Each PhD student (unless graduating in the current semester or away for field research) is required to complete an IDP, discuss it with his/her supervisory chair or mentor, and submit a signed copy by April 20 of each academic year. Students may update as needed or helpful.
The IDP and the discussion with the supervisory chair/mentor are intended to help the student reflect on his or her goals and paths to achieving those goals. The steps are as follows:
The student should complete a draft of the IDP using this template: IDP_Polisci_Template. This Word document is editable, so expand spacing where necessary, but do not delete any part of the form (other than the introductory pages 1-2).
The student should email the draft of the IDP to the supervisory chair/mentor along with a request for an appointment to discuss it.
The student should revise the IDP after the discussion (if necessary or helpful).
The student and the supervisory chair/mentor should sign the IDP. Either actual or electronic signatures are acceptable.
The student or faculty member should submit a signed copy of the IDP. The name of the file should be Lastname_ Firstname_ IDP_year. Pdf, doc, or docx formats are acceptable.
Eg., Martinez_Michael_IDP_2023.pdf
If the IDP is an update to a previously submitted IDP in the same year, note year.
Eg., Martinez_Michael_IDP_2023b.pdf
The deadline for submission of the IDP (signed by both the student and the supervisory chair/mentor) is April 20 of each spring semester. Please allow enough time to schedule a meeting with your supervisory chair/mentor to discuss the IDP and get his/her signature.
Submit your IDP using this link.
Access to the IDP is restricted to the student, his/her supervisory chair or mentor, the Department Chair, Graduate Coordinator, Associate Chair, and Graduate Secretary. Each student owns his/her IDP, and may or may not choose to share it with others.
If a supervisory chair is unavailable due to sabbatical or other leave in the Spring Semester, the student may choose to discuss the IDP with his/her co-chair (if s/he has one) or with another member of the supervisory committee. If the mentor is on leave and the student does not have a supervisory chair, the student should consult the Graduate Coordinator about who should discuss the IDP with him/her.