Thesis and Dissertation Deadlines
For information on the 2024-2025 Early for Summer, Summer, and Early for Fall deadlines, please visit this webpage.
All deadlines are firm and apply to all written theses and dissertations for all colleges. Colleges, schools, and departments may have earlier and/or additional deadlines. Students need to confirm with their department/college that they have fulfilled all other graduation requirements.
All students must be registered for a minimum of 0.5 credit hour in the current term to receive services.
Students are encouraged to obtain a Pre-Defense Format Review and are required to meet the Post-Defense Format Review Deadline by emailing the content-final, advisor-approved document in Word format to tad@ohio.edu. Students working in LaTeX may submit a PDF.
2025-2026 Deadlines*
| Semester | Year | Graduation Application Deadline | Oral Defense Deadline | Post-defense Format Review Deadline | Final Clearance Deadline: TAD Process Complete |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fall Dissertation | 2025 | Mon, September 29, 2025 | Fri, October 24, 2025 | Fri, October 31, 2025 at 3 P.M. | Fri, November 14, 2025 at 3 P.M. |
Fall Thesis | 2025 | Fri, November 14, 2025 | Fri, November 21, 2025 at 3 P.M. | Fri, December 5, 2025 at 3 P.M. | |
Early for Spring | 2026 |
Mon, February 16, 2026 | Fri, December 19, 2025 | Fri, January 2, 2026 at 3 p.m. | Fri, January 9, 2026 at 3 P.M. |
Spring Dissertation | 2026 | Fri, March 19, 2026 | Fri, March 20, 2026 at 3 P.M. | Fri, April 3, 2026 at 3 P.M. | |
Spring Thesis | 2026 | Fri, April 3, 2026 | Fri, April 10, 2026 at 3 P.M. | Fri, April 24th, 2026 at 3 P.M. | |
Early for Summer | 2026 | Mon, July 13, 2026 | Fri, May 1, 2026 | Fri, May 8, 2026 at 3 P.M. | Fri, May 15, 2026 at 3 P.M. |
Summer | 2026 | Fri, July 24, 2026 | Fri, July 31, 2026 at 3 P.M. | Fri, August 14, 2026 at 3 P.M. | |
Early for Fall | 2026 | Mon, September 28, 2026 | Fri, August 7, 2026 | Fri, August 14, 2026 at 3 P.M. | Fri, August 28, 2026 at 3 P.M. |
All deadlines are firm. Exceptions cannot be granted by TAD Services. | These deadlines are set by the registrar’s office. | If you defend after this deadline, you will not graduate in your intended term. | The document’s content must be final. Only formatting changes allowed after this date. | Students must meet the “Format Review Deadline” to qualify for this deadline. All steps in the TAD Process must be complete by this deadline. | |
1 Early Filing and Completion: Deadlines cannot be moved. If you miss any deadline for your intended semester of graduation, you may avoid paying tuition and fees in the following semester if you meet the following requirements:
- You have no visa restriction requiring you to be registered in the semester you graduate. (You can call International Student and Scholar Services at 740-593-4330 to confirm your eligibility.)
- You have no obligations to your home college (all coursework complete, all requirements met).
- You meet all posted “Early” deadlines.
*If you would like to receive a Word document, or PDF copy, of these deadlines, please email Nathan Blackburn at blackburnn@ohio.edu, with the subject line "TAD Deadlines Document Request."