27 on the Speaking sub-section of the TOEFL iBT (Test of English as a Foreign Language–Internet-Based Test) or below 8.0 on the Speaking sub-section of the IELTS (International English Language Testing System), to have their oral English proficiency evaluated by the English Language Program staff. At the start of the fall term, such students will be given a placement test to evaluate their oral English proficiency. The Graduate School has established that passing either the placement test or the Princeton Oral Proficiency Test (POPT) qualifies a graduate student to be appointed as an assistant-in-instruction (AI) and attests to the student's basic proficiency in spoken English.Recently, the Graduate School also established a Summer Institute for incoming students who may require more intensive support prior to beginning their studies at Princeton.

• Students who test at the advanced level on the POPT will be eligible to teach whenever they are appointed as AIs and will not be required to participate in ELP classes.
• Students who test at the high-intermediate level are required to participate in the ELP oral communication classes during their first semester of study. This will include four hours of coursework. These students are eligible to take the POPT upon successful completion of their first term in ELP classes.
• Students who test in the low-intermediate level are required to participate in 5 hours of coursework plus one tutorial hour during their first two semesters at Princeton, and will only be eligible to take the POPT after successful completion of two semesters in ELP classes.

Foreign Language and Course Requirements
Language and course requirements are set by each department.

Responsible Conduct of Research (RCR)
The Graduate School and the University expect thatgraduate students in the divisions of social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering will receive RCR training during the course of their graduate education. This training was instituted to ensure that grantees are in compliance with federal funding guidelines, but the Graduate School views this training as a form of professional development for all students conducting research as part of their graduate education. Graduate students in the divisions of social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering are ordinarily expected to complete RCR training by the end of the second year of graduate study. Departments offer RCR-designated courses to help students meet this requirement.

For a full outline of the ways students from various departments comply with the RCR requirement, please visit the ORPA website.

In addition to this, all incoming doctoral and research-based master's students from all four divisions are required to complete an introductory RCR course via Canvas during their first semester. This course is designed as a self-paced journey, the course covers foundational knowledge about research integrity and is part of the University’s RCR training requirement.

Administrative Standing Requirement
In order to be awarded an advanced degree, students must be in good administrative standing with the University. They must be enrolled or, if enrollment has ended, continue to hold degree candidacy, and their accounts with the various offices and departments must be settled.

Yearly Processes for Good Academic Standing

A graduate student in “good academic standing” is making regular, timely progress toward the completion of the degree through high-quality performance on coursework, examinations, research, and other degree requirements.

Policy on Satisfactory Academic Progress

To establish the foundation for satisfactory academic progress, the Graduate School and academic departments expect the following from enrolled students, as evidence of their successful engagement with graduate work and for them to continue to receive their stipends and other benefits of enrollment:

• Full-time Commitment:Graduate study at Princeton, at both the doctoral and master’s levels, requires full-time commitment to study and research on the part of students. The Graduate School’s financial aid structure is one, but only one, indication of that requirement: full-time, 12-month support for full-time academic effort. Our commitment to clearly stated degree program lengths (e.g., a five-year Ph.D. program in most departments) and timely completion of graduate degrees is another. (Note: Certain final, professional master's degree programs do allow for part-time study for qualified students from industry. These programs generally do not provide financial aid to their students.)
• Presence: Students must be visibly present in the department and on campus, unless in absentia or on an approved leave of absence. As importantly, students must be intellectually present, that is, noticeably engaged in the normal work of their degree program—course work, research, teaching, preparation of publications, attendance at colloquia, etc.
• Production: Students must be producing work of good quality, at the appropriate and expected stages of their degree program, and showing the products of their study and research to the faculty for evaluation. Milestones and other program requirements must be completed within stated timeframes.
• Communication: Students must regularly communicate with and respond in a timely manner to communications from the Graduate School and their department (e.g., graduate program administrator(s), director of graduate studies, adviser(s), committee members, and other faculty members as appropriate). This is a reciprocal responsibility with the faculty. Graduate students should therefore expect regular and timely communication from the faculty (DGS, seminar leaders, adviser(s), dissertation committee members) in order to maintain satisfactory academic progress.

Failure to perform according to these guidelines may result in termination of degree candidacy mid-year, deferred reenrollment, or denial of reenrollment during the spring term review.

