The dissertation should be an original contribution to criticism or scholarship. Dissertations in the English Department are developed in close consultation with a student’s dissertation committee chair, and are usually between 200 and 300 pages long. By appointment, students may consult copies of all dissertations written at UCSB, held physically in the library, or archived online (note that recently-filed dissertations may not be available for perusal, if the author has opted to delay the release of [“embargo”] their manuscript, usually pending publication).

At a point in the program when the graduate student’s dissertation committee determines that the PhD candidate’s dissertation is complete and meets the standards of the disciplines in which it operates, the student should contact the Staff Graduate Advisor to schedule a defense of the dissertation, after determining when the Dissertation Committee is available to meet. This defense — despite its name — is not designed as an examination that a PhD candidate will “pass” or “not pass.” Instead, the defense will provide a space in which the PhD candidate can share their research with the department, and will provide the department an opportunity to consider the PhD candidate’s research. Students may consult with the DGS, who will consult with the Graduate Committee, about a “grandfather clause” concerning the defense.

This defense will be advertised via email to all faculty members and graduate students in the Department of English at least one month in advance, and it will take place either on campus or via Zoom, as the Dissertation Committee determines. The defense will also be open to interested members of the UCSB community, and to friends and family of the PhD candidate. At the defense, PhD candidates will offer a 30-minute presentation of their dissertation research, followed by questioning from their dissertation committee, followed by questioning from any present faculty members or graduate students from the Department of English; if time allows, these rounds of questioning will be followed by taking questions from other attendees. Following the question period, the Dissertation Committee will confer separately about whether to accept the dissertation as one of the requirements for the PhD. The defense, including the Q&A periods, will last approximately two hours.

For filing and the precise format for the dissertation (paper, margins, pagination, footnotes, etc.) see the information provided by the UCSB Library, as well as the Graduate Division website.

Upon finishing the dissertation, students should submit a Doctoral Degree Form III,  approved and signed by the student’s dissertation committee and the Department Chair, to Graduate Division.

The student’s dissertation chair (faculty advisor), as well as the DGS and Staff Graduate Advisor, can assist with navigating this process.

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