This form is required for all School of Medicine graduate students admitted to a PhD or master's thesis degree program, and must be approved four (4) weeks prior to the student's oral examination. Prior to submission, students must have submitted Advancement to PhD Candidacy (PhD only) and Request for Advisory Committee forms. Additionally, it is advised that student and mentor discuss exit timelines post-defense (closing out and/or transfer of research, final day in the lab, terminating employment [GRU represented students only], etc.).

Before you complete this form: please work with your program coordinator to reserve a space for your seminar and oral exam prior to submitting this form.

PhD Students: the Oral Exam Committee must include no fewer than four (4) members of the Graduate Faculty who do not all have primary appointments in the same department or institute. The committee must include at least one (1) member who is not a member of the student’s dissertation advisory committee.

Master's Students: the Oral Exam Committee must include no fewer than three (3) members of the Graduate Faculty who do not all have primary appointments in the same department or institute.

Additional Guidelines:

a) The committee must be chaired by a member of the Graduate Faculty. See List of SoM Graduate Faculty

b) Oral exams must occur within an academic term (i.e., not during academic breaks between terms).

c) The student’s mentor should serve on the exam committee but may not serve as the Chair. Students may request permission to replace one of the committee members by a recognized scholar who is not a member of the Graduate Faculty. These requests must include a short letter from the Program Director and a NIH-style biosketch for the proposed member(s).

It is the student and programs responsibility to ensure that committee members meet all requirements prior to submission of this form. Once the form has been successfully routed, the student and program representative will receive a confirmation via email.

Questions? Contact Graduate Studies at somgrad@ohsu.edu