PhD Orals at UCI Anthro

When a student begins a graduate program, s/he is not yet a candidate for a graduate degree. According to the UC Irvine Graduate Division website, to become a candidate for a graduate degree, a student must complete certain academic requirements to achieve the milestone of becoming a candidate for that degree. Advancement-to-candidacy signifies that the student has completed his or her coursework and other requirements and is ready to move forward to the dissertation phase for doctoral students. UC Irvine graduate students are admitted to candidacy if they pass by unanimous vote an oral examination administered by a Candidacy Committee. Advancement committee membership requires 5 members: 1 chair, 3 general members and 1 outside member. 

Within the UC Irvine Department of Anthropology, the form that the orals documents take are largely unstipulated and decided in agreement with the individual faculty advisor. Most faculty expect three documents which cover the major literatures that inform the doctoral research project. These are circulated to the candidate's orals committee approximately one month in advance for their review and subsequently discussed during an in-person defense which typically takes about 2 - 3 hours. The crafting of the orals documents is generally expected to take place during the third year, as articulated in the UCI Anthro PhD Program Guide.