Annual Meetings and Reports
Beginning in the fourth year, students are encouraged to consult with their respective Advisory Committee members to discuss their progress in coursework, examinations, and research. Formal Advisory Committee meetings are optional unless one is specifically requested by the student, the advisor, an Advisory Committee member, or the Vice Chair for Graduate Studies. All students in their fourth year or later are required to complete an annual Post-Candidacy Progress Report. These reports will be completed via DocuSign for 2024. Additionally, all students in their second year or later are required to submit an annual Activity Report.
PCPR and Activity Report requirements by year in program
- Advisory Committees will be requested by students in July of the first year and will be finalized by the Graduate Studies Office at the beginning of a student's second year in the program.
- Advisory Committees should only have three members: the advisor and two other members of the Chemistry graduate faculty.
- The two other members of the Chemistry graduate faculty can be from any division. Rules or restrictions regarding in- or out-of-division representation were eliminated in Autumn 2021.
- One member of the Advisory Committee can be from outside of the Chemistry program, provided that they are a member of the graduate faculty of another OSU graduate program.
- There are no PCPR or Activity Report requirements for first-year students.
Each student must submit an Activity Report by June 30th. This report must be submitted at https://go.osu.edu/2025activityreport.
Each student must submit an Activity Report by June 30th. This report must be submitted at https://go.osu.edu/2025activityreport.
- The PCPR and Activity Report must be completed before June 30th in the summer term of the 4th year.
- The Advisory Committee must still provide comments on the student's PCPR, but Advisory Committee meetings are optional.
- A full committee meeting can be scheduled at the student's or advisor's request or the student can request to schedule individual meetings with their Advisory Committee members.
- Advisory Committee meetings can be held at any point during the year.
- A full committee meeting can be scheduled at the student's or advisor's request or the student can request to schedule individual meetings with their Advisory Committee members.
- Each student must submit an Activity Report by June 30th. This report must be submitted at https://go.osu.edu/2025activityreport.
- The Advisory Committee must still provide comments on the student's PCPR, but Advisory Committee meetings are optional.
*Students who do not complete a PCPR and/or Activity Report by the end of their fourth year will be considered as not making reasonable progress in their PhD program and will receive one semester of probation to come into compliance.*
Provided that the student has an approved summer term Application to Graduate:
- An advisory committee meeting is not required.
- A PCPR is not required
- An Activity Report is not required
*Please note - a 5th-year student who initially applies to graduate in the summer term of their fifth year but who does not complete graduation requirements during that term is then required to submit a PCPR and Activity Report as early as possible and no later than August 15th of the summer term of the 5th year. The PCPR and Activity Report will serve as the student's petition for financial support beyond the 5th year. Further instructions are included in the following section.
This pertains to students in the 5th year who do not have an approved summer term Application to Graduate.
- The PCPR and Activity Report must be completed before June 30th in the summer term of the 5th year.
- The Advisory Committee must still provide comments on the student's PCPR, but Advisory Committee meetings are optional.
- A full committee meeting can be scheduled at the student's or advisor's request or the student can request to schedule individual meetings with their Advisory Committee members.
- Advisory Committee meetings can be held at any point during the year.
- A full committee meeting can be scheduled at the student's or advisor's request or the student can request to schedule individual meetings with their Advisory Committee members.
- Each student must submit an Activity Report by June 30th. This report must be submitted at https://go.osu.edu/2025activityreport.
- The Advisory Committee must still provide comments on the student's PCPR, but Advisory Committee meetings are optional.
The PCPR and Activity Report will serve as the student's petition for financial support beyond the 5th year. The student's Autumn Graduate Associate appointment will only be processed in Workday if the petition for additional support is approved.
Provided that the student graduates before summer term or has an approved summer term Application to Graduate:
- An advisory committee meeting is not required.
- A PCPR is not required
- An Activity Report is not required
*Please note - any student beyond the fifth year who does not have an approved Application to Graduate for the summer term of the current academic year is required to submit a PCPR and Activity Report by June 30th. The PCPR and Activity Report will serve as the student's petition for continued enrollment in and financial support from the Chemistry PhD program.
Any student beyond the fifth year who initially applies to graduate in the summer term of the current academic year but who does not complete graduation requirements during that term is then required to submit a PCPR and Activity Report by August 15th. The PCPR and Activity Report will serve as the student's petition for continued enrollment in and financial support from the Chemistry PhD program.
The student's Autumn Graduate Associate appointment will only be processed in Workday if the petition for additional support is approved.*
Chemistry Graduate Program Handbook: Advisory Committees, PCPRs, and Activity Reports
After selection of an advisor and in consultation with the student and their advisor, the Vice Chair for Graduate Studies will appoint an advisory committee for each student, typically in the summer at the end of the first year of study. The purpose of the advisory committee is to provide each student with support and guidance during their graduate career. Each year, beginning in their fourth year of study, the student and advisor must provide the advisory committee and the Graduate Studies office with a short research progress summary in the form of a Post-Candidacy Progress Report. Each member of the advisory committee will provide written comments on the student's progress. Either the student or the advisor can request an advisory committee meeting if they feel that this would be a beneficial exercise, or the student can request to meet individually with their advisory committee members to discuss their post-candidacy progress. Although the annual progress reports are typically due in the summer, students are free to meet with any committee member at any time during the year. The department hopes that this process will provide a mechanism for forging closer ties between students and faculty, both before and after graduation, and to provide additional guidance and support to students as they complete their research toward the Ph.D. degree.
The Advisory Committee must include the advisor and two other members of the Chemistry graduate faculty. One member of the Advisory Committee may be from outside of the Chemistry program provided she or he is a member of the Graduate Faculty of some program at the University (i.e., has P-status in some program).
At the end of each academic year, all students must prepare an activity report that outlines their progress towards program requirements, presentations, publications, and other academic and professional activities. The template for the report is in the form of a CV that can be updated each year with a section of questions about program requirements. The report and an advising report must be provided to the Graduate Studies Office by the end of the summer term of each year, with a copy also provided to the advisor. Activity reports are used for advising purposes, but also are used for award nominations and program assessment data.
Students in their fourth year and beyond and their advisors must complete an annual Post-Candidacy Progress Report (PCPR) and provide it to their committees. A committee meeting may be held at the advisor or student’s request, or the student may meet with one or more of their committee members individually. The committee members should provide their comments directly on the form. If the student is petitioning for continued financial support after the fifth year of study, the advisor and committee must assess that petition and the prospects for completion of the dissertation within a year. The completed form must be returned to the Graduate Studies Office by the announced deadline, at which point it will be routed to the committee members for electronic signature.
When completing the PCPR, students are highly encouraged to complete an Individual Development Plan and provide it to the committee with the PCPR. The myIDP site from Science Careers or the ChemIDP site from the American Chemical Society are useful tools for completing and IDP.
Students who reach the end of the fourth year of study who have not yet completed a PCPR will be found not to be making reasonable progress and will receive a short term of probation to come into compliance before being dismissed from the program. The Vice Chair will set a deadline earlier than the end of the summer term (typically around July 15)* for students requesting funding beyond their fifth year. Committee meetings are not required at any point, but if there are issues with progress or other serious matters, a meeting with the full committee is recommended and may be required by the Vice Chair.
*This deadline has been moved to June 30th for the 2023 submission year.