The regulatory framework for scheduling examination committees, as established in Deliberation No. 631/2023 on the General Regulations for Graduate Programs (stricto sensu) at UFRRJ, encompasses the scheduling process, submission deadlines, and the composition of the examination committee for thesis and dissertation defenses.

Defense Scheduling: The scheduling of the thesis/dissertation defense must comply with the deadlines established by PPGEduc.

Final Version Submission Deadlines: Following the defense, the student has up to 60 days to submit the final version of their work (dissertation or thesis) in digital format to the program’s secretariat. This version must incorporate the corrections suggested by the examination committee and be formatted in accordance with the “Instruction Manual for the Organization and Presentation of Dissertations and Theses at UFRRJ.” If the 60-day deadline is exceeded but the submission occurs within 180 days after the defense, the Program Committee may establish specific guidelines for the homologation of the defense and the authorization for issuing the academic transcript, completion certificate, and diploma. If the 180-day deadline is exceeded, the degree will not be awarded, except in cases of proven and evaluated impediments. Any additional deadline extensions must be analyzed by the Program Committee and reported to the Office of Research and Graduate Studies (PROPPG). The issuance of graduation documents is contingent upon the submission of the final version of the dissertation or thesis.

Composition of the Examination Committee: The examination committee shall be chaired by the advisor, co-advisor, or a faculty member of the program designated by the advisor. Master’s Committee: The Master’s examination committee must consist of at least three members, including the advisor (or a substitute designated by the advisor) and at least two other PhD-holding experts in the dissertation’s field of study who are not part of the student’s Advisory Committee. Doctoral Committee: The Doctoral examination committee must consist of at least five members, including the advisor (or a substitute designated by the advisor) and at least four other PhD-holding experts in the thesis’s field of study.In both cases (Master’s and Doctorate), the committees must include external members, who are neither affiliated with UFRRJ nor part of the program’s faculty. At least one external member must participate in Master’s defenses, and at least two external members must participate in Doctoral defenses.

Restrictions: The following individuals are not eligible to serve on an examination committee: Faculty members or researchers who are first-degree relatives of the candidate or advisor; Individuals who are or have been spouses of the candidate or advisor; Former PhD advisees of the candidate’s advisor within the past three years; Faculty members from the same department as the student, if the student holds an employment contract with the institution at the time of the defense.

Remote Participation: External committee members may participate via videoconference or other approved remote evaluation methods, provided that the procedure is properly recorded in the meeting minutes. It is important to note that restricted-access defenses—such as those involving intellectual property protection—are subject to specific procedures.

To access information about the steps for scheduling qualification and/or defense committees for dissertations and theses, click the link below to access the manual:

Manual – Scheduling of Qualification and/or Defense