The submission of the doctoral dissertation or master’s capstone requirement is the final step in the program, leading to the award of your degree.
The manuscript is a scholarly statement of the results of a substantial period of research and preparation. Dissertations and theses will be made available for public use in McHenry Library, microfilmed for archival preservation, and in the case of doctoral dissertations, will be published by UMI Dissertation Publishing/ProQuest Information and Learning.
Committee requirements
Committee requirements only apply to those completing a dissertation, thesis or project. Exam track students can skip to applying to graduate below.
- Applied Mathematics handbook
- Biomolecular Engineering and Bioinformatics handbook
- Computational Media handbook
- Computer Science and Engineering handbook
- Electrical and Computer Engineering handbook
- Statistical Science handbook
Incoming students are expected to have knowledge of the following subjects in order to be successful in the graduate curriculum:
- Basic computer programming in one or more of these formal languages: Fortran, C/C++, Python
- Mathematical linear algebra
- Ordinary differential equations
- Four quarters of calculus
- Some partial differential equations
- Working knowledge of MATLAB
Applying to graduate
All candidates for a degree must submit an application for doctor of philosophy degree or application for master’s degree to Graduate Studies by the date stated in the Academic and Administrative Calendar for the quarter you wish to receive the degree. You are responsible for observing the filing dates. Failure to declare candidacy by the deadline means that you cannot be considered a candidate until the next term.
- M.S. application (PDF)
- Ph.D. application * (PDF)
- Thesis/dissertation guidelines (PDF)
- Dissertation Defense Guidelines
- Division of Graduate Studies Graduation & Thesis/Dissertation Submission
*The Ph.D. application requires a number of signatures so please plan ahead.
Registration requirement
A student is required to be registered or on filing fee status (PDF), whichever is applicable, during the quarter in which the degree is conferred. Students should consult the department advisor to determine which option fits their situation.
Filing your M.S. project, M.S. thesis, or dissertation
M.S. project
Submit the following to your program’s graduate advisor by the deadline listed in the Academic Calendar:
- a PDF copy of the signed title page (sample title page PDF)
- a PDF copy of the project report
There are no formal guidelines for the project report. Project formatting is at the discretion of your M.S. project reading committee. The M.S. project is NOT submitted to the Graduate Division.
M.S. thesis
Students completing a thesis must submit documents to both the Graduate Division and to their program’s graduate advisor. Those documents are listed below:
- Submit the following to your program’s graduate advisor by the deadline listed in the Academic Calendar:
- a PDF copy of the signed title page of your thesis (a sample title page can be found on the last page in the thesis/dissertation guidelines)
- an approved PDF copy of the thesis
- Submit the following to the Graduate Division by the deadline indicated in the Academic Calendar:
- the original signed title page of the thesis. Please keep a copy of this document for your records
- one approved PDF copy of the thesis should be submitted through the ProQuest dissertation site
Formatting guidelines for a master’s thesis can be found on the Graduate Division’s website.
Dissertation
Students completing a dissertation must submit documents to both the Graduate Division and to their program’s graduate advisor. Those documents are listed below:
- Submit the following to your program’s graduate advisor by the deadline listed in the Academic Calendar:
- a PDF copy of the signed title page of your dissertation (a sample title page can be found on the last page in the thesis/dissertation guidelines)
- an approved PDF copy of the dissertation
- Submit the following to the Graduate Division by the deadline indicated in the Academic Calendar:
- the original signed title page of the dissertation. Please keep a copy of this document for your records
- one approved PDF copy of the dissertation should be submitted through the ProQuest dissertation site
Formatting guidelines for a dissertation can be found on the Graduate Division’s website.
Please note that you are responsible for observing the filing dates and for preparing the project, thesis, or dissertation in the proper format.
Dissertation defense
Dissertation reading committee
Your dissertation reading committee should already be in place, as this was a requirement for advancement to candidacy. If any members of your dissertation reading committee have changed, please contact your program’s graduate advisor to have the change reported to the Graduate Division.
Presenting and defending your dissertation
The Ph.D. candidate submits the completed dissertation to their reading committee at least one month prior to the dissertation defense.
Scheduling your defense:
- in collaboration with your committee, schedule a defense date and time
- if your defense is going to be in-person or hybrid, please request a conference room
- if your defense is going to be virtual or hybrid, it is your responsibility to create a Zoom link—please make sure to add your committee chair as a co-host, so they can handle logistics while you are presenting
- if you are unfamiliar with Zoom, please see these instructions
Please submit a title, abstract, and location information using the Advancement/Defense Notification Request Form at least two weeks prior to your exam date so that we can send out an announcement to the Baskin Engineering community.
More information can be found on Division of Graduate Studies.
Additional resources
Dissertation/thesis guidelines (PDF) ↗
Read UCSC’s guidelines for uniformity in the physical format of your manuscript.
Dissertation/thesis checklist (PDF) ↗
Ensure you meet all the requirements for formatting and submitting your dissertation/thesis.
Submit your dissertation or thesis to the ProQuest database, or browse other publications and resources.