Semester Sign-In
All enrolled graduate students (including those who are enrolled in absentia) must complete semester sign-in at the start of each term in order to declare their enrolled status and to receive university benefits and graduate awards. This is the method used by the Graduate School and outside reporting agencies to obtain an accurate count of all enrolled graduate students. Academic year sign-in should be completed annually at the start of the first term of enrollment (ordinarily the fall term). The Registrar and the Graduate School notify students about this requirement each year.

Reenrollment
All continuing, degree-seeking graduate students must be recommended annually for reenrollment. During this process the student, the adviser(s), the department, and the Graduate School evaluate each student’s progress toward degree. The DGS in each department evaluates each graduate student seeking reenrollment and signs off on departmental recommendations for reenrollment.

Reenrollment Evaluation: Students are asked to evaluate their accomplishments and professional development activities over the course of the year about to end, to state their plans for summer study and research, and to describe their plans and goals for the next academic year.

Advisers are asked to review theacademic progress of each of their advisees and make an assessment of academic progress, comment on their progress assessment, and make a recommendation for reenrollment.

Departments are asked to review both the student’s statement and the adviser’s comments and to make final academic and financial recommendations (where applicable) for reenrollment and provide commentary on the student’s progress or needs for the coming year.

Enrolled students, including those in absentia and non-degree trailing status, who may qualify for future enrollment (including DCE students) are required to participate in reenrollment.

Reenrollment Process: At the start of each spring semester, the Graduate School sends detailed instructional memos to advisers and departments regarding the reenrollment process. The memos describe PeopleSoft navigation, system features, and departmental recommendations that must be made to the Graduate School.

In brief, departmental actions include the following:

• Providing an assessment of the student's progress (i.e. satisfactory progress; some progress but needs improvement, insufficient and unsatisfactory progress meeting program requirements and expectations, and progress can not be assessed at this time.
• Making financial recommendations for the next academic year;
• Providing comments on the student’s progress and uploading any relevant documentation; and
• Recommending enrollment for the following year (i.e., reenroll, reenroll - noting where improvement is needed, do not reenroll because the student is graduating, do not reenroll because the student is voluntarily ending or pausing enrollment, or defer reenrollment).

Reenrollment Decisions: Students who have demonstrated readiness for continued graduate work will receive a reenrollment decision by the end of June.

For international students with visa renewal concerns, departments are encouraged to expedite reenrollment recommendations on their end and ask the Graduate School Finance and Academic Affairs teams to do the same. Expedited reenrollment reply forms are available in mid-April, once the Reenrollment System has opened to students for the coming year.

The department or the Graduate School may defer a student’s reenrollment decision, normally in order to gather more information on the student’s academic progress. Students are notified of deferred reenrollment decisions as soon as information is available, but always before the start of the fall semester.

Conditional reenrollments may be given for one semester when a student has not made satisfactory academic progress but should nonetheless be reenrolled in order to improve standing. The student is given strict conditions on reenrollment for the fall term that are recorded for reference on the department tab of the Reenrollment System, and if the progress required is not met, the student'senrollment may be terminated.

The department or the Graduate School may also deny reenrollment to graduate students who have failed to make satisfactory academic progress despite warnings. While a termination can happen at any point in a student’s career if warranted, particularly when adequate warning has been given, reenrollment is the yearly process that ensures appropriate warnings are given to students who are failing to make satisfactory progress. It is also provides a yearly review when such terminations can occur.

Individual Development Plans (IDP): Individual development plans are a tool used to assess the career and personal goals of researchers and are now required by some federal agencies. For departments required to track IDP compliance for grant purposes, the IDP can now be tracked through the reenrollment system, using its IDP feature. Students in departments that require the IDP are asked to complete the IDP through an external system and upload a copy of the IDP as part of the reenrollment evaluation. The adviser and the department are asked to certify through the system that they have reviewed the attached IDP.

Ph.D. Requirements Set by the Graduate School

Ph.D. Adviser
Ph.D. students at the research stage of their programs are required to have faculty advisers who can appropriately advise their topics and who are willing to advise them. This is an essential requirement in order for a Ph.D. student to remain enrolled and successfully work towards completing the degree. The point at which the research stage begins may differ from program to program, depending on individual program requirements and funding models. In certain fields organized by laboratory and research groups, the requirement for a student to identify an adviser may start as early as the end of the first academic year. In other fields, the requirement may start at the point when the student has successfully passed the general examination and formally been approved to enter the dissertation phase and advance to candidacy for the Ph.D.

