Final Oral Exam
Preparation:
Students must schedule the Final Oral Exam at least four weeks in advance of the Final Oral with the Graduate Advising Supervisor.
If any of your doctoral committee members have changed, complete a Reconstitution of Doctoral Committee Form (see below under FORMS) and submit it to the Graduate Advising Supervisor with the appropriate signatures (except the Department Chair’s signature). This form must be submitted at least four weeks prior to the Final Oral.
Forms:
Submit these forms below to the Graduate Advising Supervisor at least four weeks prior to your Final Oral Exam.
- Final Announcement Form: Please print out the SAMPLE announcement and use this as a guide. Be sure to accurately list your committee member’s full title (i.e., If committee member is a Professor in Residence, this entire title must be listed on the announcement.)
- Reconstitution of Doctoral Committee Information (if applicable)
More Information:
- Remote Participation in Exams: Starting in Academic Year 2024-2025, the Psychology department policy regarding remote participation in oral qualifying exams (prelims) and final oral defenses will be as follows: UCLA faculty and students must attend oral qualifying examinations or final oral examinations (defense of dissertation) in person. If the student requests it or agrees to a request from the committee chair or co-chairs, non-UCLA faculty or external subject matter experts serving on doctoral committees may participate remotely in oral qualifying examinations and final defenses with the approval of the committee chair or co-chairs. Requests for the remote participation of the student or UCLA faculty require special approval from the Chair or Vice Chair for Graduate Studies. Approval may be granted for the following reasons: health; difficulty scheduling an in-person examination; committee member or student located off campus; or financial hardship. (Remote Participation Notification and Exception Request Form)
- Please note: Students are not allowed to provide food or drink for the Final Oral Examinations.
Dissertation Filing
- Please note that you must be registered the quarter you file your dissertation or the previous quarter.
- Doctoral Filing Fee Status: Complete the electronic form if you are eligible to submit a filing fee in lieu of registration. Read the terms on the form carefully. You must obtain your Doctoral Chair and committee member’s signatures, but the Graduate Advising Supervisor will submit the form on your behalf. Submit this form to the Graduate Advising Supervisor no later than Friday of Week 1 of the quarter you plan to file.
- Information about the electronic filing process and formatting requirements for the dissertation can be found on the Division of Graduate Education’s Electronic Thesis and Dissertation website.
- Once you have filed, declare non-attendance on MyUCLA for the subsequent quarter in order to not be assessed fees.
Filing Deadlines
Division of Graduate Education’s Official Filing Deadlines: UCLA has specified dissertation filing deadlines each quarter. Degrees to be officially conferred during a particular quarter must be filed by the posted filing deadline for that quarter. Please review the posted filing deadlines and remember that the deadline is at 5pm on the specific days noted.
If you file your dissertation by the official filing deadlines for each quarter, your degree date will be the last day of the quarter in which you filed. If you file your dissertation after the official filing deadline but before the start of the next quarter, your degree date will be the last day of the subsequent quarter.