Graduate Program in Occupational Safety and Ergonomics

GUIDELINES for PH.D. DEGREE

Summary
Admission to Ph.D. Program
Course Work Requirements
Qualifying Examination
The Research Advisor
Dissertation Research

Summary

This document describes the pathway which a student must follow to obtain the Ph.D. degree. On this page a brief summary is given of material described in more detail further below.

The student applies for admission through the Office of Graduate Studies to the Director of the Training Program. Upon admission, an academic advisor is assigned and a committee of faculty members is formed to help select elective courses and to guide the student towards qualification. This Academic Advisory Committee (AAC) is temporary and is later supplanted by the Qualifying Examination Committee and then by the Dissertation Committee which will oversee the student's research.

At least 18 graduate credits of formal courses are required in addition to the 62 credits of required course work for the M.S. degree in Environmental and Industrial Hygiene. Additional electives must be taken to replace waived required courses. The student must maintain an overall grade point average of 3.0 in the formal course work with no more than 20% of the credits being below 3.0. The elective courses are selected by the student and the Academic Advisory Committee to provide a proper background for the anticipated area of research. The University requires a total of 135 credits of graduate work for the Ph.D. degree. The core courses are supplemented by research credits, seminars and teaching practicum to reach this total. There is an additional requirement that the student demonstrates the ability to comprehend (with the aid of a dictionary) a scientific paper in a relevant foreign language.

During the second year the student looks for a potential research advisor by interviewing with each faculty member to explore mutual research interests.

At the end of the second or early part of the third year of study, the student presents three original proposals at the time she/he applies to the Degrees Committee for the appointment of a Qualifying Examination Committee. Up acceptance of these, the student develops an extended original proposal for research which is the subject of an oral examination. A student already holding an M.S. degree can sit for the exam earlier. Upon passing this qualifying examination, the student is admitted into candidacy for the Ph.D. degree and proceeds to do the dissertation research as specified by the rules of the Department and the University. With the preparation and successful defense of a dissertation on this research, the student has completed all of the departmental requirements for a Ph.D. degree.

The sections which follow contain detailed guidelines developed by the Environmental Hygiene Science and Engineering faculty. General Departmental guidelines are attached.

Back to the Menu

Admission to Ph.D. Program

1. Admission from Outside the Department: The prospective student applies for admission through the Graduate Studies Office to the Director of the Training Program. The Graduate Studies Office ensures a completed application package.
   
2. The application is evaluated by the Director of the Training Program and the faculty of the Training Program.
   
3. Admission From Within the Department: The student applies for admission through the Graduate Studies Office to the Director of the Training Program as in I.(1). The package must include a letter of support from 2 faculty members within the Training Program. the application is evaluated as above.
   
4. Academic Advisory Committee: Upon admission, the student is assigned an academic advisory by the Program Director and the faculty. The academic advisor, after discussion with the student and with the concurrence of the Program Director and the faculty of the Training Program, enlists two additional individual, at least one of which is a member of the faculty of the relevant training program This group constitutes the Academic Advisory Committee (AAC) which is responsible for overseeing the progress of the student in the selection of electives and towards qualification.

The academic advisory shall be a full-time member of the faculty of the Department.

Back to the Menu

Course Work Requirements

The University of Cincinnati requires that a total of 135 graduate credits be completed for the Ph.D. degree. These consist of a mixture of credits for course work and research.

1. Courses Stipulated for the M.S. Degree or Their Equivalent: The student takes the required courses for the M.S. degree (Environmental and Industrial Hygiene: 62 credits, 69 credits for Hazardous Substances option within Environmental and Industrial Hygiene). Courses may be waived with the approval of the course instructor. An additional elective must be taken for the same or greater number of credits than the waived course.

Instead of signing up for 2 credits of Special Topics in Industrial Hygiene in the first Autumn Quarter and 3 credits of Industrial Hygiene and Safety Practice in Winter Quarter, as required for M.S. students, the Ph.D. student signs up for 3 credits of Industrial Hygiene and Safety Practice in both Autumn and Winter Quarters. This carries the obligation of writing reports on 10 field trips.

