Academic Milestones

Use the PSM checklist to help track your milestones toward degree completion.

   Download the PSM checklist

Final Report

At the conclusion of your Internship, you will be required to write a Final Internship Report, presented in both scientific as well as business plan formats. Specific instructions and requirements for this report are available online. Writing the report will help you understand scientific applications and develop your skills in written communication for both business and technical audiences. Make sure that you share your final internship report with your major professor and graduate committee members at least two weeks in advance of your final examination to allow time for feedback and revisions.

Final Exam/Defense

All Master's degrees require a final oral exam. You must have satisfied your Program of Study requirements and have a cumulative graduate GPA of 3.00 in order to schedule the final oral examination. All incomplete course work appearing on the Program of Study must be completed prior to scheduling the exam. You will be expected to present results from your internship experience as a seminar open to all graduate students and departmental members (alternative arrangements will be made for students who were required to sign confidentiality agreements with companies where they conducted their internships). After the seminar, only Graduate Committee members will remain to ask questions about your internship, coursework, and other topics relevant to your field of study.

Contact members of your graduate committee to arrange the date and time for your final exam at least one month in advance. The exam should be scheduled for two hours wiht the first hour for your presentation and general audience Q&A, and the second hour for committee questions and deliberation. Ecampus students should schedule a Zoom session, and Corvallis campus students should contact [email protected] to schedule a room on campus or Zoom session, or both. Final exams may be held only during the periods when classes are in session (including finals week), and you must be registered for a minimum of 3 credits when you take your final exam.

You are responsible for:

  1. Making arrangements for the final exam with your graduate committee
  2. Scheduling a room and/or Zoom session for the final exam
  3. Informing the Graduate School of the date, time and place of the exam using the Event Scheduling Form at least two weeks in advance of the exam date
  4. Notifying and reminding the committee of the exam date, time and location
  5. Submitting a defense announcement to [email protected], including title, date and time, Zoom link if relevant, and abstract.

It is generally expected that all committee members or approved substitutes must be physically present for all meetings required by the Graduate School and for all formal examinations. If you have a special case in which a committee member may need to participate remotely, please review the committee presence guidelines.

See all academic deadlines for the Graduate School »

Executive summary, bio and photo

Write a 4-6 page summary of your internship final report including graphics and references, and deliver it to your committee along with a one paragraph bio and professional photo two weeks prior to the defense. For examples, please refer to the alumni stories page and follow the executive summary guidelines.

Exit Interview

Schedule your exit interview with the major professor at the same time that you're scheduling your final oral exam. If revisions are still required, please send a final copy once they have been completed. The interview shouldn't take more than 20 to 30 minutes and will give us an opportunity to learn about your experiences as a PSM student so that we can continually improve our program. Please sign up for our Facebook and LinkedIn pages before you graduate.