CPTS Thesis Process Overview May 16, 2017 PREFACE 1. Please refer - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

CPTS Thesis Process Overview May 16, 2017

PREFACE 1. Please refer to this material often during your time in the program. 2. Pay attention to deadlines, rules, etc. to avoid not completing the program in a timely fashion.. 3. Work with your thesis advisor and committee, CPTS program co-directors (Janet Tooze & Capri Foy) and coordinator (Tina Church) and the WFU Graduate School staff to ensure a smooth process.

Today’s Agenda 1. Why a Thesis?/Certificate 2. Becoming a Degree Candidate 3. Stay Registered as a Thesis Candidate 4. Your Thesis Committee 5. Your Thesis Proposal 6. Your Thesis 7. Grad School’s Required Intent to Graduate Form 8. Requesting an Oral Examination (aka Your Thesis Defense) 9. Examination Committee 10. Your Thesis Defense 11. Thesis Timelines 12. Suggested Target Dates 13. A Few More Things 14. Developing a Research Question

#1 Recommendation ALLOW TIME Everything will take 2 to 4 times longer than estimated (and expect slow-downs during summer months!)

Why a Thesis?  Culmination of degree program Establish topical area expertise  Integrate and apply knowledge and skills developed during  coursework Reinforce statistical skills and ability to communicate with  statisticians Practice working in a multidisciplinary, translational team   Create scientific products to further your career Manuscript  Presentation (aka the Thesis Defense)  Relationships   Demonstrates qualifications for entry into community of formally trained researchers

Certificate Program  For those students who can not / do not complete a thesis during the allotted time, CPTS and Wake Forest offers a Certificate.  Because each of you have completed the required class work for a thesis, you are already eligible to receive the Certificate if you can not / do not complete a thesis.  A thesis is the preferable option because it allows you protected time to write and get a publication out of your experience in the master’s program

Becoming a Degree Candidate  Requires approval of Graduate School Dean All required coursework completed  3.0 minimum cumulative GPA   CPTS Program Co-Directors and Coordinator request this on your behalf, after receipt of summer grades

Stay Registered as a Thesis Candidate  Must remain continuously registered until graduation  Fall, Spring, and Summer  Summer 2017  CPTS 741 – Grant writing – 3 hours  CPTS 750 – Thesis research – 3 hours  Expectation: Approved Thesis Proposal by end of the summer session  Year 2 – Finish thesis  The Graduate School is moving away from using “Thesis Only” registration and will allow this only for situations when requirements have not been completed met at the semester deadline

Stay Registered as a Thesis Candidate Option 1: Fall 2017  Register for 5 research hours (CPTS 750) under advisor (Satisfactory-Unsatisfactory)  Tuition collected  Graduate in December – defend by December 6 th to graduate in December Option 2: May 2018  Register for 5 research hours (CPTS 750) in the fall  Register for 5 research hours (CPTS 750) in the spring  Tuition collected  Graduate in May – defend by April 25 th to graduate in May

Stay Registered as a Thesis Candidate  By the end of the Summer 2017 semester you will need to determine if you will be able to graduate in December 2017 or May 2018, and commit to a timeline to meet your goal.  We will expect progress notes from you on meeting your milestones for the deadline you choose.  We will be in regular contact with you if we do not hear from you.

Your Thesis Committee (1 of 4)  Purpose is to advise and guide you  You develop the idea and do the work  Identify Committee members with your current advisor (aka Thesis Committee Chair) and Program Director(s)  You will identify a committee over the summer  Submit APPROVAL OF THESIS COMMITTEE form

Your Thesis Committee (2 of 4)  Thesis Committee must include:  Your Thesis Advisor  Statistician Must be a faculty member to serve on Committee  Can access a master’s level statistician (that is not a faculty member) to  help guide you, but the faculty member is THE official person on the committee. Minimum of one other member, typically with content area expertise   All must be Graduate School Faculty List is available at: http://graduate.wfu.edu/faculty/directory.html  We can have someone added to the graduate faculty if need be. 

