The Thesis or Dissertation

Once approved by the advisory/defense committee, all dissertations are submitted to the Director of Graduate Studies for approval before submission to the Toulouse Graduate School. The use of an editor is optional but requires prior permission using the form located on the "Theses and Dissertations" page under "For Current Students". Students should contact the Graduate Studies Office to request permission to use an editor, prior to submitting their topic proposal. Note that the Director of Graduate Studies and the Toulouse Graduate Reader are not editors.

The dissertation (for DMA students) consists of three recitals and a final project, which comprises:

  1. Lecture recital (50–60 minutes) with performance and critical essay (a minimum of 6,250 words)
  2. Lecture (50–60 minutes) with critical essay (a minimum of 10,000 words);
  3. Thesis (a minimum of 25,000 words).
  4. Professional portfolio, consisting of two discrete elements with a unifying theme.

Whichever option the student chooses, they must submit a topic proposal for approval by the GPDC before beginning their project. Detailed guidelines for the topic proposal are available in the "Topic Proposals Guidelines and Materials" page.

Students who choose the first and second option must submit a complete draft of the critical essay to the advisory committee at least four weeks before the scheduled date of the lecture recital or lecture. The committee members will provide the student with feedback for revisions no later than two weeks before that same date. 

Before submitting the topic pre-proposal and topic proposal, DMA students must be familiar with the DMA Dissertation Style Guide and must successfully complete the Copyright and Plagiarism modules found in the Graduate Studies Canvas page.

The Dissertation Defense (DMA Students)

After a draft of the final project has been completed, the student will schedule their final presentation (e.g. the lecture lecture recital) if they are completing DMA options 1 or 2. The defense follows that presentation and can occur on the same day or within one week of that presentation. Students who choose the Thesis or the Professional Portfolio options will schedule a defense only.

Students must schedule their oral defense with their defense committee and the Graduate Studies Office using the Oral Defense Approval Form. This step is to ensure that the student has met all the necessary requirements in order to hold an oral defense.  The advisory committee will have the chance to approve or deny a student's scheduling request.

The defense is a formal meeting of the dissertation committee with the candidate, lasting 60-90 minutes. The defense’s purpose is to demonstrate that the student has a strong command of their subject and to clarify and discuss any additional questions regarding the dissertation topic. It gives the committee a chance to address any doubts or issues, if any, that may arise after the final draft and the public lecture.

The DMA defense is usually between the candidate and their committee, and it does not have to be public, but if the student and the committee choose, an audience or guests may attend. The defense consists of a scholarly conversation on the subject of the candidate’s project. Defense time must not be primarily used for tasks outside of the scope defined on this document, such as proofreading the final project. Changes to the final project may be suggested at or immediately after the defense. Projects requiring extensive revisions must be approved by the dissertation committee before submitting the definitive version to the Graduate Studies Office.  

Part of the defense is careful review (by the student and committee) of copyrighted materials. This includes musical examples, quoted prose, and illustrations, plus confirmation that the appearance of previously-published prose is appropriately attributed (using citations and quotation marks) as necessary. The reprint of musical examples which are not public domain and do not constitute “fair use” must be accompanied by permission from the copyright holder.

See the UNT Library’s website for further information on Fair Use.

Once the student has passed the oral defense, they shall incorporate any revisions noted by the committee and submit their document to the Graduate Studies Office via Canvas for the approval of the Director of Graduate Studies and the Dean of the College of Music no less than two weeks before the Graduate School’s posted graduation deadline. 

Once a student's document has been approved by the Director of Graduate Studies, the Graduate Studies Office will notify the student and Major Professor. Instructions for the final submission process with the Toulouse Graduate School will be included in this message.