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Before the oral preliminary exam, the student should have chosen a committee and completed the problem definition, literature review, and have a recommended course of action for solution of the problem. Normally, the preliminary exam consists of a presentation not to exceed 1 hour in length. Students should schedule 1 1/2 hours for their preliminary exam. Students should distribute at least one week in advance a copy of their slides to the committee. The slides should as a minimum include proposed title, thesis outline with timelines, problem statement, summary of literature search, scholarly contribution of research, potential sources for publication of papers associated with research, list of references, sources of data, validation and verification, and student's expectations of the committee.

The Preliminary Examination must be taken at least one year before the degree is awarded. The report on Preliminary Examination form must be filed with The Graduate School.

Immediately upon becoming a doctoral candidate, the student needs to select a Research Advisor and finalize the broad research topic proposed as part of the written/oral examination process. The Research Advisor can request that the Department Head nominate additional members of the Advisory Committee. A thesis committee is composed of a least four persons, one of whom must be a Stevens professor from another department. It is permissible and desirable to have as a committee member a highly qualified person from outside Stevens. The chair or co-chair must be a tenure-track, fulltime professor. A Thesis Advisory Committee Appointment form is completed and submitted to the Dean of The Graduate School for approval.