Your Thesis Committee (3 of 4)  Tips for Identifying Committee Members: Larger committee does not mean better committee  Include essential expertise you need with as few committee  members as possible (non-members may still be authors on manuscript) Balance rigor with intangibles  An extremely knowledgeable committee member who is  rarely available may be less useful than a highly knowledgeable person who is often available When you approach potential members, be prepared to  discuss your idea(s) & their role and time commitment A person who is not on a member of the faculty at Wake  Forest can be a member of the committee (but not the advisor), with permission from the Graduate School

Your Thesis Committee (4 of 4)  Ideally working with your Committee (keeping in mind they are busy people) Meet regularly with advisor (2x/month) and  statistician (1x/month) Keep other members involved…at least  occasional meetings and/or emails  Forming and managing a thesis committee mirrors role of principal investigator assembling and managing a team of collaborators

Your Thesis Proposal (1 of 3)  BEFORE YOU START YOUR ANALYSES, YOU NEED TO:  WRITE A THESIS PROPOSAL,  GET IT APPROVED BY YOUR THESIS COMMITTEE, AND  GET IT APPROVED BY THE CPTS CO-DIRECTORS  We will provide you with a model written by a student who has successfully gone through our program.

Your Thesis Proposal (2 of 3) STEPS 1. Work with your Thesis Committee to develop the proposal 2. Get your Thesis Committee to approve the proposal Convene in-person meeting if possible  Best way to resolve any differences of opinion  Establishes working relationships  You will be responsible for final draft incorporating input on  prior drafts 3. One of the CPTS Program Co-Directors then needs to approve the proposal. E-mail final, committee-approved proposal to  cpts@wakehealth.edu  We will notify you and your advisor of full approval, approval with modifications, or disapproval

Your Thesis Proposal (3 of 3)  Proposal includes: A moderately detailed literature review, which becomes the  basis of the first chapter of your thesis (10 to 15 pages) A statement of feasible specific aims (1 to 2 pages)  A set of skeleton tables and/or figures that serve as the basis  of the analysis plan and results presentation  Double- spaced with 1” margins  On the cover page of your proposal, indicate who your committee members are (Advisor/Chair, Statistician, Other Members)

#1 Recommendation ALLOW TIME Everything will take 2 to 4 times longer than estimated (and expect slow-downs during summer months!)

Your Thesis (1 of 3) Use expanded manuscript format instead of regular Graduate School  format Three Components  Chapter 1 = Detailed Literature Review with Specific Aims at end  Builds on thesis proposal literature review  OK if Specific Aims shift slightly from approved proposal  Chapter 2 = Publishable Manuscript (in the format of the journal to  which you will submit your paper) Chapter 3 = Ancillary Analyses and Expanded Discussion  Analyses that did not fit in Chapter 2  Next research steps 

Your Thesis (2 of 3) Thesis Format Out of respect for your committee, try to keep drafts  reasonably neat, error free, and consistent Reserve time at end of writing process to properly format  document Wastes time to repeatedly format drafts  IMPORTANT/REQUIRED: 4 weeks prior to estimated  date of defense - meeting with Graduate School Registrar (Beth Whitsett) to clarify formatting needs

Your Thesis (3 of 3) Writing Tips  (also applies to writing proposal)  Steady progress (“ marathon, not a 100 meter dash”)  Best to try to get as much done before other job responsibilities start dictating your time  All writing should be your own, incorporating advice from committee  You must meet the requirements of a first author

Grad School’s Required Intent to Graduate Form  Per the Grad School Calendar, early in the semester in which you want to graduate, notify Graduate School using “Statement of Intent to Graduate Form”  http://internal.graduate.wfu.edu/Forms/BG%20Campus/BG_Stin tent_MS-T.pdf  e.g. to graduate on May 2018, you should submit this form to the Grad School by January 26 th .  Graduate School will notify CPTS Program  Graduate School and CTPS Program will handle any needed Graduate faculty appointments