College of Graduate Studies

The Full-time Member is:
A full-time faculty member, emeritus, or academic administrator holding faculty rank of assistant professor or higher, who holds an earned doctorate or equivalent terminal degree in an appropriate discipline from an appropriately accredited institution and who also has achieved and maintained an appropriate level of scholarship or creative activity and erudition characterized 
by peer reviewed publications, recitals, exhibitions, and/or externally funded research grants. Individuals with Joint Faculty Appointments (non-employee contractors) may be full members of the Graduate Faculty while on their appointment, if they meet the above requirements.
Term - 6 Years

Full-time Member requirements and responsibilities include:

• A Full Graduate Faculty member may serve as a graduate student's academic advisor for master's, specialist, and doctoral degrees.
• A Full Graduate Faculty member who serves as the graduate student's advisor must chair or co-chair the student's advisory committee and must hold such faculty rank in the department in which the student is majoring.
• A Full Graduate Faculty member may be asked to serve as a member of the Graduate School Executive Committee.
• Each instructor is responsible for ensuring that students in graduate classes have sufficient background prerequisites required for the course.
• All approved graduate faculty may serve as a committee member.
• A qualified member of the graduate faculty may be asked to serve as an instructor of a graduate course, as an instructor of a readings or special problems course, as a director of some phase of development of the research facilities of Tennessee Tech, as a member of the Graduate Studies Executive Committee (Full member), and/or a member of a graduate student's advisory committee, including serving as the students research advisor.

The Associate Member is:
full-time faculty member not eligible for full 
membership who holds an earned doctorate or equivalent terminal degree in an 
appropriate discipline from an appropriately accredited institution. An Associate 
Member may have (and not limited to) the title of Instructor, Lecturer, or Post-doc.

Term - 3 Years

Associate Member requirements and responsibilities include:

• An Associate Graduate Faculty member may serve as a graduate student's academic advisor for master's and specialist degrees.
• An Associate Graduate Faculty member who serves as the graduate student's advisor must chair or co-chair the student's advisory committee and must hold such faculty rank in the department in which the student is majoring.
• Each instructor is responsible for ensuring that students in graduate classes have sufficient background prerequisites required for the course.
• All approved graduate faculty may serve as a committee member.
• A qualified member of the graduate faculty may be asked to serve as an instructor of a graduate course, as an instructor of a readings or special problems course, as a director of some phase of development of the research facilities of Tennessee Tech, and/or a member of a graduate student's advisory committee, including serving as the students research advisor

The Affiliate Member is:

A part-time faculty member or non-university professional responsible for graduate teaching, advisement, committee service, or research who holds an earned doctorate of equivalent terminal degree in an appropriate discipline from an appropriately accredited institution. No more than 
one non-university professional may serve as a voting member on a student’s committee
Term - 3 Years

Affiliate Member requirements and responsibilities include:

• Each instructor is responsible for ensuring that students in graduate classes have sufficient background prerequisites required for the course.
• All approved Affiliate graduate faculty may serve as a committee member.
• A qualified Affiliate member of the graduate faculty may be asked to serve as an instructor of a graduate course, as an instructor of a readings or special problems course, as a director of some phase of development of the research facilities of Tennessee Tech, and/or a member of a graduate student's advisory committee.

The Clinical Member is:

A full or part-time faculty member who participates in directing educational experiences in a clinical/professional setting where the faculty member practices, who holds at least a master’s degree and professional certification in an appropriate discipline from an appropriately accredited institution/agency/association and relevant experience in the field of study.
Term - 3 Years

Clinical Member Requirements and Responsibilities include:

• Clinical Graduate Faculty may only teach clinical or practicum designated courses.

1. Each member is responsible for ensuring that students in graduate classes have sufficient background prerequisites required for the course. 
2. Clinical Member of the graduate faculty may only teach clinical or practicum designated courses. All other graduate faculty appointments may teach any graduate level course.  
3. Graduate Faculty Associate Member of the Graduate Faculty may serve as a graduate student’s academic advisor and chair of the advisory committee for master’s or specialist degrees.  
4. Full Member of the Graduate Faculty may serve as a graduate student’s academic advisor and chair of the advisory committee for master’s, specialist, or doctoral degrees.  
5. An approved member of the Graduate Faculty may be asked to serve as an instructor of a graduate course, as an instructor of a readings or special problems course, as a director of some phase of development of the research facilities of Tennessee Tech, as a member of the Graduate Studies Executive Committee, and/or as a member of a graduate student’s advisory committee, including serving as the student’s academic and/or Research Advisor.  
6. The Graduate Faculty member who serves as the student’s advisor will  typically  chair or co-chair the advisory committee and shall hold faculty rank in the department in which the student is majoring or in an appropriate discipline. For a doctoral student, the advisor will be an experienced faculty member and a Full Member of the Graduate Faculty.  
7. The Research Advisor is a Graduate Faculty member who provides oversight to the student’s research endeavors. 
8. A faculty member may not direct independent study/research courses taken by a student who is a relative of the faculty member and may not be a member of a relative’s graduate advisory committee. For the purposes of this policy, “relative” means a parent, foster parent, parent-in-law, child, spouse, brother, foster brother, sister, foster sister, grandparent, grandchild, son-in-law, 
brother-in-law, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, or other family member, as defined in TTU Policy 685,who resides in the same household.