Princeton's departments and programs have broad academic expertise, and Ph.D. students have the opportunity to work with faculty members who are experts in many fields and subfields of academic research. While the range of topics that Ph.D. students may pursue for dissertation work is wide, it nonetheless may be limited by the interests and expertise of the faculty. Students may need to adjust their research topics in order to align them with faculty expertise if they wish to complete the degree. Adjustment of topic may be necessary, for example, if a student's adviser leaves the University, particularly if the student has not yet completed the general examination and no other faculty member within the department can appropriately advise on the student’s originally intended topic. (Students who have completed the general examination and are in the dissertation phase may be approved in certain circ*mstances to continue to work with advisers who have left the University.)

Each Ph.D. student must identify a research topic and secure an appropriate research adviser. Faculty members within departments, including and especially directors of graduate studies, will make every reasonable effort to help students find and secure appropriate advisers, provided students are otherwise making satisfactory degree progress. Students who feel that satisfactory resolution of an advising issue has not been found even after consulting with the relevant faculty members within the department may consult with the Academic Affairs staff within the Office of the Dean of the Graduate School. In cases where, despite all reasonable efforts, no satisfactory advising structure can be found for a student, that student's enrollment and degree candidacy may be terminated.

Frequency of Advising Meetings for Ph.D. Students

Ph.D. studentsbenefit from frequent meetings with their dissertation research advisers and constructive feedback on their work. To ensure that they are meeting expected research milestones, remaining on track for timely degree completion, and addressing any concerns raised during prior meetings, Ph.D. students with an assigned dissertation research adviser are required by the Graduate School to meet with their adviserat a frequency determined by their department, but in no case less than onceper semester, and with an additional faculty member in their department at least once per year.

Former Princeton Faculty as External Advisers
Princeton faculty members who are approved to serve as Ph.D. advisers and who leave Princeton may, with the department or program’s approval, continue to serve as the adviser of record for their post-generals students, provided the former faculty members hold comparable appointments at their new institutions and have been provided a visiting status by the Office of the Dean of the Faculty that would allow the adviser to continue to advise students. In all other cases, the department should reach out to the Graduate School to discuss a plan for each post-generals student to complete their degree requirements.

In cases where advisers of pre-generals Ph.D. students have left the University, faculty members with current and active appointment at Princeton should be appointed as the new advisers of record for affected students. The former faculty members may, with the agreement of the department or program, serve as a co-advisers (alongside current faculty members), provided the former faculty members hold comparable appointments at their new institutions.

General Examination
The general examination is designed to ascertain the student's general knowledge of the subject, acquaintance with scholarly methods of research, and ability to organize and present material. Students who pass the general examination in their department may advance to Ph.D. candidacy. The general examination may consist of several parts, some testing comprehension of the field and others assessing potential for original research. Advancement to post-generals candidacy for the Ph.D. requires passage of all parts of the general examination in addition to all other departmental requirements. The examination is comprehensive and is not restricted to the content of graduate courses. The elements of the general examination may be written, oral, or both, depending on the particular requirements of the discipline as determined by the faculty. In both content and format, the general examination is considered to be an essential element of a department's Ph.D. program. In most programs, students are not normally readmitted to a third year (fifth term) of graduate study unless they have sustained the general examination and unless they have first fulfilled the residence requirement as well as any departmental requirements. No student should be readmitted to a fourth year (seventh term) of graduate study without having successfully completed the general examination.

Timing: Departments may elect to administer the examination to a student within 10 consecutive days during one of the three examination periods, or, with the approval of the Graduate School, in two or more major parts during different examination periods. (In such cases only the final cumulative grade is reported to the Graduate School.) In either case, the examination is held during a stated twenty-day period in September and October or January, or during a five-week period in April and May. No department is required to give the examination in more than two of the three examination periods per year. Only in exceptional circ*mstances as approved by the Graduate School may a general examination be administered outside of the stated examination periods. If approved to be administered on an exceptional basis outside the normal stated period, such a general examination must in all other respects follow the normal format and requirements of the general examination for the department. Students who have withdrawn may present themselves for the examination with the approval of the dean on the advice of the department, provided they have met the residence and any departmental requirements.

Generals Committee: The examination committee consists of three or more members, all of whom should hold the rank of assistant professor or higher and at least two of whom should normally be on the faculty of Princeton University. Any external examiners must have standing in the scholarly community comparable to the Princeton faculty committee members. Any proposed external examiners must be approved by the Graduate School prior to the examination date.

If a dissertation needs to be reviewed for possible patentable results and subsequent patent application either by the University or by a non-University agent, or if it must be reviewed by an outside sponsor for the proprietary information or results, then these processes must be completed before the student initiates the online advanced degree application process and the department requests to hold the final public oral examination.

