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Select a faculty advisor
Students should begin thinking about a faculty advisor and committee chair before they begin thesis work.
- For assistance in choosing a faculty advisor, please review our faculty research. Please note that you can still choose a faculty advisor who may not be on that list but may also be found on the all faculty page.
- Once you have selected your faculty advisor, please submit the MASDS Faculty Advisor Form to your faculty advisor. After it is signed by both you and your advisor, submit the form to the SSA, Laurie Leyden.
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Nominate the master's committee
Students complete the Nomination of Master's Committee form at least the quarter before advancing to candidacy.
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Advance to candidacy
The Advancement to Candidacy petition and unofficial transcripts are submitted within the first two weeks of the quarter the student plans to graduate.
- Important dates and required workshops are found here. Please make sure to bookmark the page and RSVP for a workshop when you are ready to start working on your thesis.
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File the thesis
Students send a complete draft to all committee members at least two months before the thesis filing deadline, then upload the final thesis for committee approval.
- Optional: If you still need more time and, after you have advanced, choose to use Filing Fee status instead, you must read the Filing Fee Application website carefully.
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Post filing (optional)
To publish your thesis on the department website, first upload your thesis to ProQuest and wait for your committee to approve it online. Then, while logged into your g.ucla.edu account in a browser, upload your thesis here.
File name: Save your file as Last Name, First Name_Year Completed (for example, Bruin, Joe_Spring 2025).
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MASDS Exit Survey (optional)
After your thesis has been uploaded and approved online, please complete the MASDS Exit Survey. Your participation in the survey is voluntary but highly appreciated.