Congratulations! If you are moving toward this PhD milestone, it means that you have successfully passed your PhD research qualifying exam and have finished writing more than one research paper with your PhD advisor. You should also have a rough idea of the research problems that you plan to work on in your PhD dissertation.

A PhD thesis is a compilation of research that proves you are knowledgeable about the information learned throughout your graduate program.
A dissertation is your opportunity during a doctorate program to contribute new knowledge, theories, or practices to your field. The primary difference between a dissertation and thesis is the degree programs that require these projects. Students in a master's degree program will write a thesis, whereas students in a doctoral degree program will complete a dissertation

Now it is time to invite the members of your PhD dissertation committee.

Goal:

The goal of the PhD dissertation committee is for them to give you advice on your PhD dissertation and to evaluate your PhD proposal and dissertation. The committee members will:
(1) read your PhD dissertation proposal
(2) attend the presentation of your PhD dissertation proposal
(3) read your PhD dissertation
(4) attend your PhD dissertation defense
This committee will eventually vote on whether to pass or fail your PhD dissertation proposal and defense.

Timing:

Within one year of passing your PhD research qualifying exam.

Steps:

Here are the steps on how to form your PhD Dissertation Committee:

Step 1: Familiarize yourself with the rules on what you can and cannot do when selecting your committee members.

Your PhD Research Advisor must be a faculty within the DS core faculty. Here is the list of DS core faculties (under the "Faculty" section of the webpage). If your PhD advisor is not a DS core faculty but a WPI tenure-track faculty affiliated with Data Science (under the "Affiliated Faculty" section of the webpage), you will need to request approval from the Data Science Steering Committee. How? See the Note [1] at the end of this page.
Four members: The dissertation committee must consist of at least four faculty members including your PhD advisor.
Two departments: The dissertation committee must include WPI faculties from at least two different departments from the DS interdisciplinary departments:
(1) Computer Science Department
(2) Mathematical Sciences Department
(3) The Business School

One External Member: At least one committee member must be from outside of WPI.
External committee members must have an earned PhD degree in a data science-related field such as computer science, mathematical sciences, or business analytics.

Here are some good examples of what your PhD committee should be like:

Assuming your PhD advisor is a DS core faculty member from the Computer Science department:
1) Your advisor: Computer Science, WPI
2) professor A: Mathematical Sciences, WPI
3) Professor B: from any department outside WPI
4) Professor C: any department inside or outside WPI
Let's assume your PhD advisor is a DS-affiliated faculty from the ECE department:
1) Your advisor: ECE, WPI
2) Professor A: The Business School, WPI
3) Professor B: Mathematical Sciences, WPI
4) Professor C: any department outside WPI

Step 2: Discuss and finalize the list of committee members with your PhD advisor and decide which of you will invite each member.

Once you are familiar with the rules, you will decide on a list of potential members for your PhD thesis committee. By default, students should write emails to invite each of the committee members but in some cases, your advisor may want to invite one or all of the committee members personally, especially if they collaborate in research or know one another in the research community.

Here is a list of items you should discuss with your PhD advisor:

The planned time frame for your PhD dissertation proposal and defense.
The list of potential members for your PhD dissertation committee.
Who will invite each of the members?
Backup plan in case an invitee declines the invitation; you need a second choice.

Here is an example of the timeframe, and the final list of your PhD dissertation committee:

Timeframe:
PhD dissertation proposal (August 2022)
PhD dissertation defense (May 2023)

A list of potential members:

1) Your advisor: Computer Science, WPI ---- No need to send an email invitation
2) Professor A: Mathematical Sciences, WPI --- I will invite professor A
3) Professor B (any department outside WPI) ---- My advisor will invite professor B
4) Professor C (any department inside or outside WPI) --- I will invite professor C

Backup plan:

5) Professor D: if Profess A declines my invitation--- I will invite professor D
6) Professor E: if Profess B declines my advisor's invitation --- I will invite professor E

Step 3: Write emails inviting professors to serve as your committee members

If your advisor wants to help by inviting all the members, you can skip this step.

Otherwise, you need to write a polite email inviting each professor to serve as a PhD dissertation committee member and cc: your advisor in the email. In this invitation email, you should briefly introduce yourself, your research area, and the planned time frame for your PhD dissertation. Then ask whether they are willing to serve on your PhD dissertation committee.
You will also examine the duties of the PhD committee members in the email.