Final Public Oral Examination (FPO)
The final public oral examination (FPO) is a final examination of the student’s field of study as well as a defense of the dissertation. The department schedules the FPO after it accepts readers’ reports and is satisfied that all requirements for the degree have been met. The department then advances the FPO application to the Graduate School for approval. Once the Graduate School has approved the FPO application, the department is required to advertise the examination a minimum of three days before the examination date.

External Readers and Examiners: External readers and examiners must be of comparable standing in another university or in the nonacademic research community and must be approved by the Graduate School prior to submission of the advanced degree application for the Ph.D. CVs of approved external readers or examiners, including visiting fellows, must accompany the advanced degree application materials.

Former Princeton Faculty as External Advisers: Princeton faculty members who are approved to serve as Ph.D. advisers and who leave Princeton may with the department or program’s approval continue to serve as the adviser of record for their post-generals students who are in the dissertation phase, provided the former faculty members hold comparable research appointments at their new institutions and receive from the Office of the Dean of the Faculty a courtesy visiting appointment with Princeton to allow them to finish advising their student(s).

In cases where an adviser of a pre-generals Ph.D. student has left the University, a faculty member with a current and active appointment at Princeton should be appointed as the new adviser of record for the affected student. The former faculty member may with the agreement of the department or program serve as a co-adviser (alongside a current faculty member), provided the former faculty member holds a comparable appointment at the new institution and receives from the Office of the Dean of the Faculty a visiting appointment that allows for co-advising at Princeton.

Dean of the Faculty Ranks and Graduate School Advisory Roles

1. Emeritus/a faculty may serve in Ph.D. advising, thesis reading, and examining roles only if they were the student’s adviser or committee member prior to becoming an emeritus/a faculty member.
2. Decision is made case by case based on the visitors’ credentials from their home institutions as well as their PU appointments.
3. Also includes the rank of Principal Research Physicist, PPL only.
4. Senior Scholars are not eligible to serve in advising or committee roles unless they are also emeritus/a faculty and qualify under that exception, as noted above. Senior Scholars may be approved to serve as dissertation readers or examiners on a case-by-case basis.
5. Professor Senior Lecturers and Lecturers in the Department of Computer Science may be approved on a case-by-case basis to supervise the work of master’s degree students.Professional specialists may not serve on generals or Ph.D. committees, except for Art Museum curators,who are considered on a case-by-case basis.
6. Senior Lecturers and Lecturers in the Department of Computer Science may be approved on a case-by-case basis to supervise the work of master’s degree students.

Advanced Degree Application for the Ph.D. (FPO Process)
In consultation with the adviser(s), a student will submit the dissertation to at least two readers before asking the department to schedule the FPO. Readers will provide feedback on the dissertation, and the student should have sufficient time to be able to incorporate edits based on that feedback.

The following materials must be submitted to the Graduate School via TigerHub no less than two weeks prior to the FPO date:

By the student:

• Title page of dissertation with correct formatting
• Dissertation abstract of no more than 350 words

By the department:

• At least two reader reports
• If appliable, a CV or memo describing the background and qualifications of any external examiner or reader (committee membership from someone outside the University must be approved by the Graduate School prior to completion of the advanced degree application)

The FPOsystem promptsadvisersto electronically completethe prior presentation and publication form, the embargo approval form (if an embargo of the dissertation is requested by the student). DGSs are prompted via email to electronically review and approve the request to hold formon behalf of the department. Graduate administrators have access to the adviser and DGS page, and with permission can approve FPO request on behalf of the DGS and adviser when needed.

The student must attach the following materials to the submission of final paperwork submission:

• An electronic copy of the "Certificate of Completion" page of the Survey of Earned Doctorates
• An electroniccopy of the "Confirmation of Completion" page of the Exit Survey

Prior to completing the submission of final paperwork process, the student must complete the checkout process for students departing the University via TigerHub.

Once the student submitsall materials,the director of graduate studies or the chair of the FPO committee must confirm the FPO was successfully completed by approving the FPO examination report available electronically via PeopleSoft.

Degrees are conferred by action of the Board of Trustees. The degree deadline is normally about two weeks before the Board meeting at which the degrees are approved. Departments are encouraged to schedule FPOs at least 48 hours before the degree deadline preceding the desired degree conferral date.

Degree Deadlines 2024-25 Academic Year¹

*All dates are tentative and subject to change before the start of the academic year