1. The chairperson of any department offering a graduate degree may act in any capacity open to a Graduate Faculty member and has certain administrative responsibilities pertaining to the graduate program.  
2. The department chairperson  provides direction and coordination in supporting departmental faculty members in the development of research projects and in the appropriate utilization of facilities. 

The advisory committee may be appointed during the student's first term but no later than the term in which 15 credits of course work are to be completed. The student, in consultation with the departmental chairperson, will determine a minimum of three (3) (four [4] in the doctoral program in Education; five [5] in the doctoral programs in Engineering and Environmental Sciences) suitable graduate faculty members who are willing to serve as voting members of the committee. Members shall represent each of the areas in which the student expects to study, with two (2) members having background in the major area. Each area in which the student presents as many as six (6) credits should be represented by one (1) member. At least one (1) member of the advisory committee should have adequate background and research interests in the area in which the student has proposed a research objective. After selection of the committee and the student's determination that the committee members are available to serve, the selection is submitted to the dean of the college and the Director of Graduate Studies for approval and appointment.

Changes to the advisory committee must be requested by the student and approved by the departmental chairperson, the dean of the college, and the Associate Dean of the College of Graduate Studies, with the latter making the subsequent appointments to complete the committee. Except in unusual circumstances such as extended campus leave, change of teaching fields, or inappropriate advisement loads, a faculty member enjoys the prerogative of accepting or relinquishing an appointment on a student's advisory committee.

The organization and appointment of advisory committees to supervise graduate study for the doctorate shall be the same, generally, as in a master's program, except that the advisory committee shall consist of at least five (5) members of the Graduate Faculty. Changes in a doctoral advisory committee also require the approval of the departmental chairperson, the dean of the college, as well as the Associate Dean of the College of Graduate Studies.

A faculty member may not direct independent study/research courses taken by a student who is a relative of the faculty member and may not be a member of a relative's graduate advisory committee. For the purposes of this policy, “relative” means a parent, foster parent, parent-in- law, child, spouse, brother, foster brother, sister, foster sister, grandparent, grandchild, son-in-law, brother-in-law, daughter-in-law, sister-in-law, or other family member who resides in the same household.

Non-university professionals may become voting members of graduate committees as Affiliate members.  These professionals must have earned a doctorate or equivalent terminal degree in an appropriate discipline and completed all procedures necessary to be appointed at the Affiliate level of the graduate faculty. Only one (1) such member may serve on an individual student's committee, and this member may not serve as academic or research advisor.  Professionals not meeting the above requirements may serve on the committee but do not have voting privileges. 

Each member of a graduate student's advisory committee is expected (1) to review the student's proposed plan of study and to approve it or make recommendations to improve it; (2) to consider the student's application for candidacy including both the proposed plan of study and the research proposal and, with other members of the committee, to approve, approve with change, or disapprove the program; (3) to review the student's thesis (if one is required) prior to the comprehensive examination; and (4) to assist in the conduct of an examination to insure that the student has at least a satisfactory knowledge of the subject matter covered in the program of study and that the thesis (when required) is of suitable caliber and presents a valid investigation properly completed. The minimum required majority for all actions of the advisory committee at the master's and specialist levels is three (3) positive votes, or three-fourths of the committee members eligible to vote. At the doctoral level, four-fifths is required as the minimum for programs in Engineering and Environmental Sciences; a unanimous vote is required for the program in Exceptional Learning.

The chairperson of an advisory committee assists the student in the selection of a course of study and works with the student in choosing a suitable thesis or dissertation topic. The chairperson is expected to furnish appropriate assistance and encouragement when excessive difficulties arise in the investigation of the problem. At the request of the student, the chairperson schedules the comprehensive examination and is responsible for its administration and conduct, as well as the reporting of the examination results to the College of Graduate Studies. The chairperson is responsible for assisting the student in ensuring the paper is error-free in regards to format, grammar, spelling, punctuation, and content thereby meeting the standards of excellence expected by the advisory committee, department, and the Graduate College. Only grades of SP and NP shall be used to indicate a student's progress in thesis or dissertation credit.