All programs, regulations, and schedules of dates are subject to change or withdrawal depending on the availability of funds and the approval of programs by appropriate state authorities. It is the student’s responsibility to be aware of University, Graduate School regulations, policies, and procedures as set forth in this Bulletin and in all official campus publications and notices.
Organization of The Graduate School
Under the direction of the provost, Graduate School administration rests with the dean and the administrative staff of the Graduate School in conjunction with the Graduate Council.
The Graduate Council
The membership of the council includes one representative from the library, one professional employee, and two representatives each from the faculty of the Health Sciences Center, the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, the Division of Humanities and Fine Arts, the Division of Social and Behavioral Sciences, and the Division of Natural Sciences. One of the two Health Sciences Center representatives must be from Basic Health Sciences. Additional members include two graduate students chosen by the Graduate Student Organization. Elected faculty members serve for three years with staggered terms. The chairperson and the secretary of the Graduate Council are elected by the council. Among other duties detailed in the “Faculty By-Laws,” the council must approve all graduate programs before their submission to the SUNY System Administration Office and the State Department of Education.
Research Mentor Training
All new faculty at the rank of assistant professor, including lecturers,hired on or after Fall 2025 are required to complete the research mentor training offered by the Graduate School. Faculty who do not fulfill this requirement within one year of hiring will not be permitted to serve as primary research advisors until they have satisfactorily completed the training. During the first year at Stony Brook University, new faculty may recruit and support trainees; however, it is expected that a temporary co-advisor will be appointed for each trainee until the new faculty member has satisfactorily completed the required Graduate School research mentor training. If a co-advisor with sufficient disciplinary knowledge is not available, the primary department chair or the Graduate Program Director will serve as the co-advisor.
The required training, Optimizing Research Mentoring for Faculty, is an 8-hour workshop, typically offered over two half-day sessions by CIMER-trained Graduate School facilitators. The training develops competencies that include: aligning expectations between mentors and mentees, articulating a mentoring philosophy, assessing mentee understanding, cultivating ethical behavior, fostering mentee independence, nurturing wellbeing, maintaining effective communication, promoting professional development, and practicing inclusion. Faculty who complete this training receive in-depth preparation for using the Graduate School mentoring plan to implement effective mentoring practices.
The Graduate School offers Optimizing Research Mentoring for Faculty three times annually (fall, spring, and summer) in person. Virtual formats and additional sessions may also be arranged to meet an increased demand for training.
The Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Professional Development will work collaboratively with the Provost’s Office to notify all new faculty who are subject to this policy about the requirement of this training and when the training will be offered. The Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Professional Development maintains a record of attendance at all training sessions. Faculty who satisfactorily complete the training will receive a certificate of completion and digital badge. Attendance records will be shared with the Provost’s Office to ensure compliance with this policy.
The Department/Program
Each department exercises a large measure of responsibility for its graduate programs. Under the general responsibility of the departmental chairperson, each department has a graduate program director who administers graduate activities. Each program also has an appeals and grievances committee comprised of equal numbers of faculty and graduate student members. Individual programs select graduate applicants and recommend them for admission to the dean of the Graduate School. The programs are responsible for the nomination of students and applicants for fellowships, traineeships, assistantships, and tuition scholarships, as well as for the administration of graduate programs, including coursework, supervised research, teaching assistantships, and graduate examinations. It is the program that certifies to the Graduate School that the student has completed all degree requirements. Graduate programs not housed in specific departments are governed by interdepartmental faculty committees chaired by a graduate program director. For purposes of graduate education, they function as do departments in other disciplines.
Program Rules
All PhD programs must have a set of program bylaws or rules that establish the governance structures for the program as well as the rights and responsibilities of faculty and students. These rules should be available in one or more documents to current and prospective faculty and students. Programs are free to craft their own by laws/rules, but they are expected to be consistent with the Guidance on PhD program bylaws/rules.
Graduate Program Directors
It is the prerogative of the faculty members of any graduate program at the Stony Brook University to recommend a Graduate Program Director to the Graduate School. The Dean of the Graduate School may accept the nomination or, after consultation with Academic Deans and/or the Provost, reject the nomination. The Graduate School will collaborate in monitoring the function of the Graduate Program Directors. The Dean of the Graduate School may remove a Graduate Program Director after consultation with the Department Chair, Unit Head, Academic Dean, and/or the Provost.
It is the policy of the Graduate School that the Graduate Program Director shall normally be chosen from a program’s Full Professors. Any exceptions to this policy must be explained and justified to the Dean of the Graduate School. In cases in which there is an associate director or its equivalent, that position shall be filled from among the tenured faculty. Again, the Dean of the Graduate School will evaluate requests for exceptions to this policy.
|