Approaching Faculty for Thesis and Dissertation Committees

Relationships with faculty are critical to your success - both in securing admission to graduate school and in navigating the bumps and hurdles entailed in graduate study. One of the most daunting tasks (of many!) is the thesis or dissertation, major components of master's and doctoral degrees. Most universities require that theses and dissertations be supervised and judged by a committee of faculty.

Recently I received an email from a reader requesting advice on composing a committee to supervise her master's thesis. "How do you go about approaching faculty members to sit on your committee?" she asked. Of course this is a complex question, but my advice is as follows.

• Speak with your advisor/mentor to learn about how students in your program go about assembling a committee. If you do not yet have an advisor, that's your first step -- locating someone with whom to work. Once you have a mentor/advisor, he or she can tell you about the local norms.
• As for who to look for, seek your mentor's advice again because you need someone who you mentor feels he or she can work with. Also your mentor will have info about the faculty's history (e.g., if he or she is contentious). But also seek input from other students as to how they secured a committee, what kinds of things they looked for, and their experience with particular faculty.
• It all comes down to communication -- getting to know faculty who you will invite to be on your committee, communicating with your mentor about your needs, his or her needs, and potential candidates, and communicating with other students about their observations, experiences, and history

Also see: Guide to Mentors and Advisors
Thesis and Dissertation Advice
Make Research Contacts with Faculty