Final Arrangements & Completing Your Thesis/Dissertation
- Prepare the final version of your thesis/dissertation, following guidance from your advisor. Submit the final version to your advisor. Once your advisor confirms readiness for defense, they will send the thesis/dissertation to the Graduate School of Education (GSE) Office through the respective department).
- Defend your thesis/dissertation*, and incorporate any necessary revisions as advised by your committee members and advisor.
- Ensure that the Approval Pages are signed in blue ink by your committee members. Confirm with the GSE Office the quantity of additional copies required.
- Obtain the ultimate approval from the GSE Office, ensuring that the document meets all formatting requirements before moving onto the binding process.
- Begin the exit procedures which include the following steps:
- Visit the Council of Higher Education’s Thesis Center (Ulusal Tez Merkezi) website to complete the Thesis/Dissertation Data Entry Form (Sample Form) following the provided guidelines given. Download and bring at least three copies of the completed form to the Office of the GSE.
- Prepare 3 CDs, each containing your thesis or dissertation saved with reference number provided by the Thesis Center (i.e. referencenogiven.pdf), and label each CD accordingly. Bring at least three completed forms to the GSE Office.
- Bring at least three bound copies of your thesis/dissertation to the GSE Office for approval, and the signature of the Director of the Graduate School of Education. Leave one copy with the Office and once copy with your Department.
- Take a signed and approved bound copy to the Bilkent University Library along with a Thesis/Dissertation Database Submission and Permission Form as well as one of the CDs. Leave the other two CDs with the GSE Office.
- Fill out the Graduate Thesis/Dissertation Access Postponement Request Form (if applicable), and submit it to the Library (optional). Please note that obtaining approval from the GSE Executive Board should be done well in advance.
- Complete the termination of enrollment form (İlişik Kesme Formu)
* Note that PhD Oral Defense is a two-stage examination. In the first stage, the committee convenes privately to confirm whether there is a published manuscript stemming from the PhD study (or one accepted for publication), and to discuss if it is in line with the Bilkent University Graduate Studies Rules and Regulations (re: Article 6.6). If the answer is “Yes”, the committee proceeds to the next stage, i.e. the Oral Defense; if “No”, the meeting is adjourned.