Doctor of Public Health
The doctor of public health (DrPH) degree is awarded
for distinguished academic preparation for professional practice in the
field of public health. The quality of a candidate’s work is judged by
a variety of means, culminating in a set of comprehensive and final
examinations and a dissertation. The dissertation must be a significant
original contribution to knowledge in the field of public health
practice. Required course work is designed to prepare the candidate for
the examinations and the dissertation.
Requirements and Procedures for
Doctoral Degrees
The rules and requirements listed below are those of
the Graduate Division and must be observed by all doctoral students.
Note that some fields of study have special requirements.
Residence
The minimum residence requirement for the doctoral
degree is three semesters of full-time work or the equivalent in credit
hours at the University of Hawai‘i at Manoa.
Time Allowed
Candidates for doctoral degrees will be expected to
complete all requirements within seven years after admission into the
doctoral program. Candidates who fail to complete all requirements in
the specified time are automatically dropped from the program.
Reinstatement for a limited period of time is possible only upon
favorable recommendation of the field of study and with the concurrence
of the dean of the Graduate Division.
Credit Hour Requirements
There is no minimum number of required course credit
hours set for doctoral degrees. Registration in courses by doctoral
students is governed by (1) the judgment of advisers or faculty in
charge of the relevant program of study as to the importance of
particular course work to the training and preparation of the candidate
for the writing of examinations and/or the dissertation, (2) residence
requirements, and/or (3) provisions of graduate assistantships,
fellowships, or scholarships. For information regarding required or
recommended courses, see the section appropriate to the field of study.
Language Requirements
At the option of the graduate field of study, intended
candidates for the doctoral degree may be required to take a written
examination to demonstrate comprehension of one or more foreign
languages. To pass the examination they must be able to read research
materials in their field of study at a reasonable speed. English is not
considered a foreign language in this context.
No limit has been placed on the number of times
students may take the examination. However, it must be passed before
students can be advanced to candidacy and take the comprehensive
examination.
For information on language test administration, see
“Language Requirements” in the master’s degree section.
Doctoral Committee
The doctoral committee may be selected at any time
after a student becomes an intended candidate. The chair of the graduate
faculty of the field of study recommends to the dean of the Graduate
Division appointment of a doctoral committee consisting of at least five
members of the graduate faculty. The committee must include one graduate
faculty member from another field of study. This outside faculty member
must be a full member of the regular graduate faculty. The majority of
the committee and the committee chair must be from the graduate field in
which the degree program is offered. This committee, appointed by the
dean of the Graduate Division, prescribes for the candidate a course of
study in preparation for the comprehensive and oral examinations
described below. It also approves the dissertation research problem and
the dissertation itself.
It is the student’s responsibility to select an
appropriate dissertation topic coinciding with the expertise and
interest of a graduate faculty member who is willing to work with
him/her.
Examinations
Doctoral candidates must pass the following
examinations:
Qualifying Examination
A qualifying examination may be required by some
fields of study. The purpose of this examination is to determine whether
to encourage students to proceed in a doctoral program and, if
encouraged, to enable advisers to assist students in planning a program
that will familiarize them with the requisite knowledge and techniques
of their chosen field of study. Fields of study requiring this
examination give it early in the intended candidate’s program (often
coinciding with the master’s final examination). It may be oral and/or
written and is conducted by a special examination committee appointed by
the graduate chair of the field of study or by the student’s doctoral
committee. A student who fails the qualifying examination may repeat it
once at the discretion of the graduate faculty concerned.
However, students failing the qualifying examination a
second time are dropped from the program and lose their status as
classified graduate students.
Comprehensive Examination
The comprehensive examination is an important step in
the sequence of study toward the doctoral degree. This examination
covers the major field of study and work fundamental thereto and minor
fields as may be required by the field of study. Its purpose is to
ascertain the student’s comprehension of the chosen field(s) of study.
The examination is given only after the student has
completed the foreign language requirement, if any, and when, in the
judgment of the appointed doctoral committee, the student has had
sufficient preparation in the field of study either through course work
or other individual study and research. The comprehensive examination
may be either oral or oral and written. It is conducted by the
student’s doctoral committee, composed of five members of the graduate
faculty, at least one being from another field of study and a full
member of the regular graduate faculty.
A student who fails the comprehensive examination may
repeat it once at the discretion of the graduate faculty concerned. A
student who fails the examination a second time is dropped from the
program and loses classified graduate student status.
The student who passes the examination is eligible, at
the option of the various fields of study, to receive a University
certificate indicating that all requirements of the doctorate except for
the dissertation have been completed.
Final Examination
A final examination in defense of the dissertation may
also cover related subjects and is required of all candidates for the
doctoral degree. The examination is oral and is conducted by the
candidate’s doctoral committee. It is never less than one hour in
length. Arrangements for the final examination must be made at least
three weeks prior to the date of examination, since an announcement must
appear in Ku¯ Lama. The examination must be held while the
University is in session and must be open to the public.
A candidate who fails the final examination may be
allowed to repeat it upon approval by the graduate faculty concerned and
the dean of the Graduate Division. A candidate who fails the final oral
examination twice is dropped from the program and loses classified
graduate student status.
A candidate who passes the examination, and who has
met all other requirements, will be awarded the doctoral degree at the
end of the appropriate term.
Dissertation
The doctoral dissertation for the PhD is expected to
be a scholarly presentation of an original contribution to knowledge
resulting from independent research. For the EdD degree, the
dissertation emphasizes the capability and competence of the candidate
to apply research findings to the educational problems encountered in
one’s professional career. The doctoral dissertation for the DrPH
degree emphasizes the candidate’s capability and competence to apply
research findings to public health problems in the context of
professional practice.
An essential aspect of dissertation research is the
free and full dissemination of research results. Moreover, all
dissertations must be publicly defended in an oral examination.
Therefore, proprietary or classified information
is not suitable for a dissertation; data which cannot be made public at
the time of the final defense should not be incorporated into the
student’s research.
When the dissertation topic has been approved by the
doctoral committee, it will notify the Graduate Division through
submission of Student Progress Form IV. The candidate may then register
for the dissertation research course (800) during the next registration
period.
A candidate should look to the chair of his or her
doctoral committee for primary direction regarding research methods and
the preparation of results. It is the joint responsibility of the chair
and the student to see that all members of the committee are kept
informed of the scope, plan, and progress of both the research and the
dissertation. Instructions for preparation of the dissertation can be
obtained at the Graduate Division Records Office.
Copies of the completed dissertation must be submitted
to committee members at least four weeks prior to the date of the final
oral examination. Two unbound, clean copies must be deposited with the
Graduate Division by the deadline specified in the “Calendar.”
Original signatures are required on the signature page.
A majority of the members of the doctoral committee,
including the committee chair, must approve both the dissertation and
the oral defense of the dissertation. A minority member has the right of
appeal to the Graduate Division for a final decision. The chair must
ensure that the final form of the dissertation, including revisions and
amendments agreed upon, is acceptable to a majority of the committee.
The committee members express their approval on the signature page of
the dissertation and on Student Progress Form VII.
Candidates must be registered in the appropriate
dissertation research course (800) during the term in which the work for
the degree is completed. Failure to make satisfactory progress on the
dissertation does not entitle a student to refund of tuition.
The graduate chair of a field of study has the
privilege of being an ex officio member of all doctoral committees in
the field.
All doctoral students are required to publish their
dissertation (in its entirety) with University Microfilms International
(UMI) or an equivalent publishing firm suggested by the student and
approved by the Graduate Division. |