The dissertation proposal should be completed as soon after the qualifying exam as possible, no later than the fall of the fourth year. The proposal is worked out in consultation with three or four faculty who will comprise the student’s dissertation committee. Although the adviser is normally a member of the teaching group in American Religious History, students are welcome to include committee members from other departments and schools at the university and, in certain circumstances, from another university. This committee will meet with the student for a prospectus colloquium that gathers the dissertation committee to assess the scope, significance, and feasibility of the topic and the student’s preparation to accomplish it in a reasonable time.
After approval by this committee, a two-page, single-spaced summary of the proposal is submitted to the entire graduate faculty in Religious Studies and then, if none object, to the Dean of the Graduate School. After acceptance of the prospectus, the student is admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D.
At the prospectus colloquium each student will stipulate when they expect to submit a first chapter draft. Soon after the first chapter is completed, the committee will meet with the student for a chapter conference (also known as the “first chapter defense”) to assess the chapter and think constructively together about the dissertation-in-progress.