Student Guide
Resources for every step of your graduate education
The Dissertation
The Dissertation Office provides advanced doctoral candidates with dissertation guidelines and forms including the application to defend the dissertation and the final deposit and award of the PhD degree. The Dissertation Office also receives academic progress inquiries and applications for the Master of Philosophy (MPhil) degree.
Dissertation Toolkit
Guidelines
Distribution, Defense, and Deposit of the Dissertation
Navigate the process with our ten-step guide.
Dissertation Dates and Deadlines
View dates and deadlines for MPhil students, distribution, dissertation deposit, and degree conferral.
Dissertation Proposals
All students must submit a written statement in sufficient detail and analytic specificity to define the research problem.
Faculty Sponsorship of the Dissertation
Students are responsible for finding a faculty member to guide dissertation research and to participate in dissertation defenses.
Dissertation Progress Report
The satisfactory progress of doctoral students is assessed annually on the basis of academic performance.
Writing and Researching Your Dissertation
These guidelines will get you started and help you throughout the dissertating process.
Formatting Guidelines
A dissertation must be correctly formatted before it can be submitted.
Defending Your Dissertation
The information you will need to go about presenting, explaining, and defending your dissertation.
Electronic Deposit Gateway
Once you have successfully defended your dissertation, you are required to complete your dissertation deposit.
Fellowships & Awards
GSAS International Travel Awards
Travel Fellowships provide funding for international travel that is necessary for the completion of the dissertation.
Lindt Dissertation Fellowship
The Lindt Fellowship enables exceptionally well-qualified PhD candidates to complete their dissertations during the period of tenure.
Zuckerman Dissertation Fellowship
This fellowship is awarded to applicants whose proposals address core concerns in the history, philosophy, and/or sociology of science.
Bancroft Award
The Bancroft Awards were established by the Trustees of Columbia University to make possible the publication of up to two dissertations in the areas of American history (including biography), diplomacy, or international relations.
Salo and Jeanette Baron Dissertation Prize
This prize is awarded every four years to honor excellence in a dissertation in Jewish studies.