An Examination Committee is formed by the College Graduate Office or the Program Coordinator/Director after a thesis/dissertation receives approvals from both the Advisory Committee (Form G11) and an External Evaluator (FORM G13).

The Examination Committee, responsible for overseeing master's theses and doctoral dissertations, should adhere to the following guidelines:

• The Committee should have an odd number of members.
• The Committee should comprise at least three faculty members.
• Representation in the Committee includes:
• A member from the same department
• A member from a separate department
• For a doctoral degree, a member from a different university.
• The primary supervisor and, if applicable, the assisting supervisor.

The proceedings of the defense session are supervised by the Chairperson, who ensures protocol adherence and has no voting rights. The initial segment of the defense is open to a public audience. It includes a 15–20-minute presentation followed by a brief 5–10-minute Q&A session with the audience. Then, attendees other than the Examination Committee and the Examined Candidate are asked to leave by the Chairperson so the Committee can engage with the candidate for an extended 30-minute questions session. Following this session, the Chairperson asks the candidate to leave the room.

The Committee studies the defense and reaches a decision by a majority vote; a decision mandates at least a 2/3 majority consensus.

The decision can be categorized as:

• Pass
• Pass with Minor Revisions1
• Pass Pending Major Revisions1
• Not Passed

Finally, the candidate is briefed on the Committee's verdict. All the Examination Committee members should sign two report sheets: (FORM G14) and (FORM G15). Any additional comments will then be submitted to the Graduate School by the Chairperson along with the previous forms.