Statistics, Ph.D.

Degree Requirements

Passing two written comprehensive examinations, one based on STAT 601 /STAT 602 , and the other based on STAT 651 /STAT 653 . All students have up to three attempts to pass those exams after entering the doctoral program.
Passing the Ph.D. qualifying oral examination
Admission to candidacy
Completing residency requirements of the university
Completing and successfully defending the doctoral dissertation

The Ph.D. Qualifying Oral Examination

Upon passing the written comprehensive examinations, a student will commence advanced study toward the doctoral thesis under close supervision of a faculty advisor. After the student makes sufficient progress in the doctoral study, as determined by the faculty advisor, the student is required to pass a doctoral qualifying oral examination. This consists of a presentation based on the doctoral work to a doctoral examination committee of at least four members, appointed by the graduate program director upon nomination by the student’s advisor. The committee must be notified, at least two weeks in advance, of the date, time and place of the doctoral qualifying oral examination. The student should provide the committee, at least two weeks in advance, a written document summarizing the progress made in the proposed research work, and the work to be completed.

Admission to Candidacy

After passing the PhD oral qualifying exam, the student should apply to the Graduate School for admission to doctoral candidacy. The application for admission to candidacy is made through the graduate program director, who certifies that all requirements for the doctoral degree, except the doctoral dissertation, have been met.

Residency Requirements

The residency requirements shall be those imposed by the university at the time of the student’s entrance to the doctoral program.

Doctoral Dissertation

The doctoral dissertation is the heart of the Ph.D. program. An acceptable dissertation will contain a significant advance in the current knowledge of statistics. Upon completion of the dissertation, the dissertation advisor will recommend to the Graduate School, through the graduate program director, to appoint a final doctoral examination committee. The final oral defense of the doctoral dissertation will be conducted in accordance with the Graduate School requirements.

Scientific Minor

Students in the biostatistics track of the statistics Ph.D. program are encouraged to pursue a scientific minor in an application area related to public health or biomedical sciences. The area of application must be approved by a faculty advisor or graduate program director (before a faculty advisor is identified). A scientific minor will require the student to complete a research project under the supervision of a faculty advisor, and completion of the project must be approved by the graduate program director at or before the time of final dissertation. Such expertise could also be built by taking courses relevant to the area of application based on faculty advisor’s recommendation. Given the nature of biostatistics often requires interdisciplinary research at the interface between statistics and health sciences, the goal of a scientific minor is to build expertise in an area of health sciences which can enrich student’s doctoral dissertation research.