Thesis / PILOT Proposal

Students are required to present a draft of their Thesis or PILOT proposal to their supervisory committee. The proposal shall include:

• A discussion of their development thus far at the University,
• An outline of the proposed research and procedures, and
• A statement of the significance of the project.

Thesis / PILOT Process and Procedures
Each student is responsible for conforming to regulations governing format, final term procedures, and dates for submitting their Thesis/PILOT to their supervisory committee. Thesis students MUST follow the procedures outlined online at the Application Support Center.

Responsibilities of the Supervisory Committee and Chair
It is the responsibility of the chair of the supervisory committee to review the initial rough drafts of the Thesis / PILOTwith the student and make suggestions for improvement before the report is distributed to the supervisory committee.

The student then presents the final copy of the Thesis/PILOT to the other member(s) of the supervisory committee for final review before the oral defense. It should require no more than two meetings to make additional suggestions to the student and to approve the report. The thesis must be defended and in final form prior to submission.

Preparation for Final Examination/Defense
Upon submission of the final copy of the Thesis/PILOT, the student will schedule an oral defense date with their supervisory committee chair.

Oral Defense
The oral defense will be a formal presentation of theThesis/PILOT work. The supervisory committee chair must be physically present with the degree candidate; all other members of the committee must be present either in person or via teleconferencing. The supervisory committee chair will invite other members of the graduate faculty to attend, and the oral defense is open to the public.

The student will give a formal presentation that addresses the progress of their work. It is expected that they will demonstrate how the research problem or creative inquiry has been defined, researched, and consummated.

After the presentation, members of the committee will ask the student questions pertaining to his/her work, and then confer in private to accept the project/thesis, to require further changes, or to reject it. Upon successful completion of the oral defense, a Final Examination Form will be signed by the supervisory committee and forwarded to the College of the Arts for submission to the Graduate School.

Final Submission of Project in Lieu of Thesis Report
After final approval of changes by the supervisory committee, and no later than the date specified, candidates must submit the following materials:

• PDF copy of the project report (through e-Learning). Thesis students will submit through the Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETD) system after the defense completion date has been entered in the Graduate Information Management System (GIMS).
• Grant of Permissions form (for publishing on the UF Libraries’ site)
• Fully signed Final Examination Form and ETD signature page (submitted by the committee chair)

Note that a library processing fee of $12.80 will be billed through the University Bursar. These documents are then forwarded to the UF Digital Collections department. More copies may be required if individual committee members request them.

Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETD) Application Support Center

UF Graduate School Editorial Office
HUB 224B
352-392-1282 (Telephone)
352-846-1855 (Fax)

Information on Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Technical Support, Informational Seminars & Workshops, Thesis and Dissertation Consulting Services, and Thesis and Dissertation Formatting Templates can all be found at the website listed above.