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Submit a final copy of your POW to the Graduate Coordinator for review by the department’s Graduate Studies Committee (GSC). This must be done after qualifying exams but before you can advance to candidacy. The POW form specific to your area of study can be found on the Doctoral Program Forms & Documents page.
Note: You must continue to register each Fall and Spring semester until graduation per Graduate School policy.
Applying for Candidacy
Once a student has both officially completed the Qualifying Exam process and had their POW approved, they are eligible to apply for candidacy. However, prior to applying the student must have formed their dissertation committee and prepared a dissertation abstract. The dissertation committee is formed in consultation with the student's supervisor and is very often the same as the Qualifying Exam committee. The dissertation committee must consist of at least four members, including the supervisor, at least three faculty members from the student's home department GSC (Graduate Studies Committee) and at least one outside member. The outside member is defined as either a UT-Austin faculty member not included in the student's home department GSC or as a faculty member from a different institution.
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