Here is an example email:

Title: PhD Dissertation Committee Invitation

To: [The potential committee member]

CC: [Your PhD advisor]

Dear Prof. / Dr. [Last Name],

I am a Ph.D. candidate in the Data Science Program at WPI working with my Ph.D. advisor, Professor ______________ in the area of [YOUR RESEARCH AREA].
We are seeking experts in related fields to form my PhD Dissertation Committee. and as you are an inspiring icon in the area of [RESEARCH AREA] it would be my honor to have you as a member of my PhD Dissertation committee. I'm planning to give my PhD proposal in late August this year, and my dissertation defense in early May next year. If you're available and willing to serve during this time frame, we would be overjoyed to have you serve on my PhD Dissertation Committee.

If you agree to be a member of my PhD Dissertation Committee, you are expected to attend the one-hour presentation of my PhD dissertation proposal as well, as at a later date, my PhD dissertation defense.

Please find attached my CV for your reference and, if you are interested in learning more about my research, it would be a privilege to discuss my work with you and introduce my recent research projects as well as my plan for the PhD dissertation.

If you have any questions, please just let me know.

I look forward to hearing a positive response from you and please let me know if you have any questions.

Sincerely,
[Your Name]

[Your HOMEPAGE]

Attachment: [Your CV]

It's okay if your invitee says no, and they should refuse than not be available or invested in your work.
Keep inviting more prospective committee members until you have all the required members of your PhD committee.

Also, your invitee may not respond to your email for several days, don't panic. If you don't hear back after one week, write a follow-up email to remind them about your invitation, and say politely that if convenient, you need their answer by a certain date.

Step 4: Submit A Petition for Completing the Milestone

Congratulations! Now all the committee members have accepted your invitation and you have a PhD dissertation committee.

Now please inform the Data Science Program about this decision, so that you will have this PhD milestone, Form PhD Dissertation Committee, on record.

1. visit the DS graduate website. If you are not familiar with this DS Graduate System, please read this manual.

2. Create a petition for "Ph.D. Committee Formation Milestone."

3. Complete the form with the information about your committee members. "Internal Members" are from WPI, and "External Members" are outside WPI or professors from other departments that are not listed in the menu.

4. Submit the form and wait for approval from all your committee members. Note if the external member cannot sign the form in the DS Graduate System, your advisor or the graduate coordinator may be able to proxy-sign in the system on that member's behalf. You can ask them for help.

5. Once you receive the email confirmation that your petition for "Ph.D. Committee Formation Milestone" has been approved by all the committee members, it means that you have successfully accomplished this PhD milestone. Your PhD dissertation committee now is officially in business. Good job!

What's Next?

Good job! After forming your PhD dissertation committee, now you have a team of experts giving you advice on your PhD research.

Now you may want to start on your next research project/paper working with your PhD advisor. You will need this paper before passing your next PhD milestone:

PhD90 students: within 4 years of your PhD
PhD60 students: within 2 years of your PhD

and at least one year before your graduation with the PhD degree, you will need to defend your PhD dissertation proposal.

For example, suppose you are a PhD90 student, and you plan to graduate at the end of your 5th year in PhD program, you will need to pass your PhD dissertation proposal before the end of your 4th year. However, if you plan to graduate at the end of your 4th year, you will need to pass your PhD dissertation proposal before the end of your 3rd year.

You can do it!

Note [1]: Question: My advisor is not a DS core faculty but is an affiliated faculty to the Data Science Program.
How do I get approval from the DS Steering Committee so that my PhD advisor can serve as my PhD Dissertation Committee Chair?

Answer: Please send an email to DS administrators (datascience@wpi.edu). Here is an example of the email:

Title: Request for Approval of DS-affiliated Faculty to serve as my PhD Dissertation Committee Chair

To: datascience@wpi.edu

Dear DS Administrators,

I am a PhD candidate, and my PhD research advisor is [NAME of YOUR ADVISOR], an affiliate faculty of the DS Program. In order to serve as the Chair of my PhD Dissertation Committee, we need approval from the DS Steering Committee.
Here is the information required for my application:

Student Name and WPI ID:

PhD Research Advisor's name:

Topic of the PhD dissertation: A brief description of the topic of your PhD dissertation

Could you please add this application as an item for discussion in the agenda of the next DS Steering Committee meeting?

Thank you sincerely,

Your name