2. 18 Additional Graduate Credits: The courses taken are subject to approval of the student's Academic Advisory Committee. These courses serve to develop expertise as the groundwork for a student's research efforts. More than 18 credits are often taken.
   
3. Seminar Series: It is expected that students will attend appropriate seminars for purposes of availing themselves of these unique educational opportunities. The student is required to register for and complete two years of the Occupational Health, Hygiene and Safety Workshop and the Departmental Seminar Series for at least 2 of the years of residency in the Department. It is expected that full-time students will attend the Departmental seminars even when they are not formally enrolled in the course.
   
4. Teaching Practicum: The student is required to participate in a teaching practicum for at least 2 quarters of residency.
   
5. Minimum Performance Requirements: The student must maintain a GPA of 3.0 to continue in the Ph.D. program. No more than 20% of the course work hours may be below a grade of 3.

Back to the Menu

Qualifying Examination

The purpose of this procedure is to determine if a student is ready to undertaken research at the doctoral level. It is to be taken after the Language Examination and almost all of the formal course work. See Departmental policy.

1. Application to Degrees Committee: This package is submitted to the Degrees Committee under the signatures of the Chairperson of the Academic Advisory Committee and the Program Director. It must contain the following:

(1) A cover letter which requests that the student sit for the Qualifying Examination. This letter is to be co-signed by the Advisor.

(2) Evidence to the effect that Items II and III above have been completed. This material is available in the Graduate Studies Office in the student's file and may be copied. The formal course work requirements may not be entirely complete but should be substantially finished.

(3) A list of prospective members of the Examining Committee with an indication from each of a willingness to serve. This list is intended to be suggestive rather than exclusive (Para. B., Pg. 6).

(4) Three short proposals of original research prepared by the student. Each proposal shall be distinct and not simply another aspect of the same problem. Ideally, the three will illustrate the breadth of the student's interests. The proposals consist of a statement of an original, testable hypothesis carefully justified by reference to several articles in the current literature of scientific significant and feasibility. Detailed descriptions of methodology are inappropriate at this point. The student should keep the length of each proposal to under three pages (See Departmental policy).

2. The Examining Committee: This committee is usually appointed by the Degrees Committee from the list provided in the application. It will consist of at least three (preferably 5) members of the University faculty, one of whom must be from within the faculty of the Training Program and one of whom must be drawn from outside the Department of Environmental Health. The Chairperson of the Academic Advisory Committee sits as a non-voting member of the committee. This individual is responsible for the overall administration of the examination which includes (1) convening the Examining Committee; (2) ensuring that the guidelines are followed, and (3) issuing the final report to the Degrees Committee.
   
3. Form of the Examination: This is at the discretion of the Examining Committee with the approval of the Degrees Committee. Historically, it has consisted of the selection of one of the proposed research projects which the student develops into a full-fledged research proposal under the format of an NIH or NSF grant application. Once the full proposal has been accepted by the Examining Committee, the student submits to an oral examination. A formal announcement to the Department faculty has to be posted and distributed at least 14 days prior to the exam. This consists of a presentation of the proposal followed by a period of questions. The questions need not be confined to the proposal and serve to test the overall state of the examinee's knowledge and ability to formulate a research plan. Performance on the examination is decided on the basis of a simple majority of the voting members of the committee with the options being:

(1) pass
(2) conditional pass (passing is contingent upon further work on the part of the student, e.g., written report in a certain area, taking a specific course, etc.)
(3) re-examination
(4) fail

Should the student fail the examination, a petition to the faculty through the Program Director must be made for continuation in the program.

4. Timeframe: The procedure is to be completed within 2 months of the formation of the Examination Committee. The qualifying examination is most often taken at the end of a student's second year or at the beginning of the third year.
   
5. Successful Completion: With the successful completion of the Qualifying Examination, the student becomes a candidate for the Ph.D. degree. The Ph.D. candidate is permitted an additional 5 years by the University to complete the degree. Training grant support is usually limited to a maximum of five years, including time prior to passing the qualifying examination.

