Requirements
Upon completion of the requirements for a degree, students must apply for graduation to have their degree posted to their academic records. Any questions about the process of graduation should be addressed to the Office of the Registrar.
Doctoral Graduation: Dissertation
The Dissertation Office certifies the completion of the dissertation requirements and notifies the Office of the Registrar that all required materials have been successfully completed and submitted by the student. All required materials must be submitted to the Dissertation Office by the doctoral student and not their Committee Chair.
Filing the Final Dissertation Paperwork:
Upon Submission of the Committee-approved dissertation and related paperwork, the Dissertation Office sends the document through for final editing. When the editor has completed the last review, the Dissertation Office provides the student with deadlines to revise and submit the final copy of the dissertation and any related outstanding paperwork. The PhD or PsyD cannot be awarded until all of the final paperwork has been completed.
It is important that doctoral students stay in close contact with the Dissertation Office to complete the dissertation process fully and expeditiously.
Completing the Dissertation:
To graduate from a Sofia University doctoral program, students must successfully complete a dissertation. After the Draft Meeting students must:
- Submit Form 6: Final Approval of Draft
- Hire an editor to complete a full draft edit
- Submit Form 7: Proof of Final Draft Edit
- Submit the edited dissertation for a Final Edit Check (FEC)
- Pass the FEC
- Submit Form 8: Abstract & Keywords
- Email a PDF of the dissertation to the Dissertation Office
- Complete the UMI ProQuest submission
Once these steps are completed, the Dissertation Office notifies the Registrar that all Dissertation requirements have been fulfilled.
Visit the Dissertation Office’s website, www.sofia.edu/dissertation-office, for access to all dissertation process forms.
Commencement Ceremony
The University holds an annual Commencement Ceremony and celebration. All students who have completed a degree in that current academic year are welcome to participate. Students must complete all requirements before graduation. No student may participate in the graduation ceremony unless all course requirements are complete. In addition, all tuition and fee payments must be settled.
Doctoral students are expected to have completed all of their academic requirements (i.e., course work, dissertation including all the final steps mentioned above, and internship if applicable) in order to participate in the Commencement Ceremony. There is generally no exception to this policy.
Internship Students and Commencement:
Clinical (PsyD) students with completed dissertations who are still under contract with an internship site may participate in the Commencement Ceremony if the contract completes no later than the August immediately following the ceremony. Clinical students with a later completion date must participate in the following year’s ceremony.