🎓 PhD Milestones Checklist

A PhD is a 4–7 year project with no external accountability structure. This checklist gives you that structure — a year-by-year roadmap from day one through defense.

Year 1: Foundation

Semester 1

Academic:

  • Complete registration and course enrollment
  • Attend all required orientation events
  • Meet with department graduate advisor to plan coursework
  • Attend all department colloquia and seminars
  • Read 10 foundational papers in your target area

Community:

  • Introduce yourself to all faculty in your research area
  • Join the graduate student association
  • Identify potential lab rotation advisors (if applicable)
  • Attend one reading group or journal club

Infrastructure:

  • Set up all academic accounts (GitHub Education, ORCID, Google Scholar)
  • Configure development environment and HPC access
  • Set up reference manager (Zotero)

Semester 2

  • Complete first lab rotation or research project
  • Produce a literature review or survey memo on a specific topic
  • Identify 2–3 potential research directions
  • Present preliminary ideas to a faculty member
  • Begin advisor search conversations (see guides/02-choosing-advisor.md)

By end of Year 1:

  • Primary advisor selected and lab join confirmed
  • Funding and stipend source confirmed
  • Coursework plan for years 2–3 established
  • First rough research idea documented in writing

Year 2: First Research Project

Semester 3

  • Begin first research project with advisor
  • Meet with advisor weekly (at minimum biweekly)
  • Set up experiment tracking system (W&B, MLflow)
  • Read 30–50 papers in your specific research area
  • Submit to at least one workshop or non-archival venue

Semester 4

  • Submit first paper to a conference (even if rejected — the process is the training)
  • Begin qualifying exam preparation
  • Identify potential committee members
  • Attend first major conference in your area
  • Update your personal website with your research

By end of Year 2:

  • At least one paper under review or submitted
  • Committee assembled (or plan in place)
  • Clear primary research direction identified
  • First conference attended
  • Completed all required coursework (or on track)

Year 3: Qualifying Exam & First Publication

Qualifying Exam Milestones

  • Confirm exam format with department (written, oral, proposal-based)
  • Obtain list of past qualifying exam questions from department
  • Form study group with peers
  • Complete practice exams / mock oral exam
  • PASS QUALIFYING EXAM ← Major milestone
  • Celebrate appropriately

Research Milestones

  • First major conference paper accepted (A or A* venue)
  • Present at the conference
  • Dissertation proposal drafted (for proposal-based programs)
  • DISSERTATION PROPOSAL DEFENDED (if required)

By end of Year 3:

  • Qualifying exam passed
  • First publication in a top-tier venue
  • Dissertation scope defined
  • Apply for NSF GRFP or equivalent fellowship (if eligible)

Year 4: Research Momentum

Publications

  • Second major conference or journal paper submitted
  • Consider a journal extension of your best conference paper
  • Present at 2+ conferences or workshops this year

Career Development

  • Apply for research internship at industry lab (applications open August–November)
  • Complete internship (summer) and negotiate return offer / paper plan
  • Update CV and research statement
  • Begin thinking about job market timeline

Dissertation

  • Write at least one dissertation chapter
  • Schedule informal committee meeting to present progress
  • Identify the core thesis: “My dissertation argues that…”

By end of Year 4:

  • 2–3 publications in top venues
  • Internship completed
  • At least one dissertation chapter drafted
  • Career path decision (academia vs. industry) solidified

Year 5: Dissertation and Job Market

First Half of Year 5

Dissertation:

  • All dissertation chapters drafted
  • Committee reads full draft
  • Incorporate committee feedback
  • Final committee approval of dissertation

Job Market (Academic):

  • Applications assembled (CV, research statement, teaching statement, diversity statement)
  • Reference letters requested (minimum 3 months in advance)
  • Applications submitted (October–November)
  • Phone/video interviews (November–February)
  • Campus visits (January–March)

Job Market (Industry):

  • CV and resume updated
  • LeetCode practice (if targeting engineering roles)
  • Applications and referrals submitted
  • Interviews completed

Second Half of Year 5

  • Job offer received and negotiated
  • DISSERTATION DEFENSE SCHEDULED
  • Final dissertation submitted to committee
  • DISSERTATION DEFENDED 🎉
  • Required revisions completed
  • Final dissertation submitted to graduate school
  • Degree conferred

Recurring Annual Milestones

Every year of your PhD, repeat these:

Academic Year Start (September)

  • Renew GitHub Student Pack and other academic benefits
  • Update personal website with new publications and projects
  • Set annual research goals with advisor
  • Update committee on progress (if not done at end of previous year)

Conference Submission Seasons

Grant/Fellowship Applications

  • NSF GRFP (October) — Year 1 or 2 of PhD
  • Conference travel grants — before each conference
  • Department fellowship competitions — typically September or January

Wellbeing Milestones

These are equally important:

  • Schedule a real vacation (not a “working vacation”) once per year
  • Maintain a non-research hobby or activity throughout the PhD
  • Regularly assess: am I thriving, surviving, or struggling? Seek help early if struggling
  • Annual reflection: Am I on track for my goals? Am I happy in this environment?

Resources