Dissertation Defense Committee (DDC) and External Examiner

The Dissertation Defense Committee (DDC) shall include members of the RSC and a PhD External Examiner. The External Examiner should be a full professor from a reputable international university who is an internationally recognized researcher in the subject area of the dissertation. To avoid any potential conflict of interest, the External Examiner must not have been affiliated with KU in the last five years up to the present day, in any capacity including the examination of dissertation. Furthermore, the Main Advisor and/or Co-advisor(s) must not have had joint publications or any collaboration with the External Examiner over the past five years.

The External Examiner is nominated by the Main Advisor in consultation with the Co-Advisor(s), relevant Department Chair (or nominee) and Associate Dean for Graduate Studies, and appointed as a voting member of the DDC by the AVP of Graduate Studies. External Examiners will be invited to evaluate the PhD dissertation remotely and join the defense online. Distinguished professors from the world’s top ranked institutions may be invited to attend the final dissertation defense in person. Such nominations will require strong justification from the student's Main Advisor, endorsement from the Department Chair (or nominee), the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and approval from the AVP of Graduate Studies.