Project and Thesis

Graduate Thesis and Project Initiation Process

If you are a classified student (meaning if you do not have a conditionally classified status), have satisfied the GWAR, and have an approved Candidacy form, you can register for the graduate project. For the first term project courses (ME295, ME299), you are not allowed to preregister. You must have a project proposal, evaluated and approved by your project advisory committee.

There is a project orientation meeting every semester. The ME department sends out an email informing all the currently enrolled graduate students about these meetings. The orientation meeting is a good place for initiating your project. You will receive detailed information on the project requirements, meet the professors in your area of interest, and find out what projects are available in the department. The orientation meeting is very important for identifying and initiating your prospective project. 

Committee Formation

Once you have identified and selected a topic and Committee Chair for the project, ask your Committee Chair for recommendation to select two additional committee members. The student is expected to contact the recommended committee members to receive their agreement to serve on the committee. Committee members are expected to add value to your thesis or project through their knowledge and expertise.

Guidelines to be followed when forming the project/thesis committee

  • Committee Chair: Must be a full-time faculty member within the ME department
  • Committee Member 1: Preferably a full-time or adjunct faculty member within the ME department, or a full-time faculty member within another SJSU department.
  • Committee Member 2: Preferably a full-time or adjunct faculty member within the ME department, or a qualified individual specializing in the area of student's project topic.

The next step is to work with your Committee Chair and prepare the proposal following the department guidelines.

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