Tips for conducting a master’s thesis defense

Although there are the general normals of the postgraduate programs, the norms of the PPCIC and the student manual, it is always good to read the reports of the procedures performed by the alumni to discover the “tips and tricks”. Nothing better than counting the goodwill of Rafael Guimarães Rodrigues, our first student to defend, who elaborated an excellent script of the steps for the defense. He warns that if there is any discrepancy between his tips and the rules and regulations, it is worth the official regulations…

His tips have four steps:

Step 1-At least 60 days before the defense

1. Send the jury committee request (DIPPG-Depog-Banca_ 1.1. pdf), together with academic production (Academic production. docx), Update the Lattes curriculum to include papers published/submitted. Include the first page of submitted/published papers together with jury committee request. Academic production must indicate compliance with specific normative intellectual production in the master’s degree course in Computer Science.
2. Send an email to both requesting to put on the agenda of the next collegiate meeting the approval of the jury committee request.
3. Check with the coordinator, if he placed the jury committee request on the COPEP agenda. COPEP meetings happen every month. Only after approval in COPEP can the student request a jury committee appointment at the Secretariat (step 2) at least 15 days in advance of defense day.

Step 2-At least 15 days before the defense

Take the following documents to the Postgraduate secretary:

1. Digital media containing the following dissertation/thesis data:
   1. The title, summary, conclusion, the name of the applicant and nominal relationship of the members of the committee with their titration and their institutional link in a file in the extension *.RTF (I suggest sending a PDF too);
2. Original dissertation/thesis without binding;
3. The term of responsibility signed by the student (DIPPG-Depog-Marcacao_defesa_ 1.1. pdf);
4. Curriculum Lattes and CPF of the members of the committee who are not professors of CEFET/RJ. If you are a foreign member, you must take your DBLP and the date of birth.
5. Reserve the room for the defense and communicate to the members of the committee, sending information about the address and how to get to the institution.

Step 3-on the day of the defense

Important actions on the day of the defense:

1. Arrive at least 1 hours in advance;
2. Open the room, air it and test the presentation and the Internet, if necessary;
3. Bring water and cups to you and the members of the committee;

Step 4-Final version delivery

Required actions:

1. Send the PDF of the dissertation to the library so that the Librarian (O) provides the library record (usually, ask for 2 to 5 working days of the deadline to deliver).

Required documents for final version delivery and Diploma request:

1. Copy of RG and CPF authenticated;
2. Copy of the certified birth certificate;
3. Copy of the Diploma of graduation authenticated;
4. Diploma Request (DIPPG-Depog-solicitation-de-issuance-de-Diploma. pdf);
5. Request for diploma (General application. pdf);
6. Delivery and Authorization term (DIPPG-Depog-007_termo_delivery_original. pdf);
7. Nothing is contained in the Central Library of CEFET/RJ (nadaConstaBiblioteca.pdf);
8. Dissertation protocol indicating the minutes of defense signed by the members of the committee and with the library record generated by the library (before binding, you must take the PDF to the secretariat of DIPPG to see if everything is correct for the binding). The binding and positioning of the library record and the minutes of the defense must follow the rules contained in the document “Manual for the elaboration of theses dissertations and monographs. pdf”.

The suggestion of requirements:

1. School history (General application.pdf, you must select the historical option);
2. A statement that the diploma is in the preparation phase (General application. pdf, you must select the options statement and specify just below). The statement usually gets ready in a week.

Note: DIPPG launches the student’s data in the system and forwards it to the Derac for the diploma to be made by CEFET/RJ. I suggest contacting the Derac to inquire about the progress of the diploma.