Back to the Menu

The Research Advisor

By the start of the Winter Quarter of the second year of study, the provisional Ph.D. student personally interviews with every faculty member within the Training Program concerning research interests/projects. As each interview is completed, the student will obtain the faculty member's signature on a form which is available from the Program Director's office. The student provides the completed form to the Director of the Training Program along with a suggestion for a research advisor and a letter from this individual indicating a willingness to serve in that capacity. The research advisor may be the initial advisor chairing the Academic Advisory Committee or a different faculty member, if that individual more closely matches the student's research interests. If a change is desired prior to the Ph.D. Qualifying Exam, a memo to the Graduate Studies Office with a copy to the Program Director suffices, if it carries the signature of the initial and new advisor. Whenever the student's Ph.D. focus emerges, it is best that the principal advising be done by the research advisor. This should occur, at the latest, when the Dissertation Committee if formed.

Back to the Menu

Dissertation Research

After passing the Qualifying Exam, the student is admitted into candidacy and formally begins research under the direction of a Dissertation Committee. Typically, research has been proceeding on an informal basis. It should be formalized within two months of the admission to candidacy.

1. Dissertation Committee: The student with the chosen research advisor submits to the Degrees Committee a list of faculty members considered to be appropriate for the Dissertation Committee. At the same time, a statement of the proposed research project in sufficient detail to permit the Degrees Committee to appreciate the expertise required to approach the topic is included. The Degrees Committee appoints the Dissertation Committee in light of this information. It shall consist of at least:

(1) The Research Advisory as chairperson
(2) A full-time faculty member of the Training Program if the Research Advisory is not a member of the Training Program
(3) A full-time faculty member from another Training Program within the Department of Environmental Health
(4) A member from outside the Department of Environmental Health

Either the Research Advisor or two other members of the Dissertation Committee must be members of the Graduate Faculty of the University of Cincinnati. The policy for external thesis work is presented in the Departmental Guidelines.

2. Statement of Intent: Within 6 months of the constitution of the Dissertation Committee, the candidate will submit a Statement of Intent to the Degrees Committee through the Dissertation Committee. The Statement of Intent is a concise description of the nature of the research project: hypothesis, significance, rational and methods. The Degrees Committee will review the Statement of Intent and furnish to the candidate and the Research Advisor a written critique with an overall "Approval" or "Disapproved" rating. If the Statement of Intent is disapproved, the Degrees Committee shall provide the candidate a specific list of objections, criticisms and recommendations. The candidate shall furnish to the committee a revised Statement of Intent.
   
3. The Dissertation: Once the approval of the Degrees Committee is obtained, it is sufficient for the Dissertation Committee to provide a brief yearly report of the candidate's progress to the Program Faculty and the Degrees Committee. At the conclusion of the research project, the candidate will prepare a dissertation under the guidance of the Dissertation Committee. This is a written document which gives evidence of high scholarly achievement through independent, original research. Once the Dissertation Committee judges that the dissertation is complete, the research advisor arranges for a public defense of the dissertation through the Graduate Studies Office of the Department of Environmental Health. Notice of the defense must be posed at least two week prior to the scheduled date of defense. The Research Advisory shall serve as moderator for the oral defense which shall consist of (in order):

(1) an oral presentation of the work by the candidate
(2) a period of questioning of the candidate by the Dissertation Committee
(3) a period of questions and comments by other members of the audience

At the conclusion of the defense, the Dissertation Committee will immediately meet to determine the acceptability of the dissertation and its defense. The candidate will immediately be informed of the results of this deliberation. If the dissertation is accepted, the Committee members will sign the acceptance sheet, and this will be conveyed to the Graduate Studies Office for transmission to the appropriate University offices. Should the dissertation not be accepted, the candidate meets with the Dissertation Committee within two weeks to discuss the problems and decide on a course of action. Another defense may be scheduled within a period of 2-6 months after the first defense.

NOTE: The guidelines stated above have been developed by the Environmental Hygiene Science and Engineering faculty. Further information is contained in the Departmental guidelines.

Back to the Menu