• Advising  —  checklist for PhD progress
• MA Oral Comp Exam  —  form(s) for committee approval, exam scheduling
• PhD Qualifying Exam  —  form(s) for committee approval, exam scheduling
• Program or GRS Petitions  —  form(s) for departmental, GRS requests
• Dissertation  —  form(s) for committee, prospectus approval
• PhD Final Exam  —  form(s) for committee approval, exam scheduling

• Astronomy PhD Program Handbook

• Progress Checklist for Astronomy Department PhD Students — (July2023)
• Academic Progress Timeline

Astronomy Department —

• Students seeking approval of changes to Astronomy Department rules and procedures *only*, related to the PhD program, should complete the Astronomy General Petition for Changes in Graduate Studies to request such changes. The completed petition form is reviewed by the student’s Faculty Advisor as well as the Director of Graduate Studies.

Graduate School (GRS) —

• Requirements for petitioning changes to Graduate School rules can be found on the GRS Bulletin Policies website, and are not covered by the Astronomy Department petition form.

These guides cover procedures related to the Department of Astronomy’s PhD Qualifying Exam process, as well as information related to the Graduate School’s PhD Final Examination (Dissertation Defense) process for Department of Astronomy graduate students.

• Astronomy PhD Qualifying Examination Procedures
• PhD Dissertation Defense Procedures

• GRS Academic Policies and Conduct Code
• GRS PhD Degree Requirements — (General)
• GRS PhD Student Resources
• GRS PhD Student Forms & Procedures
• Graduate Student Life

• Astronomy Graduate Course Registration Procedures
• GRS Registration Resources:
  • GRS Registration Policies
  • GRS Fall Registration Info
  • GRS Spring Registration Info
  • GRS Summer Registration Info

• Registration  —  form(s) related to ASTR research courses, continuing study

• Course Inventory – Graduate Courses

• Undergraduate Lab Manuals
• Graduate Lab Manuals

• BU Blackboard
• LETS Classroom Technology Support (General Classrooms)
• AS Course Lab Manuals

Student Travel

Graduate students often have the opportunity to travel for conferences or invited talks, for research in coordination with your research advisor, or as part of an academic class. Many aspects of typical travel such as airfare, accommodations, or conference registration, can be taken care of on your behalf according to the University’s travel policies through administrative department coordinators.

Coordinating Travel

**Prior to looking into any travel plans on your own** — please discuss the trip with your research advisor, regarding what costs they are covering, what costs you would be responsible for, general scheduling, and what funding source may be covering your travel. If the trip will be covered via university funding, your research advisor should indicate to you the type of funding, which will clarify whom to coordinate with.

• Department-Sponsored Travel
  Travel sponsored by the Department of Astronomy (or via non-grant university funding such as on an Astronomy faculty member’s startup account) should be coordinated with the Department Administrator. Please reach out to the Department Administrator to discuss your travel needs as soon as you have confirmed your travel plans and funding source with your research advisor or academic instructor.
• Grant-Funded Travel
  Any travel funded through a grant associated with a Department of Astronomy faculty member or a researcher through the CSP or IAR research offices, must be coordinated with the Fiscal Coordinator of the CSP/IAR Research office, to ensure grant restrictions and travel requirements are met. The CSP/IAR Research office has specific procedures for travel or expense-related requests, so it is important to check in advance to discuss what information may be needed:
  • Center for Space Physics (CSP) Resources – Travel
  • Institute for Astrophysical Research (IAR) Resources – Travel

**Remember – travel costs (especially airfare) can change very quickly so plan to coordinate with the Department Administrator or Fiscal Coordinator well in advance.

Student Reimbursements

Reimbursements for Boston University travel and business expenses are managed through SAP Concur, which unfortunately is not accessible by students or guests. Any student reimbursement request should be routed through the appropriate contact/process:

• Department Administrator — academic travel, some non-grant research travel (i.e. faculty startup), other department-sponsored travel
• CSP Reimbursement Process — grant-funded research travel, other research-related travel funded through CSP
• IAR Reimbursement Process — grant-funded research travel, other research-related travel funded through IAR

The Department of Astronomy has several conference rooms and classroom spaces that may be reserved by Astronomy faculty, staff, or students.

• Astronomy Room Reservation Procedures

Reminders:

• Please reserve the room ahead of time to confirm use.
• All room requests are moderated.