Thesis and Dissertation Guidelines

Many Master’s students at N.C. A&T complete a thesis and all doctoral students must complete a dissertation (or DNP Project for Doctor of Nursing Practice students). The main purpose of writing a thesis or dissertation is to develop original research and scholarship into a well-crafted document that can be shared with peers and colleagues. The Graduate College is responsible for ensuring that theses and dissertations written by our graduates adhere to consistent formatting and quality guidelines. Following graduation, the final thesis/dissertation document will be published electronically to the ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global Database.

Below, you will find official Thesis/Dissertation deadlines, the submission process, and numerous resources to help you successfully write and format your document, including the Thesis/Dissertation Handbook, Word Template, and additional online resources.

Thesis/Dissertation/Doctoral Project Deadlines (Click Buttons Below to Expand)

NOTE: The student must have applied for graduation before the thesis/dissertation can be reviewed.

  • Friday, October 23: FINAL DEFENSE DEADLINE. Last day to defend Thesis/Dissertation (or Doctoral Project) in preparation for Fall 2026 graduation. Note that Proposal Defenses or Preliminary Exams can be scheduled past this date.
  • Tuesday, November 3: SUBMISSION DEADLINE. Last day for Major Professor to send the submission documents by email to the Graduate College's thesis/dissertation forms email. The submission email will initiate the Graduate College review process.

NOTE: The student must have applied for graduation before the thesis/dissertation can be reviewed.

  • Friday, March 26: FINAL DEFENSE DEADLINE. Last day to defend Thesis/Dissertation (or Doctoral Project) in preparation for Spring 2027 graduation. Note that Proposal Defenses or Preliminary Exams can be scheduled past this date.
  • Friday, April 2: SUBMISSION DEADLINE. Last day for Major Professor to send the submission documents by email to the Graduate College's thesis/dissertation forms email address. The submission email will initiate the Graduate College review process

NOTE: The student must have applied for graduation before the thesis/dissertation can be reviewed.

  • Friday, June 11: FINAL DEFENSE DEADLINE. Last day to defend Thesis/Dissertation (or Doctoral Project) in preparation for Summer Session I 2027 graduation. Note that Proposal Defenses or Preliminary Exams can be scheduled past this date.
  • Friday, June 18: SUBMISSION DEADLINE. Last day for Major Professor to send the submission documents by email to the Graduate College's thesis/dissertation forms email address. The submission email will initiate the Graduate College review process.

NOTE: The student must have applied for graduation before the thesis/dissertation can be reviewed.

  • Friday, July 9: FINAL DEFENSE DEADLINE. Last day to defend Thesis/Dissertation (or Doctoral Project) in preparation for Summer Session II 2027 graduation. Note that Proposal Defenses or Preliminary Exams can be scheduled past this date.
  • Friday, July 16: SUBMISSION DEADLINE. Last day for Major Professor to send the submission documents by email to the Graduate College's thesis/dissertation forms email address. The submission email will initiate the Graduate College review process.

Process for Completing a Thesis, Dissertation, or Doctoral Project

There are several steps involved in completing a thesis, dissertation, or doctoral project. Please carefully follow the instructions found in the Process Checklist documents below to ensure that you are completing all of the steps.

  Dissertation (or Doctoral Project) Process Checklist

  Thesis Process Checklist

Note: Forms & Graduate Faculty List
Thesis/dissertation/doctoral project committee forms and defense forms can be found on the Graduate College Forms page. The list of graduate faculty (also found on the forms page) should be used to determine committee member eligibility.

Note: Research Clearance Letter
As indicated in the Process Checklists above, all thesis, dissertation, and doctoral project research must receive pre-clearance and post-clearance from the Office of Research Compliance & Ethics. Please follow the steps indicated in the Process Checklist to ensure that your research meets University research compliance standards..
 

Resources

   

Additional Writing Resources

If you have additional questions, please contact the Director of Graduate Writing Services, Dr. Shea Bigsby (email).